New Yoke or Bust

Eight years after arriving in Mudos.

“Hey you old goat, how did your latest hunt go? You’ve been gone for almost two months. I was worried you ran out of stamina and could not shake the damage off and were dead.” Asked Spike as Stranger walked into the makeshift camp that has been their home for the last eight years. By this time Spike had lost all of his baby fat and had grown to six feet tall with a little bit of muscle from all the training, he has done. His body has developed to show that he was determined to get stronger. On his body, there were a few scars he gained from over the years mostly training with the Fuzzles and StingBees and a very big one from when one unfortunate accident where a particularly determined criminal tracked the Stranger back to their base camp in the forest to kill him, but instead they ambushed them and he was hit by a heavy-caliber sniper bullet while trying to escape from them, but before they could do any more damage the Stranger saved Spike.

"You can’t get rid of me that easy Spike, but I have some news that you might like to hear."

"What?" questioned Spike.

“I heard of a Vykker in New Yoke who can help you get home, but it’s only a rumor, but more importantly it’s time for you to go out on your own.”

“I repeat. What?!”

“I taught you all I know about surviving, being a bounty hunter and how to find ammo to protect your self and you're just as good with the crossbow as me, and I don’t know if you’ve noticed but over the years your scales have developed to be stronger than the strongest steel and only something with the power of a Thudslug or a Boombat can cause you to take any damage, and even if you do take damage your shake off is better than mine. Also because of your dragon stamina, you can shake off more damage than I ever could. I truly believe you are ready to make your own way. That’s why I’m telling you to go to Gizzard Gulch and say goodbye to the townspeople and see if the sheriff can give you any bounties near New yoke and then make your way there, with the number of criminals in the area you should be fine for work and a way to pay for anything you don’t find. These last eight years with you have been the worst possible time of my life but those years showed me that there is always hope, now git, you’ve waited years to get home and this is your best shot. But to truly make it on your own you will not be taking any other ammo other than the Zappflys and one clip of Bolamites, you will have to find more ammo in the wild.” The stranger said with a mix of sadness and proudness in his voice, seeing the small helpless dragon he took in eight years ago is finally ready to embark on his journey home.

Spike was shocked to hear the man he has spent the last eight years of his life telling him there’s a chance of him going home but he would have to leave his home to follow this rumor, but he was determined to see this rumor to its fullest. So, Spike packed his a backpack with his ammo wheels and his journal that the general store owner gave him the first time he was in town after he left with the Stranger to train, and walked off knowing this could be the last time he sees Stranger, but before leaving Spike told Stranger “Don’t worry your secrets safe with me about what you are, and if your ever in New Yoke Come see me.” Then Spike walked off with a smile ready to begin his journey home.

“Twi go to the next page there should be a drawing of Stranger.”

"Ok Spike." doing as Spike instructed Twilight projected an image of Stranger.

"Ok everyone this is Stranger and he is a Steef, but he is not a normal Steef. He is a Steef that believes he is unworthy of being a true Steef."

"Why does he not see himself as a true Steef?" Applejack asked.

"I don't know the whole story on why, but from what I could get out of him, was that his race was known as some great guardian race of Mudos and out of respect for his race he wanted to strip himself of his identity as a Steef. But not wanting to cause him any more problems I never tried to dig too deep into his history but what he did tell me was that Steefs have two sets of longhorns on both sides of their head, and they have four legs similar to ponies but only on their lower half and larger. But I would learn more about them later on. but to avoid confusion let's get back to the story."

“That was the first day I was on my own, so doing what Stranger suggested I made my way back to Gizzard to talk to Sheriff so he could give me some bounty’s to help me on my way to get to New Yoke but he didn’t have any that I could turn in once I arrived, and I thought to myself ‘what a great way to start my journey home’ and after saying my goodbyes to the Sheriff he pointed me in the direction to the next town and told me to go see the General Store manager. After going all around town saying my goodbyes to everyone, I was told that there was an apple farm on my way to the next town and the farmer was looking for a security guard to help him deliver his stash of moolah from that year’s harvest to the bank in New Yoke city and seeing a perfect opportunity to get to New Yoke while making good time, I made my way to the town gate that takes me to the next town, so I could get to the apple farm." Spike continued.

"After I left Gizzard to get to the apple farm I had heard about. I had to go across a nice bridge built over a small canyon. but as I was crossing I heard a conversation between two minions of the local outlaw Meagly McGraw. Twi one of his bounty posters I kept should be on the first page of the bounty section of my journal, can you please show it to everyone.”

Following Spikes, instruction Twilight flipped through the journal till she found a divider marked bounties and using her magic she projected the bounty poster of McGraw.

"Seeing a good way to pay for some food I decided to cross the bridge and climb down the side of the cliff and collect them, so I could collect some moolah but what I did not know was that they both saw me as I was crossing and that they were both mortar users, and seeing a way to have fun while standing on guard they decided to aim for me. Seeing no way out of trouble I started to sprint my way across the bridge before they started shelling it and destroying the bridge. But they were too fast, and I was caught in the blast and then I landed face-first on the bottom of the canyon, this caused me to lose consciousness when I hit the ground."

There was a low growl coming from almost everyone at the thought that a living creature thought it would be fun to kill but Celestia and Twilight were growling the loudest at the thought that something would try to kill their son/little brother, and then Twilight broke the growl and stated: “If I ever see those two, they will be begging for Tartarus when I’m done with them.” Twilight said with no hint of mercy to be found in her voice.

“Don’t worry I was fine, I have dragon scales remember. The explosion didn’t even hurt, what hurt was when I landed, but what was funny was that they thought I was dead and decided to come closer to rob me, but when they were debating which was going to check my body I started to regain consciousness.”

“Looks like we got him good, why don’t you look to see if he’s got any loot on him?”

“Me?” Said the second mortar goon, not noticing Spike was getting up.

“Yes, you. What, you scared?” asked the first goon, still unaware that Spike was now standing.

“Na…Na I ain't scared of that stinking little…” was all he could say when he noticed Spike standing there with a very pissed look on his face.

“AWWW!!!” both screamed as they ran away.

“I thought you got him?” said one of the goons.

“What I thought you got him?” said the other goon.

Still seeing a small payday and wanting to take his anger out on something, Spike decided to follow the two goons who tried to kill him, getting out his crossbow he placed his Zappflys in the left chamber and added his only clip of Bolamites into his right chamber. He started to hunt them down still with the pissed off look on his face.

After following them further down the path Spike spotted them in an open field that was scattered with junk that they probably used as target practice. Not wanting to end up as part of the scenery Spike had to take them out very fast and knowing that in a long-range fight the goons had the advantage the fight would have to be up close and personal.

Running on all fours, Spike quickly made his way across the field and started to head for the first goon. Deciding to not waste the only ammo he has left and known that he did not want to kill the guy because he was worth more alive than dead Spike did the only thing he could think of, he used his head. Coming within a few feet of the first goon Spike decided to headbutt the goon this caused the goon to fall back on his ass and become knocked out. Seeing the best opportunity to capture him before going for the other one Spike quickly used the capture function on his crossbow and promptly captured the goon. Running across to the other goon spike did the same thing to the other goon and captured him also.

“Great with both of them alive that should give me about fifteen moolah,” Spike said proudly of himself. “That should pay for at least a meal and one night at an inn. But first I need to find that apple farm I was told about and see if they could take me to New Yoke with them.”

As Spike continued up the path to get to the other side of the canyon so he could find the farm, he stumbled across a signpost at a fork in the path with the words Farmer Beek’s Opple farm pointing to the left of the path and a town called Buzzarton pointing to the right, seeing no reason to go to Buzzarton, Spike went down the left path to see about the bodyguard job.

After about five minutes of walking, Spike was at the gate to the farm, but he was then stopped by a guard and was asked… “You here for the security guard gig?” Spike nodded his head. “Great. Go on in and talk to the old man about the details.”

“Got it.” Was all Spike said as he walked on to the farm, when he was out of earshot of the guard he decided to go look around for any ammo he could find for his crossbow, and here’s hoping for the ride to New Yoke. As Spike was approaching the path to the farmhouse he noticed that there were very few apple trees and thought 'this place is nowhere near as large as Sweet Apple Acres’ remembering his homemade Spike feel a little depressed, but he just shrugged it off and continued to look around.

After a few minutes of just walking around Spike heard the unmistakable sound of a Thudslug passing overhead. Thudslugs are perfect for knocking out one target at a time while causing some damage to them as well. Looking up Spike indeed found a few Thudslugs flying overhead and seeing a perfect opportunity to add another ammo type to his arsenal he used his crossbows Zappflys to knock out as many as his backpack could hold.

After gathering the thudslugs Spike decided to go talk to Farmer Beeks who was inside the farmhouse. When he entered the farmhouse, Spike noticed that there was a large amount of Bolamite webs in the corners of the manor and making a note to collect them as well while he stayed on the farm. A few minutes later Spike found the farmer. “Are you Farmer Beek’s?”.

"Yep nice to meet ya big guy. Are you here for the security guard gig? If you are there are three rules you need to follow, rule one: no stealing from the transport, if you are found stealing from me I will report you to the local sheriff and you will be arrested, rule two: when we pass through a town we will stay there for an only one day so grab any supplies you will need before we leave, if you are not there when we leave you will be left and you will lose out on your pay, got it?” Spike nodded. “Lastly, if you are going to work for me you will not touch my daughter, or I will personally hunt you down, understand.” Beek’s said with a glare that could make a manticore run away with its tail between its legs.

"I... I understand sir.”

“Great… Welcome aboard, we are set to leave in a few days so be ready, there is a bed for you to use until then in the barn.” All Spike could do is stare at the farmer with a dumbfounded look on his face from how easily he had been given the job. After accepting the job, Spike headed to the barn to sleep the rest of the day but upon entering the barn he found there to be even more Bolamite webs all around the barn. After looking around for the source of the mess Spike found a large collection of webs in the top part of the barn where a large number of Bolamites were exiting, seeing a great opportunity to add more bolamites to his supply collected some and then went to sleep.

The next morning in the barn, Spike was awoken by the sounds of gunfire and explosions, as someone was yelling “Where’s the moolah, Feather Brain?”. Getting up to see what was going on Spike had a feeling that it would not end well for anyone if he does not intervene so grabbing his crossbow with both Zappfly and his newly acquired Thudslugs in the chambers he made his way to the barn doors to try to stop the problem.

As Spike exited the barn he was met with the sight of the now destroyed front gate and a large group of fifteen figures ransacking the entire farm looking for the farmer's moolah. Seeing no other way of ending the attack Spike made his way to the farmhouse to find out some information about who is attacking. After passing some of the more clueless guards Spike made it to the farmhouse and found both Farmer Beek’s and his daughter huddled together in the safe room, Spike then asked, “Are you both all right?” they both nodded their heads. “Good, now who and why is the farm being attacked?” Asked Spike.

Beek’s responded, “We are being attacked by the McGraw crew and there here for the moolah that you were going to be protecting on the trip.”

"Ok, so I need to stop them, got it.” With that Spike left the safe room and made his way outside.

After securing the house Spike was face to face with four of the cutter grunts that McGraw used as his close-range attackers, swapping out his Zappflys for his Bolamites, Spike used one of his Thudslugs to knock out each of the grunts and then he tied them up using his Bolamites so he could have enough time to capture them all alive. Spike then captured all four of the cutters and then made his way back to the barn. The barn now had two cutters, two riflemen, and a sniper grunt in it. Needing to go get the rest of his gear that he left in the barn when he went to sleep and forget it in all the confusion when he was awoken, but he needed to clear it out first, running to the barn to avoid the sniper, Spike used a Bolamite to tie up the sniper. As Spike makes it to the barn, he used the same tactic he used on the other grunts and capturing all but the sniper. Spike then made his way up to the second floor to deal with the last grunt.

Now that the barn was secure, Spike stocked up on both Thudslugs and Bolamites and was ready for the final fight with McGraw. As Spike exited the barn he heard a mortar shell coming towards him. Running out of the barn, Spike was met with the sight of another mortar grunt and four more cutter grunts. Using the Thudslugs Spike used two on the mortar grunt to keep him knocked out, so he could deal with the cutters. Rushing the cutter grunts Spike headbutted each of them and started to capture them. After capturing all the grunts Spike made it back to the farmhouse to tell Beek’s farm is secure. But on his way to the farmhouse, someone yelled at Spike. “So, this is what’s been taken out my boys. Looks like I’m going to have to deal with you on my own.”

“Yeah, deal with it… and now I’m going to take you out, and then I’m going to turn your ass in when I get to town.” Responded Spike. McGraw then rushed Spike in anger, Spike decided to do a tactical retreat and run back into the farmhouse.

“Good I lost him but now I need to figure out how I’m going to take him in.” running through several ideas on how to deal with McGraw, Spike decided on the one where he would take the least amount of damage and save the farm but that would involve something he was not quite sure he could accept. Spike would have to kill him.

“There’s no other way, the best course of action is killing him, but I will only do that if there is no other way to stop him.” Spike rushed out of the farmhouse to confront McGraw but knowing how to use the environment to his advantage Spike used a rope on the side of the house that could allow him access to the roof. Climbing to the roof of the farmhouse Spike then used his claws to cut the rope attached to one of his Bolamites and fired it to the top of the barn connecting the house to the barn. After testing it by pulling down on it with all his strength, Spike used it to cross to the barn. As Spike was crossing the rope he was right over McGraw who was searching all around for Spike. But unknown to both Spike and McGraw the tensile strength of the Bolamite web and adding spikes near five-hundred-pound weight the spot where Spikes Bolamite attached the rope snapped and Spike started to fall “Aww crap… AWWW!!!”

“Whaaawww” McGraw looked up “Aw Crap.” Spike then landed on McGraw, knocking McGraw out.

“Hey, I’m ok, though that would hurt more, now I have to hurry before McGraw finds me.” Then Spike heard a low groan of something in pain. Looking down Spike saw the unconscious form of McGraw and let out his own groan at how stupidly he had captured McGraw and then he stated, “If I ever tell this story to anyone back home I will skip this part and make it sound like I fought tooth and claw to capture him.”

“...And after a long-fought battle I was able to use my claws and my strength to punch McGraw in the face so hard that I knocked him out, and that’s how I captured McGraw.” Spike ended his story with a shifty look in his eyes.

“Your lying Spike, I can tell by that look on your face. Tell us the truth, Spike.” Retorted Apple Jack.

“Fine, I landed on him after my rope snapped. Happy?”

“Yes.” Applejack responded while Spike groaned with annoyance at the living lie detectors' power to detect bullshit.

Everyone in the room let out a giggle at the actions of Spike. After a few minutes of everyone giggling Spike had enough and with a little anger and annoyance in his voice asked "Everyone done?”

Everyone nodded.

"Good, now let’s get back to the farm.”

After capturing McGraw, Spike then went to go check on Farmer Beek’s and his daughter in the safe room back in the farmhouse. Finding them right where he had left them he told both farmers that the area is cleared and that McGraw was captured but not telling them how he did it.

“Thank you kindly Mr…” asked Beek's.

“Sorry I guess I never gave you my name, it’s Spike, and no problem, getting rid of McGraw benefits both of us.”

“Never the less Mr. Spike I want you to know that you definitely have the job now and thanks to you we will easily make it to Buzzarton this year, so I’m going to give you double whatever McGraw and his crew are worth in addition to the pay you're going to get when we make it to New Yoke.” This left Spike dumbfounded at the kindness of the farmer.

Snapping out of his stupor Spike grabbed Beek’s wing and started to shake it vigorously while saying “Thank you, thank you, thank you”

“N…No pr…Problem Spike, but before anything else happens can you let go of my wing?”

“Sorry,” Spike responded while rubbing the back of his neck.

“Now go rest up, we leave in the morning and I want you to be alert the whole time, and I don’t want to see you slacking off ya hear.”

“Yes Sir.” with that Spike left the farmer and his daughter and went back to his room in the barn to take a well-deserved nap.

Twelve hours later

Spike was awoken by the sound of a rooster call, groaning at the early wake-up call, Spike reluctantly got up and deciding to take one last look around the farm, so he could fill up his ammo Spike got dressed and put his backpack on, and left the barn ready to leave. After using his Zappflys to collect both Thudslugs and Bolamites, Spike heard a very unusual sound, the sound of a clock ticking but what was also unusual was the fact that the sound was coming from right above him, and considering the current time, there was only one thing that would cause that sound. Looking up to the night sky Spike spotted a new ammo type; Boombats the perfect quick damage dealers and one of the few types of ammo that can harm Spike; “Sweet Sapphires what are Boombats doing here I thought they avoided places that are very active. So, what is a flock doing here?” but not looking a gift horse in the mouth and accepting the appearance of the ammo Spike collected as many as he could carry. After collecting as many as he could carry Spike was ready to head out and started for the farmhouse.

When Spike Found Beek’s they greeted each other and confirming that they were ready to depart for New Yoke, they made their way to the farm's transport trailer which was full of this year’s profits. After showing Spike where he wanted him to be for the first part of the trip Beek’s started the transport and they were on their way to their first stop the town of Buzzarton.

The first leg of the trip was uneventful, when they arrived in Buzzarton, the farm transport stopped in front of the local general store so that they could get supplies for the rest of the journey. Getting off the roof of the transport Beeks gave Spike four hundred moolah for any supplies he would need for the rest of the journey, but before going into the store Spike made his way to the local sheriff, so he could turn in McGraw and his gang. After a few minutes, Spike walked out of the office twelve hundred moolah richer with the receipt as proof in his hand. Spike then made his way back to the transport. After giving the receipt to Beek’s so he knows how much his little gift would cost him Spike walked into the store to stock up on anything that would help him. Going up to the store's clerk Spike asked to look at his inventory. Not seeing much in the way of gear, Spike then asked to look at his ammo supply. While he was looking at the inventory Spike noticed something he did not expect to see, he saw three new ammo types, he found the perfect trap and very easily pissed off Fuzzles, the very annoying and loud Chippunks who are perfect for distracting every stupid goon that hears it, and the very stinky and possibly toxic Stunks who are perfect for crowd control and knocking out multiple goons at once.

Buying the maximum amount of ammo of each ammo type. Spike walked out of the store to meet up with the transport and find where they would be staying for the night. After looking around the large town Spike found Beek’s with the transport and he was told that they would be staying in the local inn for the night and that this would be the last hotel that they would be staying at till they reach New Yoke. But before Spike was able to walk off Beek’s said “Spike meet me in the inn for dinner, so we can talk about the finer details for the rest of the trip, but until then you are free to do what you want.”

“Got it, all I’m going to do is ask around about some Vakkr who lives in New Yoke, and then I’m probably going to head back to the inn for dinner.” And with that Spike walked away from the caravan to gather information from the local clakkars.

After an hour of wandering around Buzzerton, Spike had learned about a local named Eugene Ius who is said to be well versed in the history of Mudos and was important to the development of the technology that is used all around Mudos. Spike wanted to talk to Eugene, so he could learn more about Mudos and the technology, but because it was late Spike decided he would find him tomorrow. Spike then walked back to the inn so he could learn more about his duties as Beek’s security guard.

Spike walked into the inn’s diner area looking for the farmer. After looking around the area for a minute Spike heard the voice of his employer calling him over. “Spike. Over here, I saved you a seat at the bar.”. Seeing no reason not to join Beek’s Spike walked over to the bar and sat on the stool next to Beek’s. Beek’s then turned to Spike and said, “order anything you want, my treat.” Proclaimed Beek’s, this left Spike bewildered at the kindness of the farmer.

“Are you sure?” Beek’s only nodded. “Thank you Mr. Beek’s.” Spike then turned to the bartender and asked, “Can I get the largest piece of meat you guys serve and add the strongest drink to go with it?” The bartender just shrugged and walked away.

"Who in Tartarus would give you alcohol, you are still a minor!!" Celestia said in an angry momlestia tone.

"Mom you have to remember that I spent ten years on Mudos, Right now I am twenty-two years old so I'm not considered a minor," Spike responded in a worried tone while trying to calm his mother.

“Hold up! When the hay did you start eating meat?” questioned Rainbow with a hint of disbelief.

“Rainbow Dash stop giving Spike that glare. He is a dragon and even if we prefer gems in our diet that's not the only thing we eat, but if gems are scarce where we live we will have to hunt meat so we can have the minerals like iron in our system, so we can live.” Ember responded.

“Yeah, it turns out that in Equestria we are spoiled when it comes to gems and crystals. As for when I was left with no option but to hunt for meat it was about two years into my training with Stranger. I never dreamed I would eat meat, but during my training, I passed out from malnutrition from only eating plants, up until then I was living off of the plants that I was able to scavenge from the forest, and yes I had Stranger teach me about identifying edible plants, he helped me discern what characteristics are found in most poisonous plants. But one day I was training to run on all fours to maximize my speed when I just suddenly went limp and was flung into a tree. Stranger was watching me when I was not getting up he noticed that I was too weak to even move my body, so he had to carry me back to our camp.” Responded Spike.

“So due to the lack of gems in this place called Mudos and only surviving on plants you found in the forest, in addition to training your tail off you collapsed from a mixture of exhaustion and malnutrition. Spike, you may be a dragon, but you need to know your limits when it comes to your body.” Celestia told Spike like a mother talking down to a young child.

"Yes, mom but it turns out that It wasn’t all bad I learned that I only need to eat meat once every few months to be satisfied, and that would in between I could eat the plants but the first time I had to hunt I felt like I was going to be sick. But after a couple of times eating meat I developed a taste for it but I treat it as a special meal so I don't solely depend on it in my diet. But on that note Mom I would like to be able to hunt in the EverFree forest once a month to get meat, and Fluttershy I would like you to keep me informed on which species is currently overpopulated so I don't hurt the natural ecosystem...more than I already have after losing my ammo" asked Spike while keeping the last part to himself.

"Ok, Spike I can give you the same type of pass I give the royal chefs for when delegates from the more carnivorous races like the Griffins visit so they can get meat. all I ask is you deal with the hunting away from any towns and you end the animal's life quickly and painlessly." Celestia said with a hint of sadness in her voice knowing that one day this would come.

"What about you Flutters?" asked Spike.

"I'm ok with this as well," responded Fluttershy. "I have noticed that there has been a larger than normal population of the animals in the forest for the last few months and that most of them are looking very weak. probably of lack of food."

"Great! Thank you both for the support on this matter, I know that eating meat is a rather delicate issue in Equestria and I give you both my word that I will only hunt the animals that are overpopulating the area and I will not make the animal suffer and I will always give it respect."

Ember broke the small conversation between the three by clearing her throat and saying "That's nice and all that you can be more of a dragon but can we get back to the story pleased?"

"Yeah, sorry about that... So Farmer Beek's and I were at the bar...."

" So here's what's going to happen after we leave Buzzarton. I want you to stay at the top of the transport while we are on the move, it will take us about three weeks for us to get to New Yoke City from here. We will stop twice a day for one hour to refuel and stretch our legs and wings, during that time you will be allowed to leave the transport to scout ahead and restock on any supplies you would have used. if there's trouble you in charge of dealing with it, any outlaws you take out are yours to turn in. After the last stop of the day, we will be on the move for another four hours until we find a good place to stay for the night. At that point, you are responsible for securing the area and protecting the moolah, so after you scout the path ahead of us you will return to the transport, where you will sleep in the cabin of the transport to best protect the moolah. Do you understand what I am asking you to do?"

"I understand Mr.Beek's, don't worry I give you my word that I won't let anything happen to you or the transport." responded spike giving a salute.

"Great, now tell me about yourself while we eat."

"Sure thing, so I am a dragon, I arrived on Mudos over eight years ago after I was taken from my home in Equestria, I was found in the forest just south of Gizzard Gulch by a person I call Stranger, who taught me how to survive on my own. But my only goal is to find a way back to my home. Aside from that their isn't much to know about me." said Spike as he was eating his dinner.

"That is not much but just by looking at you, I can tell you an honest and trustworthy person so that's all I'm going to ask about you. Now eat up and get some rest, the hard part of the job starts tomorrow," responded Beek's as he left his seat to go to bed.

"So with that, I went to bed so I could get up early. the next morning I was able to track down Eugene Ius but he was about to spend the next two years at a local dig site near the town so I was unable to talk with him. So following Beek's orders I jumped to the top of the transport and was ready to get a move on. we soon left Buzzarton and started to make our way to New Yoke." said Spike.

"Did you guys get attacked and have to fight a lot of outlaws so you could protect the moolah from thieves?" Asked rainbow hoping for some excitement in this story.

"No not really, all I did was stay on the roof of the transport during the day where I was able to sunbathe but on occasion, a small group of outlaws would come and try to rob us, but I was able to quickly deal with them. I was also able to see more of Mudos from there thou."

"OHH Come on!!" responded Dash

"It wasn't all bad, I was able to make over two thousand moolah when I turned them in when we arrived in New Yoke."

Three weeks later

"Ok Spike today is the day we should arrive in New Yoke, so when we get into town I recommend you take in those outlaws you have collected over the weeks, then come find me at the bank so I can give you your pay for your work."

as the transport arrived at the New Yoke city gate, Spike jumped down from the top of the transport and started walking to the local sheriff's office. but after looking around for the office and not finding anything Spike asked a nearby Clakker where the sheriff's office is...

"We don't have a sheriff in New Yoke, we have the police force and a place called a bounty store where bounty hunters can go and turn in their bounties. I think they will replace a lot of sheriffs' offices in a few years. also if you looking to turn in some bounties the bounty store is right around the corner." responded the Clakker.

"Thank you..." said Spike walking off to the bounty store. Spike entered the bounty store to turn in the outlaws that he had gathered over the weeks and after turning in all of the outlaw's Spike made over two thousand moolah. Thanking the store operator Spike walked off back to the bank to get his pay for the job.

Arriving back at the bank Spike spotted farmer Beek's waiting outside of the transport for Spike. Spike approached Beek's who then told Spike that his pay would be available tomorrow morning and that he would be paid a flat rate of five thousand moolah for the job in addition to one hundred moolah for each outlaw Spike caught during the trip and the gift of twenty-four hundred from his work on McGraw. lastly, Beek's informed Spike that he wanted Spike to stay at the inn for the next few days so he paid for a room at the inn for Spike, but Beek's also wanted to talk to Spike tonight about something.

Seeing that it was late and not wanting to miss the conversation with Beek's, Spike decided it would be best to go straight to the inn for the night and start his search for this Vykker who could send him home in the morning.

Walking into the inn Spike was told to go to the dining area of the inn to meet with Beek's by the receptionist. walking into the dining area Spike noticed it was empty aside from Beek's and the bartender. Walking over to the bar and taking the seat next to Beek's, Spike turned to Beek's and asked "What did you need sir?".

"Spike I want to ask you a few questions."

"Ask away."

"First. Do you know if you will be able to get home from here?"

"No, I don't, it's only a chance."

"Fair enough, first I'm going to say I do hope you can get back to your home. my next question is very important. would you be willing to come back to the farm with the transport if you are unable to go back to your home? if you say yes you can have a room in the house where you can come and go till you find a definite way home as long as you agree to protect the farm and our guard when we need you."

" Thank you Mr.Beek's, I have to talk to a local Vykkr about getting me home. it will take some time to definitely confirm if he can get me home, but if he can't I will take you up on your offer and I would be glad to work for you."

"Good to hear Spike, if you can I will see you in one year when I come back to deposit my moolah. Before we go our separate ways can I ask you to do me one more favor?"

"Sure what do you need me to do?" asked Spike with a hint of curiosity.

"It's not me it's my daughter, she wants to meet you before we leave for home, I don't know why thou, just remember if you touch her I will hunt you down," responded Beek's with a hint of anger in his voice.

"I understand sir... tell her I'll meet her outside of the inn before you guys leave for home."

With all issues being resolved spike and Beek's got drunk and talked for the rest of the night about their lives.

I'm going to skip what we talked about because I don't really remember... apparently dragons can get drunk but only if they nearly drink a fully stock bar of high-grade alcohol and a good drinking buddy."

Twilight, Starlight, Fluttershy, Applejack, Rarity, Rainbow Dash, Celestia, Luna, Cadance, Thorax, and Velvet all face hoofed and shook their heads at the stupid excuse Spike gave. But Big Mac, Discord, Ember, Shining Armor, and Night Light all nodded their heads knowing from past experiences that one drink can lead to many if it's accompanied by a good drinking buddy.

"Trust me when I say that in Mudos they don't sell any drink with less than ninety-five percent alcohol per volume. But I still drunk Beek's under the table." Spike added this made everyone looked shocked at Spike. "What is there something wrong with what I said?"

"Spike... the highest available alcohol to even us royals is only about fifty percent, any more would be considered for medical uses," Luna responded with a hint of amazement for her nephew and how he even has a liver left after one night of drinking.

"Princess Luna," Ember added. "To us dragons fifty percent is nothing... but even dragons have their limits and its normally about seventy percent, but any more then about ten drinks and we would start to get a little tipsy and then we would be cut off, so we don't go too far and try to fly drunk and crash or in the case of some dragons go on a drunken rampage and attack anything."

"Ok, so what I have gathered is that I'm now both a drunk and even for a dragon shouldn't have a liver at this point." Spike surmised.

Everyone nodded with a hint of worry and disbelief plastered across their faces.

"But knowing Twilight the second I was found and was brought back to the castle she and Starlight both performed some magical medical scans on me to see if anything was wrong... am I wrong?" Spike questioned.

"No... as soon as we placed you in a bed, me and Starlight both performed medical scans and gave the results to nurse Red Heart to check for any problems and she told both of us that aside from some weird marks on your body and the height and weight changes the only problem was a slight concussion from your fall and exhaustion." Twilights' mood then changed to one of concern. " Speaking of those weird marks on your body, we didn't want to move you or wake you up to check so we never saw any of these marks, but now that your up can you show them to us, Spike? Nurse Red Heart told us that over forty percent of your body is covered in these marks and that they range from old to more recent." Twilight added with a hint of worry in her voice.

"I knew this was going to come up sooner or later. Knowing Rarity she would demand that we needed to take new measurements of my body as soon as possible to make me some new clothes, so my guess was she was going to be the first to see my body, and after seeing what has happened to me she would demand I tell her everything that happened, then she would make me tell everyone here the same story, so to cut out the middle mare, I'll show everyone now.".

Everyone nodded at Spikes's assumption of Rarity as she gave a small shrug and added "That is quite accurate to what I would have done."

With some reluctance, Spike stood up and first removed his boots from his legs to show the bite mark scars that ran up both of his legs from his Fuzzle training when his scales weren't as strong as they are now. " I'm going to be completely honest, these should be the oldest ones I have. I got them when I first started training with Stranger when I accidentally walked into one of his Fuzzle traps." Everyone was horrified at the sight that was shown to them, both Fluttershy and Rarity almost fainted as Celestia started to tear up from the sight of her baby being so hurt and knowing she was not there to help him.

Spike then removed his arm mounting for his crossbow and revealed the single circular scar that was hidden underneath, he had received this wound from an outlaw who was aiming for his crossbow but it hit his arm instead. " This one was a bad one," said Spike as he showed the scar to everyone.

"I got it when I was on a hunt in New Yoke, it was able to penetrate the scales on my arm and this made my arm completely useless for the next few days. but even with my useless arm, I was able to capture my bounty and then I promptly took some time off to heal. But it took a few weeks for it to completely heal ." Now Applejack was starting to look pail from what she was seeing and Celestia was slowly crying.

"Now that's all of my small scars, and I'm warning you all now, these were the easiest ones I have, if you don't want to know about the ones on my chest and back I would recommend leaving." Seeing no one getting up to show their support Spike asked once more. "Are you sure?" still no one moved. "Ok..."Spike then removed his poncho to reveal his back and chest. Upon seeing the state his body was in almost everyone looked to be at the point of fainting from the sight his body was in. Celestia, Luna, Both Twilights, Starlight, Pinky Pie, the CMC, and Cadance were openly sobbing for everything Spike had to go through. Both Rarity and Fluttershy had passed out completely. Applejack, Big Mac, Ember, and Shining Armor looked like they were going to throw up. Thorax just had a blank stare on his face trying to process everything Spike had to go through.

"I warned you guys, now I'm not going to go into to much detail about what happened, I don't want to cause any more sadness. But these scars on my back are the result of ammo called Stingbees, each scar is from were multiple rounds hit the same point and got passed my scales, and one of my back spines got shot off completely, but I was able to stop the bleeding quickly but the venom from the bees caused the scars to form. But I was also hit a few times on my chest." Said Spike as he showed only his back to the group. "There is one last scar I need to show you guys but this one is a little hard to talk about because this one was the worst I ever received. This is the last opportunity to leave."

Seeing no one even moving, Spike thought to himself 'Best family ever.' Then he turned around to show a large wound on the right side of his body.

(A.N: this but on the right side and Spike)

The sight of the grisly wound made everyone go silent as they were trying to process what the hell happened to Spike. Then Celestia broke the silence and all the windows in a half-mile radius of her as she fully sobbed at the state her pour son was in.

After twenty minutes of nonstop crying and everyone consoling Celestia, she was able to regain her composure and wiped her eyes using her wings and asked Spike to continue.

" So back when I was training with Stranger..."

Flashback five years ago:

"Spike where are you? I'm back from my hunts and I got a good chunk of moolah from it." Stranger shouted in the forest looking for Spike.

Not making a sound Spike was ready to pounce from the tree above Stranger, to prove just how stealthy he is. Spike then jumped down to surprise Stranger. Turning around and aiming a Bolamite in the direction of Spike, Stranger gave Spike a smirk and said "Nice try kid, but no luck." The next thing Spike knew was that he was tied up in a ball and was hanging from the tree he jumped out of as Stranger walked over and told Spike. "Too predictable, also your weight caused the tree to creek." Then Stranger knocked the hanging Spike making him a pendulum.

After the Bolamite webbing was dissolved Spike and Stranger talked about his latest hunts where Spike was informed that one of the outlaws had a brother who got away from Stranger, they talked throughout the night about many aspects of what Stranger could have done differently. Just then Stranger and Spike heard the sound of a twig snapping, this alerted them making them both stand up but then a loud sound was heard and then Spike was face down on the ground coughing up blood and bleeding out. Stranger then ran to the dying Spike checking to see if he could help him.

"Shit... Spike gets up..."

No response.

"Spike... Show me that you're alive." Spike then coughed up some blood and gave Stranger a smirk.

" Can't get rid of me that easily you old goat."

"Spike, can you run?" Spike shook his head. "Ok, I'm going to move you next to the tree to go capture whoever shot you, don't die while I'm gone, if you do you will never see your family again, and more importantly I would have wasted five years of my life training a dead lizard." They both laughed at the small joke as Stranger pulled Spike to cover, making sure Spike was safe, then running off to capture the outlaw.

"The last thing I saw was Stranger running off, then I passed out due to lack of blood," Spike added.

Now everyone was crying their eyes out, literally in Discords case. "Ok, guys can you stop the crying? I'm fine." Spike asked.

after about five minutes of crying, the sobbing stopped, and Spike continued his story.

Two days after the attack:

Spike awoke slowly and was having trouble breathing as a Clakkers walked into the room. "Good, You finally woke up Spike, How are you feeling?"

With a lot of effort Spike responded " I feel like I was hit by a swarm of Boombats." Spike then turned to the Clakkers who were wearing a white lab coat and asked. "Where am I?"

"Well your back in Gizzard Gulch Spike, you were shot in the chest by a large caliber sniper round that hit you on the right side, the round cracked some of your ribs and damaged a large portion of your right lung but we were able to remove it and you should heal up real nice as long as you don't overexert your self too much. You were brought in by the Stranger you all ways hang around, also you have been out for about two days do to blood loss so we are going to keep you here for observation for a few days, but now that your up some folks are wanting to see you, word spread that our favorite dragon was hurt and in the hospital. So would you like to see them today?" Spike nodded.

"After about a month of taking it easy, I was left with this scar and was back to training."

"I'm so happy that my Little Fire Starter is ok, I don't know what I would do if I lost you to some lone assassin." Celestia sobbed as she held Spike in a bone-crushing hug.

"M...MOM...LET...LET GO!" Spike said as he slowly chocking from the hug.

"Sorry, sweetie," Celestia responded while looking sheepish.

everyone else gave Spike a small smirk for being a mama's drake.

"Can we get back to the story please, also everyone get that smirk off of your faces," Spike said with pink cheeks.

"Uhhh… My head" Spike said as he woke up in a bed with a splitting head ackee. "What the hell happened last night, the last thing I remember was talking to Beek's about his daughter." Spike then remembered that Beek's daughter wanted to talk to him about something before they leave, turning to find the clock, Spike noticed that the time was seven-thirty in the morning, he had only half an hour to talk to Beek's daughter before they leave. Spike forced his body to get up and walk to the bathroom to splash water on his face in an attempt to look decent. Spike then got dressed and walked slowly downstairs to the front of the inn.

As Spike exited the inn he was met with the sight of Beek's and his daughter talking about the trip back to the farm, walking over to the two they noticed Spike approaching, then Beek's daughter whispered something into her father's ear, and then he walked away.

Spike then walked to the daughter and asked "You wanted to see me, Miss... I'm so sorry out of fear of your father hunting me down I never caught your name..." Spike said sheepishly.

"My name is Abigail. MR. Spike, and why I wanted to talk to you is to thank you for helping us with the outlaws who attacked the farm and protecting both me and my father during the transport. My father has informed me of your acceptance of the job offer if your way home does not pan out. I do hope you can get home but if you can't maybe we can get to know each other a little better if you join the farm." Abigail said with a hint of a blush on her cheeks. "Until then Spike." Abigail then pecked Spikes' cheek and ran to find her father.

'Ok, a four-foot-tall chicken has a crush on me.' Spike mentally said to himself. " I can deal with that roller-coaster of emotions later but first I need to say goodbye to Beek's and then I need to find this Vykker who can get me home."

Walking around to the other side of the transport, Spike found Beek's and after a few minutes of saying goodbye both Spike and Beek's walked away.

Spike then walked straight to the local bounty store to inquire about any new bounties that needed collecting and to inquire about the location of the Vykker. Walking in Spike met the same Clakker who rewarded him last night and then Spike asked about any local bounties and the local Vykker.

A few minutes later. Spike walked out of the store with two new bounties and information on the Vykker named Doc who was living in his lab built on the cliffside by the nearby river. Spike then walked to the general store. Entering the store Spike asked about any new gear in-store and found that there was a new type of ammo and to Spikes' surprise, it was the Stingbees: perfect for rapid-fire damage and known for large capacity. Buying a full supply of bees and a few new ammo capacity upgrades Spike walked out and headed straight to the river to find Doc.

After about an hour of a nice calm walk, Spike arrived at the river, but not seeing a way to get to the lab Spike decided to walk down the river to find a way to climb the cliff face, but about halfway to the cliff Spike found an old cable car connected to the platform to the lab, but the exterior of the cable car station was in disrepair and covered in vines, clearing the vines with a combination of his claws and his fire, Spike boarded the cable car which was in far better condition compared to the exterior. Looking around the car Spike found the control board with a lever. Seeing no other way to move it Spike pulled the lever up, and the cable car groaned to life and started to move up to the lab's platform.

After a slow cable car ride over the river, Spike arrived at the platform that leads to Docs lab. Spike then opened the door of the cable car and stepped off and was met with the sight of a bright red neon sign that read "Docs Retreat". Spike then walked to the door and walked in hoping that this was the answer to getting him home.

Day to day on the journy home

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Spike approached the door to the lab and walked in. Looking around at the weird devices and specimen jars that adorned the shelves of the lab, Spike started to get a little creeped out and was having second thoughts about if this was the best place to get help. Just then Spike was alerted to the sound of someone walking in. Turning to greet whoever walked in Spike was face to face with a Vykkr who he could only assume was Doc.

"Are you Doc?" Asked Spike.

"Ya, what do you want?" The Vykkr is now identified to be Doc Responded.

"I need to know if you can help me get home."

"Depends... Do you got some moolah?"

"If you can get me home I will pay you whatever you want."

"Fine... but first I'm going to need some info about where your home is."

"I'm from a place called Equestria, but I don't even think it is on Mudos, I have been gone for almost nine years, and I was transported to Mudos by my big sister's magic."

"I didn't need your life story, but now that I know how you got here, can you tell me about your sister's magic? If I know what to look for I can pinpoint the largest concentration of this 'magic' you are talking about but first I'm going to need a sample of this 'magic' to get started, but since you have been away for nine years your probably out of luck... Sorry kid"

"How about some of my blood?"

"Your blood?" questioned Doc "Sorry it's not something I can use to search for your home. I need some sort of energy signature to pinpoint where your from, I need a rough idea of the energy your sister uses if I will be able to locate the largest quantity of this energy."

"No. Not my DNA... My sister used her magic to hatch me from my egg and that left me with the residual magic signature of my sister."

"That might work... I'm going to need some blood and some peace so I can work, so give me a day or two to see if I can isolate your sister's energy signature."

So after hammering out the finer details about how to isolate the magic signature from Spikes blood. Doc extracted about a pint of Spikes blood and told him to go back to town.

two days later:

Spike walked back into the lab waiting for Doc to inform Spike if he could help him or not. After about five minutes of waiting Doc walked in from the back room and walked to Spike.

"You are in luck kid... I was able to isolate the magical energy in your blood and I will be able to send you home. but first I have some bad news, it will take me about a year to construct a device capable of sending you to another planet. If it was on the other side of Mudos I could send you right now but even if my race has the technology to teleport mater across long distances, another planet is a little out of its range. I can construct a range extender for my own teleporter but it will cost about ten thousand for parts and time, if you can pay I can start working right away?"

"I can pay you seven thousand right now, you will get the rest from the bank in New Yoke. All you have to do is just drop my name at the teller and say the word 'Sapphire' and they will give you three thousand right then and there, but if it doesn't work I want at least four thousand back. Deal?" Spike asked while holding out his hand.

"Deal." Said Doc while shaking Spikes' hand.

"Good, I'm going back to town for a few days then I'm going to be leaving to capture a bounty, when I get back I will drop in to check on your progress."

Spike then walked out of the lab and headed back to town.

Five months later:

Spike walked into the lab to inform Doc of his return and to check on his progress. "Doc are you in?"

"Shut up kid, I'm slow, not deaf."

"Sorry," said Spike looking sheepish.

"Fine...Fine just keep it down," said Doc. "Let me guess you here to check on my work?"

"Yeah."

"Well, I have some good news for you. I'm ahead of schedule but it will still take me another five months to calibrate the range extender and the teleporter so you won't land somewhere else like the vacuum of space. But I'm telling you this now so you don't freak out but there is a large possibility that when you arrive back to your home there will be a large time difference to them... you said it been over nine years for you, but to them, it could of only have been five minutes or fifty years."

"Ok," said Spike "As long as it works you will get you moolah. I'm going to be staying in town for about two weeks, so if you need me you can find me in the inn." Spike then walked out to the cable car to return to town.

after arriving back in town Spike went to the inn and walked into the bar.

At the bar, there was a small group of pale looking creatures who Spike knew were the local fishermen who lived downriver of the lab. Spike remembered they were called Grubbs.

Walking over to the bar and ordering a strong drink, Spike started to overhear what the group of Grubbs was talking about.

"What are we going to do?" said one of the Grubbs "The last of the Steefs are gone and now we are being treated like shit."

"Steef?" hearing this Spike's interest was peaked and wanting to learn more about Stranger Spike walked over to the Grubbs.

"Did you guys just say Steef?" asked Spike, causing the Grubbs to cower in fear of getting hurt.

"Y...Y...Y...Yes...Please don't hurt us."

Spike looked at the group with some confusion "why would I hurt you?"

"You don't want to hurt us?" Spike shook his head.

"I just want to know about Steefs?"

"Why?"

"I was trained by a Steef after I was transported to Mudos."

"What?!" Said the group of Grubbs with hope in their voices.

"I said I was trained by a Steef."

"Where is he, we need his help."

"The last I heard of him he was still in the forest near Gizzard Gulch."

"So, can I ask you guys more about Steefs?"

They nodded.

After about an hour of talking about who the Steefs were and how important they are Spike decided to send a letter back to Gizzard so he could inform Stranger about the missing Steefs and for him to stay safe.

Another five months later:

Spike followed his morning routine to wake up, get a shower, get breakfast, go to the General Store and Bounty Store. Today Spike wanted to go check on how Doc was doing, but first Spike walked to the bank to arrange for three thousand moolah to be available only if the password is used.

Leaving the bank Spike then made his way to the cable car to go see Doc.

Spike arrived at the lab and walked in to see Doc, and low and behold Doc was actually waiting for Spike to arrive. "Good news kid! The device is ready t-That's great I cant wait to go home." Spike interrupted Doc. Doc then cleared his throat and continued..."As I was saying...The device is ready to go but I will need another day or two and another sample of your blood. The original sample only lasted a few days and I need it to keep the machine's target accurately."

"Fine whatever you need."

"Good, now I don't want a large influx of people asking where you are so after I get the sample you go back to town and say your goodbyes and resolve anything you haven't."

After one blood withdrawal, Spike went back to town.

The next day Spike turned in all of his out-standing bounties, restocked all of his ammo, and informed both the inn and the bank to tell Beek's that he was going have to decline the offer. Spike then walked to the outskirts of the town and then took a deep breath "I'm almost home guys." and made his way to Doc.

Time For A Update

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New Yolk City: Late evening

"Doc where the hell are you?" Spike called. "You said it would be done today."

"I'm here." was shouted as a small 3 legged Vykker walked in with his top hat and blueprints in 3 of his pincer-like arm. "and yes it's done so I can finally get rid of you and focus on my other clients."

"Great, I have everything I need for the trip, I turned in the last of my bounties just in case it wasn't time, and if needed I loaded up on my 'living ammunition' so I'm ready to finally leave this place and see my family again," Spike said with a hint of happiness.

"Fine by me, step on the platform and stand still," ordered Doc.

"Ok let's get this over with before some scum bag decides to run through that door and attack me," spoke Spike.

"It will take a few minutes before the machine can isolate where you were before you got stuck here and as I said accounting for the time it will take for you to get back some time will have passed, I have no idea where you will land but you will be on the same planet when you get there and I also have no idea how long you have been gone to them, but as long as you leave me alone I don't care," Doc informed Spike.

As the teleporter powered up and was about to send Spike home he shouted "Doc, if a person comes in needing a procedure to lose some extra parts, don't be an ass and jack up the price, I owe him one, see ya." and in a flash, Spike had disappeared.

"The next thing I knew was I was falling towards the ground in the Everfree forest, and after landing I needed some rest so I climbed up a tree to stay away from any predators but when I got there I was alerted to the sound of multiple sets of hooves on the ground, not wanting to fight anything at the moment I concealed my presence and waited for the sound to pass. Then after the sounds passed I decided to climb down and find somewhere safer to rest, but as I was making my way down I was tackled by something that was yelling 'Suspicious' repeatedly, which attracted the large group to return. I was then tied up, and after making some not so idle threats about capturing my attackers I used my claws to break free from the ropes, and using my crossbow I attacked the group. That failed because the group had some powerful magic users, seeing no way out I was about to use my fire to create a wall so I could escape. This ultimately revealed my identity to the group and we stopped fighting, and the group revealed themselves to be the girls." Spike said while motioning to his group of attackers. "After a sudden group tackle we slowly made our way back to town, where I was informed on what happened after I went to Mudos, but due to a mixture of excitement and fatigue I passed out and was carried back to the castle by the girls." Said Spike ending his ten-year tail.

"After we brought you back to the castle, I and Starlight did some medical scans and sent the results to nurse Red Heart, and then I and the girls started to discuss the fact that you were alive and wondering what had happened to you." Said Twilight.

"Yeah, I overheard the tail end of that discussion, and knowing how early you girls found me I guessed that none of you ate anything when I was found so I decided to go to the kitchen to make some breakfast for you guys, and after I was finished I shouted for everyone to come to eat, but while I was waiting one of my newer injuries acted up and I collapse to the floor. This caused all seven of the girls to barge into the kitchen and land on me, and after a quick discussion on when I would tell everyone where I was, we ate breakfast, and not soon after you all showed up," added Spike motioning to everyone else in the room.

"So now that everyone's caught up on my life, I'm interested in catching up on what I missed over the last two years."

"I'll start," said Fluttershy in a meek tone. "After you disappeared Spike, I shut myself off from the rest of the group as I was trying to process my sadness but after a while, I had to go on with my life so I could support my animals and help my friends. During this time I got funding to construct an animal sanctuary near town for any animals that needed my help, I have also been performing with the Ponytones more often, but it was challenging to move on."

"As for yours truly, I officially became a Wounderbolt and raised to the rank of lieutenant, also A.K Yearling released two new books, but not wanting to become sad about you I waited a long while to check them out from Twi," said RD.

"Over at Sweet Apple Acres, we were able to expand the farm and because of that we can produce even more cider and other apple products, we also started a stand-alone catering service thanks to Sugar Bell." Said the orange farm pony.

"Wait...Sugar Bell?" Spike questioned, "Why would she be part of your catering service?"

"Well... She and Big Mac kinda got married while you were gone." Said Apple Jack.

This little piece of news caused Spike's mind to stop as he was left slack-jawed while looking at the red farm pony. "Yep." was all Big Mac said.

After a few minutes of processing this information, Spike was able to restart his brain and congratulated both baker and farmer on finding love.

"As for us dear nephew, we continue to look after the dreams of thine subjects, and every year we come to celebrate nightmare night in Ponyville but after your disappearance the mood of the town was different," Luna added.

"The dragons back in the Dragon Lands have started to adopt more of pony culture, and some have even decided to start living in the towns that border the Dragon Lands, but there is still a long way to go before aggression between both dragons and ponies is over." said the Dragon Lord.

"Relations with the changeling hive has also developed while you were gone and now changelings can live in towns and find jobs, there are also rumors of pony changeling romances popping up all across Equestria" Thorax chimed in.

"Sweetie, when you first disappeared I was in such a panic I was unable to hold day court for a month and after not finding any information on your whereabouts it only became harder to raise the sun, but over time I had to return to my duties as a princess until the day you were considered legally dead, that day I wasn't able to find the energy to even raise the sun. After your funeral, I was finally able to grieve for my son as a mother should, and thanks to the support of everyone here I was able to accept what had happened and I slowly started to return to my duties as princess." Celestia stated.

"As the resident god of chaos, I will show you what happened during your absence with this." said Discord as he pulled a couple of sock puppets and a stage from behind his ears and the inside of his mouth. What proceeded was an unbelievable tale of pure chaos that only Celestia and Luna and oddly Pinky could fully comprehend.

"Ok... I'm both confused and inspired at what I just witnessed, and I don't know why," said Spike.

"Confusion and inspiration aside darling, after you disappeared I was lost. I didn't have any desire to design any new outfits, that was until the day you were declared dead, this realization somehow forced me to create a full line based on your scales and colors, one of which I wore to your funeral in honor of you Spikey, and after the truth of your relationship to the princess I was literally inundated with hundreds of orders for dresses, and using the memory of you I was able to find my inspiration once again."

"Oh, oh, oh, Me next," shouted Pinky Pie. "I was so sad that I lost one of my best friends I went into some funk like when the girls didn't want to come to Gummy's birthday party but thanks to all of our friends I was able to snap out of it and continued using you as a driving force so I can spread laughter to everyone I come across." Said Pinky as she was bouncing around the group.

"I guess I'll go next," said Starlight. "I'm still working on learning about friendship, but thanks to you I was able to reconnect with Sunburst, and this allowed me to make friends with Trixie, and Pinky's sister Maud. But after I returned from the crystal empire I was informed that you went missing, but I was unable to accept that I lost my second first friend, so in the middle of the night and in a fit of both sadness and anger I attempted to use the same spell that sent you away, in an attempt to find you. It worked but I was unable to control it and it was starting to suck in everything around me and only after Twilight interfered were we able to close it. After that, I used every locator spell I knew in an attempt to find you, but after months of looking, we had to accept the fact that you were gone. But after your funeral, I was able to reconnect with everyone and this brought me back and allowed me to move on."

"Speaking of Trixie and Sunburst, how are both of them doing?"

"Trixie is doing well, she is on tour right now, but after she was informed of your disappearance she used all her connections from towns she had visited to expand our search. Sunburst on the other hand was informed by Cadance and Shining Armor when they announced your disappearance to the empire, wanting to aid in the search he also used locator spells in hopes of finding you in the Crystal Empires' territory."

"Spike, after we got our cutie marks we knew what we wanted to do and that, was to help others find their special talents but once we heard of your disappearance we tried our best to put on a strong front so we could still help but after a month it just became too hard and we stopped looking for people who needed our help and we just went through the motions of our daily lives like... Go to school, help Rarity/ Applejack, go to the school of friendship as teaching assistants. But once we heard that the search for you was called off we couldn't accept this and we ventured into the Everfree in an attempt to find you ourselves. That didn't go well, as we were attacked by a cockatrice again but AJ got to us in time to snap us out of it and that was when we were told that we needed to stop looking for you. But after we went to your funeral and heard Princess Celestia's speech, we found inspiration from your history and the loss of the potential happiness you had and used this to drive ourselves to continue our mission." Said Sweetie Bell.

"Spike you know what I did after you went through the portal, but during the search for you I was contently on the verge of tears and the thought of losing you drove me away from my duties and my friends. And after your funeral, I was about the shut myself off completely but knowing that this wasn't the way you wanted me to live, I fortitude my resolve to continue living my life full of happiness and with our friends." Twilight stated.

" As for us Spike." Said Cadence. "Everyone in the empire demanded we take immediate action upon hearing the news of your disappearance, Shining arranged for all of our troops to search the whole of the frozen north as well as Yakyakistan, but after searching every inch twice over we called off the search due to the weather turning on us. This caused a small uproar in the empire saying we weren't grateful to you, but even the harsh conditions didn't deter many ponies from forming search parties and venturing into the snow." Spike faced claw at how reckless the crystal ponies could be when it comes to him. This caused Cadance to giggle. "So once Aunt Celestia declared you legally dead and that your funeral would be held in the Empire, all of the rogue search parties stopped going out so everyone could prepare for it, and one of your more influential fans proposed that we construct three things in your honor, the first was a brand new statue of you that we placed in the Crystal Arena that we used when you stopped the ice cloud from crashing the Equestria games, the second was a memorial and crypt to inform others that the savior of the crystal empire would not be forgotten even in death, and lastly we constructed a museum dedicated to you so we could teach others about Spike the Brave and Glorious." This made Spike face claw again.

"Really? You know I didn't want that much attention, so why did you agree?"

"They were very persuasive," Cadance said with a shrug.

"Fine, but is it at least accurate?" asked Spike which caused Shining Armor to laugh.

"Yeah....No... in the museum, you are depicted as being over six feet tall, and to of defeated Sombra by jumping off the tallest tower of the crystal castle and landing like a superhero next to the center where you then fought off Sombra in the hoof to claw combat, and upon his defeat, you valiantly placed the crystal heart in its place and drove him off and freed the empire," said Shining Armor.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EwUilIo036g

Spike then let out a groan and asked in a sarcastic tone "Is that all? They didn't say that after I had the heart was in my possession that my scales turned to gold and I was able to grow wings?".

"Don't worry we did have some input on what went into the museum." Assured Cadance. "But Spike I know it's last-minute but since your not dead we would like for you to come to see the empire. So if at all possible could you please attend the yearly crystal fair and surprise the crystal ponies?"

"Sure I would love to," said Spike with a shrug.

"Great, we will send the Crystal express in one week to pick you up and anyone who wants to attend as well," added Cadance. "But until then we need to return to the empire so we can oversee the preparations of the fair, so until then." Cadance then pulled Spike into a hug and whispered in his ear "I missed you so much and I'm so happy your home." and after saying goodbye to everyone else Cadance, Shining Armor, and Flurry Heart left.

"Sadly we too must depart as night is approaching and our duties are never-ending." spoke Luna "But know dear nephew that we will visit you in thine dreams to converse more in thou would not be opposed to a visit?" Spike shook his head. "Verily though until then I must depart, And sister don't forget to lower the sun."

"Don't worry Lulu, I won't." as both rolled their eyes at the comments. Then Luna flew back to Canterlot.

"I need to get back as well or some bolder head will start a fight and destroy a mountain, but it's good to see you again Spike. If you ever in the dragon lands don't hesitate to drop in, I know a certain dragon who would be shocked to see you now." Ember then quickly hugged Spike and flew back to the Dragon Lands.

"I also need to return to my home, I promised the larvae that I would read a story to them tonight and I now know what I'm going to tell them." Said Thorax as he hugged Spike and left to return to his hive.

"I got nowhere to be for the next five and a half seconds," said Discord as he pulls a pocket watch out of his nose. "So Spike see you this week for O&O?" asked Discord with a hint of hope in his voice, which Spike nodded to. "Great see you then." and then Discord disappeared.

Then Night Light and Twilight Velvet both said goodbye to spike and their daughter and went back to Canterlot for the night. Then Big Mac carried Apple Bloom back to the farm as she was worn out from the story along with Apple Jack following behind. Pinky then left so she could prepare for Spikes 'Yay Your Not Dead/ Welcome Home' party. Then Fluttershy left to look after her animals. Then RD needed to take Scootaloo home. Then Rarity kissed Spike on the cheek as she levitated Sweetie and carried her back to the boutique.

"Twilight my dear, if it's not too much of an inconvenience, I would like to stay the night in Ponyville so I can stay close to Spike?"

"No problem princess Celestia, ill make up a room for you near Spikes right now but after that, I will be going to bed as well we all woke up early to go to the Everfree." Twilight then walked up the stairs yawning.

"Same here" added Starlight "But do get to bed you two, I don't want to find a dragon and a princess passed out on the ground when I wake up, it's bad enough when I had to carry Twilight to her room after an all-night study session, I don't think I could do that with both of you." Then Starlight walked off to bed.

Spike and Celestia talked for another hour till sleep started to take hold of them. So after hugging each other Spike climbed into bed and for the first time in ten years, he didn't need to dream about being home.

A Stranger Walkes Into Town

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The next morning, Spike woke up, took a shower, and got dressed in his poncho, boots, and hat before he walked down to the kitchen to make Princess Celestia, Twilight, and Starlight some breakfast.

Upon walking into the kitchen, however, Spike was met with the sight of a mountain of food already on the table and his mother making an omelet while Twilight was looking upset while she set the rest of the table with Starlight.

The sound of Spike's stomach growling caught everyone's attention, causing them to turn and see Spike blushing in embarrassment.

"You guys didn't need to do this for me," Spike said.

"We know but we wanted to," Starlight said.

"Fair enough, but why does Twilight look so upset?" Spike asked.

"She tried to cook you breakfast," Starlight responded simply.

"That explains it," Spike said, knowing fully well that Twilight couldn't cook even if she tried.

After the table was ready and all the food was made, the group of four began eating.

As they ate, Princess Celestia asked, "So Spike dear, what do you want to do today?"

"Well since I agreed to go to the crystal empire in a week, I think I'll stay in Ponyville and try to get back in touch with everyone until then," Spike replied before asking, "What about you mom?"

"Oh, I just canceled day court until after the crystal fair is over so I can spend time with you sweetie," Princess Celestia said like it was nothing.

"What?!" the other three exclaimed in shock.

"What?" Princess Celestia asked, "I planned to go anyways so day court was already canceled the three days leading up to the fair so last night I messaged the royal schedule keeper and said that Cadence needed me to help with the preparations since I attended the fair before Sombra took over, but what I really wanted was to try and spend the equivalent of the ten years I couldn't be by your side with you for the next week."

"Ok..." Spike said, unsure how to feel about his mother canceling her work just to spend time with him, "Well, I think the best course of action would be to go see Mayor Mare so that I can get my death rescinded, and, knowing how long that will take, it won't be official for about a week so no one outside of town will find out. After that, I was planning to go out to do some training in the Everfree Forest till nightfall, and I'm planning on staying there for the night too."

"Are you sure you want to stay in the Everfree?" asked Twilight, "It's very dangerous out there and I don't want you to get hurt."

"I'm sure Twi, I spent a large portion of the last ten years of my life sleeping outside surrounded by outlaws and thugs. So to me spending a night in the Everfree Forest is little more than a camping trip, besides if I do get in trouble I could always run to the castle of the two sisters or Zecora's," said Spike with a shrug.

After eating breakfast, the group exited the castle and made their way to the town hall to talk to the mayor, but as they were leaving the castle, Spike decided to also grab his crossbow out of habit.

"Spike, why do you want to carry that with you?" Twilight asked when she saw this.

"It's a force of habit," Spike explained, "Every time I go out, I would always be going out on a hunt or I would be attacked, so I quickly remembered to always carry my crossbow with me whenever I go out."

As they were walking to the town hall, the group was unaware that the rest of the towns ponies looked with utter confusion at the sight of two of the four rulers of Equestria walking with a taller dragon who was wearing a weird outfit that was obscuring his face and the student of the local princess all heading for a town hall.

Slowly, the braver ponies started to follow the group, thinking that the princesses were going to make a royal announcement and that they would hold it at a town hall, so as the group made it to the town hall, almost half of Ponyville was behind them.

As Spike was about to open the door to the town hall, he finally noticed the large crowd that has gathered around him and his family.

Since he didn't want to cause any more confusion, Spike turned towards Princess Celestia and whispered into her ear, "Mom, you and Twi go inside and get the process started, I'm going to head back and try to explain my sudden arrival to the crowd of ponies that's been following us."

Princess Celestia nodded in agreement before he did the same with Twilight, who nodded as well. The two princesses then opened the large wooden double doors and walked into the town hall to talk to the mayor.

Spike then turned to Starlight and whispered, "Starlight, I'm going to address the fact that I'm not dead to the crowd behind us, but I have a bad feeling that I'm going to be bombarded with questions. The second that you see me look overwhelmed, I need you to either get me out of here or get me some breathing room. Can you do that?"

Starlight nodded in agreement, causing Spike to take a deep breath before he turned to address the gathered crowd, wanting to loosen his nerves, Spike decided to remove his hat, displaying his green head fins and purple scales.

As Spike removed his hat, there was a collective gasp from the crowd as the sight of the long thought dead baby dragon had returned and has grown into the larger form that they see in front of them. Then there was silence. The silence was so thick that one could cut it with a dull butter knife.

Deciding to take the chance to resolve the issue Spike, decided to address the crowd.

"Um, hi," was all Spike said before all the ponies in the crowd rushed up the steps of the town hall to tried and talk to Spike.

Seeing the stampede of ponies rushing to Spike, Starlight chooses to throw up a force field to separate her and Spike from the mass of sobbing ponies. As the bubble of magic surrounded them, Spike saw the looks on the ponies faces, all of them had the looking as if they were seeing a dear friend for the first time after being years apart, this brought a smile to his face, knowing that the news of his death had caused a lot of emotional distress to the citizens of Ponyville.

"I missed you all as well, but I can't answer any questions while you all are crowding me, so everyone take a few steps back and I'll answer any questions you all have Deal?" Spike asked.

Everyone in the crowd nodded before they took a few steps back. Spike then looked at Starlight and nodded his head, seeing Starlight dropped the force field so Spike could answer the crowd's questions.

"Ok, let me start with the obvious, yes, I'm not dead, so let's go off from there..." Spike said before he looked to the crowd of ponies who all had their hands up so they could ask a question, "Let's start with Carrot Top."

"Spike, where have you been, and why do you look so different?" Carrot Top asked.

"Well as for where I was, I was transported to a place called Mudos, as for why I look so different, it's because I'm not the same baby dragon who disappeared two years ago," Spike responded, "For me, it was ten years, and in that time I grew up a lot."

"How did you survive alone for ten years?" Cheerilee asked.

Spike saw that this was going to take a while, so he decided to sit on the top step of town hall's stairs and responded, "I spent nearly eight years with a person I consider my master. He trained me to survive in his world, and after he said I was ready, I packed all my stuff and headed out on my own to follow a rumor about someone who could get me home. And on my own, I met a lot of people who supported me and encouraged me to continue so I could get home."

"What is that thing on your arm?" Cloudchaser asked.

"This is my double crossbow, I got it from my master when he was teaching me how to survive," Spike replied.

After a couple of questions, Spike decided it was time to go check on Princess Celestia and Twilight.

"Guys, I'm here to talk to the mayor to have my death rescinded so I need to go, so if any of you guys have any more questions, come by the castle and I'll try to answer them," Spike said to the crowd before he stood up and waved to the crowd before he turned to Starlight and nodded at her.

The duo proceeded to open the wooden doors so they could rejoin the two princesses.

After Spike and Starlight entered the main lobby of the town hall, they started to walk up the stairs towards the mayor's office. After they reached the top of the stairs, they turned to the right and walked down a long hallway and soon reached a large oak door with a picture of a rolled-up scroll tied with a cobalt blue ribbon. Spike then knocked on the door and waited for permission to enter.

After a few moments of waiting, the duo heard someone say from the other side of the door, "Please come in."

Turning the door's knob, Spike opened the door and was met with the sight of Princess Celestia, Twilight, and an older mare sitting at a large wooden desk.

The older mare had a beige coat of fur, a deep silver mane, and a pair of deep blue eyes who Spike identified as Mayor Mare.

Upon seeing Spike, Mayor Mare got up from her seat and walked over and hugged him.

"It's good to see you again Spike," Mayor Mare said happily.

"It's good to see you to Mayor," Spike said back before they ended the embrace.

"Princess Celestia and Twilight have already informed me on your current situation and I'm proud to say that we can resolve this issue in about a couple of weeks," Mayor Mare said, "We have completed most of the paperwork, so all you need to do is fill in the information that we couldn't fill in and then sign the forms and it'll be ready to be sent to all the towns and cities in Equestria where they will archive it and in a week your file will be changed to show that you are alive. And, knowing how quickly gossip spreads, it'll be public knowledge by the time the crystal fair starts."

Spike walked up to the desk and wrote in the information that has changed like his height, weight, and age before he signed the form and handed it to the mayor.

Taking the paperwork from the dragon, Mayor Mare folded the paperwork and placed it in a folder. Turning back to Spike Mayor Mare held out her hand, prompting Spike to take the outstretched hand in his own.

"Spike Solaris, it is with great honor and happiness that I will be the first to officially welcome you back from the dead." Mayor Mare announced happily as they shook hands, making a proud smile form on Spike's face.

Time for lunch

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After the meeting with the mayor, Spike and his group opened the town hall's front doors and began to make their way back to the castle in silence until Twilight spoke up.

“So Spike, what exactly are you planning to do now that your paperwork is being processed?” Twilight asked.

“Not much for the rest of today," Spike responded, "All I had planned was training in the Everfree for the rest of the day and maybe camping out there too. Why do you ask?”

“No reason just wanted to know," Twilight replied as she used her magic to place a tracking spell on Spike without him noticing, just so she would know exactly where he would be.

As the group was walking back to the castle, Spike felt a tingle on the scales on the back of his neck indicating something was coming straight for him. Stopping in an instant, the others who were unaware of something also stopped to check on Spike.

“Spike, is there something wrong?” Starlight asked.

Spike, using his hunter instinct, was getting ready to confront the unknown entity that was approaching at unrealistic speeds, all while staying silent, which caused the rest of the group's concern to grow.

“Spike? What’s wrong are you ok?” Princess Celestia asked.

Spike began to move into a defensive stance, ready to defend himself and his family. The entity was closing in and was about to arrive.

“Mom, girls,” Spike said to the others., "When I say so, drop to the ground.”

“Why?” Twilight asked

“Just trust me," Spike simply responded.

Seeing the serious look on his face, the girls were able to put together that something was coming.

“Five. Four. Three. Two. One," Spike muttered to himself before suddenly exclaiming, "Now!"

In an instant, all three girls dropped to the ground as Spike used his claws to grab the incoming entity and quickly readied his crossbow and pointed it straight at the head of whatever was in his claws.

But to his own surprise, all he found was a large mass of pink hair in his claw. Looking down Spike was met with the sight of an upside-down Pinkie whose tail was in his grasp.

"Mom, Twi, Star you can get up now, it was only Pinkie,” Spike said as he turned to the pink missile.

Spike looked at her and just sighed, accepting the fact that he still needs to get accustomed to Pinkie's anti-logic abilities.

“Sorry for grabbing your tail Pinkie," Spike apologized, "I've got to get used to having you around again.”

All three girls got up from the ground and looked for whatever got Spike so agitated, and the sight that greeted them was one of confusion.

“Spike, why are you holding Pinkie upside down by her tail?” Twilight asked.

“Sorry about the whole duck and cover routine guys," Spike said, "Spending the last decade constantly looking over your shoulder tends to make one a little 'shoot first and ask questions later.'"

“It’s ok sweetie," Princess Celestia said, "I know it will take some time for you to get accustomed to having everypony around you again, but would you be so kind as to place Ms. Pinkie Pie back on the ground so we can inquire on why she sought you out.”

Spike, seeing that Pinkie's tail was still in his grasp, used all of his strength to fling her into the air. And after Pinkie had left his grasp, Spike extended both of his arms out and just stood there, waiting.

“Spike, why in Celestia's name did you do that?!" Twilight demanded.

Spike turned his head and replied, “Wait for it.”

A quick pan up later.

“Weeeeeeeee!” Pinkie cheered as she was gaining altitude, “Ooo, I can see my house from here! Limestone is in the fields with Marble and dad. Mom is in the kitchen making them rock stew for dinner... I really need to visit more.”

Pinkie then looked down and saw she was floating midair, gravity is damaged, only for her to suddenly begin falling to the ground.

”Weeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee!" Pinkie cheered as she fell.

Until Pinkie was only about ten feet off the ground, then by some logic-defying middle finger to the universe, she slowed her descent to almost nothing as she safely landed in Spike's waiting arms.

“Spike, how are you this morning?” Pinkie asked as if she wasn’t just flung into the air and fell all the way back down.

“Good, we just got done with the paperwork to resurrect me from the dead," Spike responded, "We were on our way back to the castle so I could grab the rest of my gear. Now might I ask, why do you need to see me?”

“I came by to ask about your ‘Yay your not dead/ Welcome home party’, but why do you need your gear? Gasp you're not planning on leaving already are you?” Pinkie questioned, her hair deflating slightly.

“Don’t worry pinky, I’m planning to spend the rest of the day training in Everfree Forest," Spike said assumingly, "I’m probably going to camp out there tonight.”

Pinkie then gasped as she had a great idea.

She then turned to Spike and gave him a blinding smile and asked, “Spike, how about instead of a party, I get the girls and we have a camp out with you?”

Spike looked at the party pony and was questioning her sanity as she just asked if she and the rest of the girls could join him in camping out in the most dangerous forest in history.

"Pinkie are you serious?" Spike asked, "It’s dangerous out there. It’s not safe!”

“It’ll be fine Spike,” Pinkie said before grabbing Spike's head and twisted it so he was looking towards Twilight and the others, “Think about it. We will have not one, but two princesses, two super-powerful unicorns, the fastest flyer in all of Equestria, a pony who can buck a tree in half, a mare who can communicate with animals, and lastly a pony who can sense when something is going to happen.”

Just then, Pinkie's tail started twitching. She then jumped down from Spike's arms and effortlessly lifted him off the ground. She then rotated herself and Spike around and carefully placed him back on the ground.

Just a few moments later, a potted plant landed right on the spot Spike was. Seconds later, a fifteen-pound bowling ball landed on the pot, followed by a hammer used in a forge, and then an anvil that the hammer was used with.

“Awwww come on!” Twilight exclaimed angrily as Princess Celestia giggled.

She remembered the old friendship letter Twilight wrote when she first moved to Ponyville that revolves around accepting that not everything can be understood, plus that was the first time She was also able to visit with Spike after they moved to Ponyville.

“Well I think it's a wonderful idea," Princess Celestia spoke up, "I can’t remember the last time I spent a night surrounded by nature under a blanket of stars. Plus, I can probably get Luna to join us so there will be even more security.”

“Plus, we can get Zecora to make some potions that ward off predators," Starlight added.

Spike, seeing that everything they pointed out was true, relented his objection and nodded, signaling that he was all for a camp out in the forest.

“Ok Pinkie, tell the girls about tonight’s plans and have everyone meet me near the edge of the forest near Fluttershy's cottage around sundown," Twilight said, "I know the perfect spot for the campout.”

Pinky nodded before asking Spike, “What are you going to do until then?”

“I still need to get my gear and go train, but while I’m there, I’ll go visit Zecora and get the potions,” Spike said.

“Understood,” Pinkie said before she gave Spike a salute and ran off to inform the rest of the girls.

Spike then turned to the others before saying, “Well, we can’t just stand here. We better prepare for tonight so let’s head back to the castle and-"

Just then Spike's stomach started to growl, causing spike to blush.

“But first, how about we grab some lunch first?” Spike asked, feeling a bit embarrassed.

All the girls giggled and nodded before the group began to make their way to Sugarcube Corner.

Spike pushed open the door to Sugarcube Corner as the sound of a bell could be heard above him. Spike and the others walked into the establishment and as if on cue, a short and plump mare walked out of the kitchen carrying a large cake meant for the display case.

“Give me a moment dearie, I will be able to serve you in a moment," the mare said.

“Don’t worry Mrs. Cake, here let me help you," Twilight said as she used her magic to effortlessly place the cake into the display case.

Using her hand, Mrs. Cake wiped the sweat off her brow.

“Thank you Twilight dear, now how may I help you.....” Mrs. Cake said as she turned to greet her patrons, but she was at a loss of words as she noticed Princess Celestia and a tall dragon next to her. She gasped and said, “Princess Celestia it's an honor to see you again," as she bowed to the princess.

“Please raise your head Mrs. Cake, and there is no need to be so formal, I am here as a mother not as a princess," Princess Celestia said.

“Aw, yes it’s almost that time of the year, isn’t it? I really do miss Spike, it’s hard to believe that it’s been nearly two years since he disappeared, he was always so kind, helpful, and funny, not to mention a great chef," Mrs. Cake said as she wiped away some tears that had formed in her eyes, “I would never want to go through what you had to, but seeing you now makes me glad to know that even without Spike being here, his happiness is still playing a large part in this town's livelihood.”

“Thank you," Princess Celestia said.

“Now, what can I get for you today?” Mrs. Cake asked.

“I’ll have a cupcake and a coffee with cream and three sugars," Starlight said.

“I’ll have a blueberry muffin, and a cup of green tea," Twilight said.

“I would like a piece of your best cake, and a cup of coffee as well hold the constant refills," Princess Celestia said while holding back a giggle as she remembered the first time she visited the establishment.

“And for you sir?” Mrs. Cake asked Spike, who, until this moment, was wondering if she had recognized him.

“I’ll have a sapphire cupcake with extra frosting and extra sapphires, plus a tall mug of hot chocolate with extra whip cream," Spike said before adding, "I haven’t had my special order in over ten years, and I’m dying to have a Sugercube Corner special sapphire dragon cupcake again.”

“Coming right up, please take a seat and my husband will be by with your orders, I need to go check up on my kids," Mrs. Cake said.

“Before you go, how are Pound and Pumpkin doing?" Spike asked, "I haven’t seen them since I helped Twilight babysit Flurry Heart, and we stopped by here and the three babies started to fight, sorry about that by the way.”

“No problem Spike, it was a long time ago and Pinkie had the place spotless before we got back so don’t worry," Mrs. Cake assured.

“You knew who I was?” Spike asked, slightly surprised.

“Well of course dear," Mrs. Cake responded, "I live with Pinkie after all, and last night she informed me and Carrot that you retuned. We were so happy, we wanted to go over to the castle to see you but it was so late. Plus, she informed us on how you want to keep the fact you're alive a secret until the Crystal Fair, so we decided not to make a big show of it. As for the twins, they are talking and they both are starting to take after ‘Aunt Pinkie,' Celestia forbid.”

“Hey!" Pinkie suddenly said as she stuck her head through the entrance before pulling her head out.

“And they're about to start kindergarten after the summer ends," Mrs. Cake continued, "Pound is always flying and I’m worried that he won’t know how to walk, and Pumpkin has minor magic surges now and then, but they're becoming less frequent.”

“That’s good," Spike said.

“Order up!” Yelled a tall orange stallion holding a tray in his hands as he walked out of the kitchen. Turning to the group of patrons he noticed two unusual faces and promptly bowed as he saw Princess Celestia as he said, “Your highness, it’s an honor to see you again.”

“You as well Mr. Cake, but please, drop the formalities," Princess Celestia said.

"Understand princess,” Mr. Cake said before turning towards Spike and asked, “And who might you be?”

Spike then turned to Mrs. Cake and gave her a confused expression.

“Dear, you remember what Pinkie told us last night, right?” Mrs. Cake asked.

Mr. Cake nodded and then the gears in his brain snapped together and the realization drew a smile to his face.
“Spike is that you?” Mr. Cake asked.

Spike nodded. This caused Mr. Cake to pull the dragon into a hug and give him a playful noogie to Spike's head spines.

"It’s good to see you again, Spike." Mr. Cake said happily, "We were so worried about you when you first disappeared, we closed the shop for a week to help with the search but we then we decided to supply food to all the search parties.”

“Thank you for your hard work," Spike said before his stomach growled suddenly growled, making the stallion release the dragon and gave a sheepish look on his face and placed the order in front of the group.

“Eat up everyone, and if you need anything don’t hesitate to ask," Mr. Cake said.

“Thank you, it looks great," Spike said before sighing in nostalgia, "It’s nice to finally have something sweet again.”

“Trust me, it’s great to see you as well Spike," Mrs. Cake said before she and Mr. Cake left the group to enjoy their lunch.

Night Under The Stars Pt.1

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"Well that was delicious," Spike said as he patted his full stomach after he finished off his sixth sapphire cupcake.

Spike then released a loud burp accompanied by a small jet of green flames, making a bashful look appear on his face as he put his claw to his face to cover up another burp.

After the burp was silenced, Spike removed his claw and said, "Excuse me," which made all of his female eating companions look at him and sigh as they all lowered their heads and slowly shook them.

Spike saw this and asked, "What? I said 'Excuse me.'"

"It's nothing Spike, but please remember that you're in public," Twilight said as she looked at him like she used to when he was little, which made Starlight and Princess Celestia giggle as they both remember seeing this exchange happen between the two many times before.

Just then, both Mr. and Mrs. Cake walked over to the group to inquire how they enjoyed the food.

"So, is it still as good as you remember it, Spike?" Mrs. Cake asked.

"Nope, it's even better!" Spike said with a satisfied smile, "You both really stepped up your gem baking game in the last two years.".

"Thank you, Spike, but in a way, it was all thanks to you." Mr. Cake insisted.

"Me? How?" Spike asked, confused by Mr. Cake's words.

"Let me explain." Twilight spoke up, "Spike, after you disappeared, Dragon Lord Ember was quickly informed and she had ordered a large platoon of her finest dragon guards to accompany her to Ponyville to help with the initial search. At first, there were a few problems with having a group of dragons in town, but only two houses caught fire after someone accidentally planted a dragon sneeze tree in town, but thanks to the Cakes' help, we were able to feed such a large party of dragons but to accommodate for each dragons preference in gems they had to quickly learn more about using gems in there food. But after the search was called off some of the dragons said that they would like to visit Equestria other than during the migration. So Ember and I created visas to allow dragons to visit a few towns in Equestria as long as they follow our laws, so in many towns and city's gem treats have started to become very popular."

"That's great, though I wish I was around to see this happen," Spike said, feeling a bit upset that he missed so much.
Everyone saw the look on Spike's face and quickly understood why he looked as such.

"But, things are still in the testing period and only a few dragons have these visas, and we hope in the upcoming years having dragons living in pony towns will be a common sight." Starlight added, which made Spike's mood lighten.

"You're right, thanks Starlight," Spike said with a small smile on his face.

"No problem Spike, but remember this is all thanks to you becoming friends with Ember." Starlight said.

Spike then turned to the pair of bakers and said, "So, how much do we owe for lunch?"

"It's on the house." Mr. Cake insisted, "Let's just say it's our way of saying welcome back."

"Thanks," Spike said.

Just then, there was a large thud coming from the ceiling above the group, which made Mrs. Cake sigh.

"Let me guess, Pumpkin is throwing something heavy with magic or Pound flew into something and knocked it down?" Spike asked.

"That, or they both caused it, anyway it was great to see you again Spike, and remember that you are always welcome to visit, I want to hear all about your time away, and maybe you can play with the twins while we chat." Mrs. Cake said as she gave the dragon a quick hug before running upstairs to take care of the damage her kids have done.

"Same here Spike, I want to hear all about your adventures whenever you have the chance." Mr. Cake said as he gave Spike a pat on the back before returning to the back of the shop to prepare for more customers.

"So Spike, are you ready to get back to the castle and go to Zecora's before you go out to train in the forest?" Twilight asked.

"Yep, let's head out," Spike said.

With that, the group left the bakery and continued back to make their way back to the castle.

An hour after leaving the bakery, the group arrived at the castle (mostly due to them being stopped by ponies bowing to the two princesses or asking about Spike's changes). Twilight then opened the castle doors and allowed her companions to enter the large open foyer. Twilight then used her magic to close the large crystal door and she let out a loud sigh.
"I swear to Celestia, the second we get back from the Crystal Empire we're going to be holding a Q&A for anyone who has questions about you," Twilight said as she pointed towards Spike.

"That's still a week away Twi, but by the time we get back, the news of my return will have reached all of Equestria and the dragon lands, so I bet we will have a large group of ponies attending so we need to prepare," Spike said.

"Not to mention the griffins, yaks, Buffalo, dragons, and changelings who will also attend." Princess Celestia added.

"But until then, we still need to get ready for tonight, so I’m gonna go upstairs and grab my gear and then I and mom can head out to Zecora's." Spike before he turned his attention to Princess Celestia and asked, "Mom, are you sure you don’t want to head back to Canterlot to grab some supplies for tonight?"

"Don't worry Spike, I already sent a letter to Lulu asking her to pack for the both of us because she has agreed to join us as well, so run upstairs and grab your stuff and we will meet you back in about five minutes." Princess Celestia said.

"OK, I'll be back real quick," Spike said before he ran upstairs to grab his bag from the room he was staying in.
As Spike was running up the stairs, he thought to himself, 'This castle is still a pain to navigate around, but if I remember correctly the room I was in should be the seventh one on the left.'

As Spike walked down the Crystal hallway, he was reminded of the first time he and Twilight arrived in the castle after Tirek was defeated.

"Spike can you believe it, the tree of harmony gave me a castle and is so huge," Twilight said on the first night they stayed in the castle.

"I know Twilight, you've been talking about it all day, but have you noticed that all the door's look the same, isn't it going to be hard to find the room you want?" Spike asked.

"You worry too much Spike, but if you want, we can map out the castle's floor plan later." Twilight suggested.

"That would be helpful, thanks Twilight," Spike said with a smile.

'We never did get to that, but it's fine, the layout of the castle was actually easier to memorize then I thought it would have been.' Spike thought to himself.

Spike used his knowledge of the castle's layout and quickly found the seventh door on the left and opened it to find the same room he was in when he woke up this morning.

Spike walked into the room and noticed it was just one of the many spare rooms they had in the castle so it was furnished very sparingly with a small desk next to the window and a large queen size bed in the room along with a crystalline wardrobe on the side next to the bathroom door.

As Spike walked in, he quickly made his way to the wardrobe and opened it to find his tattered backpack.

Spiked and let out a long sigh and said to himself, “I wonder how my ammo is doing and I wonder if Rarity can fix this, but knowing her, she’ll probably want to re-design it completely. But maybe that’s okay, I've been wanting to keep more ammo with me at all times so maybe I can ask Twilight or Starlight to enchant my bag with a pocket dimension so I can store as much ammo as I need, but that can wait, I still need to get ready for training. Hopefully, I can find at least find some of my ammo that escaped when I landed in the forest, I just hope that they have not caused too much damage."

On the day Spike returned to Equestria, in the Castle of the Two Sisters all of Spike's ammo was quickly creating new homes for themselves which resulted in many new holes in the castle walls thanks to the Boombats. Many of the creatures of Everfree Forest quickly fled from the castle ranging from a swarm of Star Spiders to a pack of ten Timberwolves who were terrified of the new species.

Spike shrugged before saying to himself, "They're probably ok. What's the worst they could do?"

"Spike are you ready?" Twilight called from the bottom floor.

"Yup, just packing my bag," Spike called back as he quickly detached his crossbow from his arm and placed it in his bag along with his journal and some other things like some jerky that had survived the trip and a pair of binoculars that he used to spot his targets. He then slung it over his shoulder and walked back to the hallway.

As Spike rejoined the rest of the group he was met with the sight of Celestia with a large backpack on her back that looked packed full of whatever she may need in the forest with her mane tied into a ponytail with a hair tie. She was also wearing a pair of cargo shorts and a Hawaiian shirt.

"Mom, did you remember to pack the Castle fountain too, or is Aunt Luna bringing that?" Spike jokingly asked, making Princess Celestia give an annoyed look at him.

"No, it's still at the castle, and for your information, I only packed the essentials." Princess Celestia responded, which made Spike raise an eyebrow that Applejack would be proud of.

"And what, pray do tell, are the essentials?" Spike asked.

"A change of clothes, a tent, a sleeping bag, nightwear, fire starters, a shovel, an ax, some food, a compass, map, some paper, and a quill and ink, plus some after-dinner snacks." Princess Celestia listed.

Spike was impressed by his mother's preparations, but there is still room for improvement.

"Mom, first off, lose the fire starters, the shovel, and the ax. Spike said, "I'm a walking lighter, I can dig through solid rock, and my claws are sharp enough that I make wood look like a soft sponge cake. Second, knowing Pinkie, you can lose the snacks. Also, the map will be useless because the only landmark we can use as a point of reference is the old castle, and at that point, even the cake twins could find their way back to town from there. Aside from that, you packed well."

"Ok Mr. smarty drake, what did you pack?" Princess Celestia asked.

"My crossbow, journal, binoculars, and some jerky from back on Mudos." Spike listed.

This left Celestia shocked at how unprepared her son was.

"Where are you going to sleep?" Princess Celestia asked.

"On the ground or in a tree, it's nothing new to me," Spike said casually.

Seeing that this was his area of expertise, Princess Celestia's rebuttal died in her throat as she removed the food and nonessentials from her bag.

As Princess Celestia emptied her bag, she removed what appeared to be a full three-course meal, a full cake accompanied with a full set of silverware, and a full map Equestria that made the cutie map look small, along with the shovel and the ax.

Spike let out a sigh as he looked at his mother and said, "Really mom, were you planning on starting a new town in the forest?" This made Celestia pout as she thought that she probably did overpack.

Ten minutes later, Spike and Princess Celestia were walking out the castle's front door as Twilight was going over a checklist of what she and the rest of the girls would need to bring for tonight's outing, and as only she could do she was completely unaware of the fact that Spike was talking to her.

"Twilight, we'll meet up near the edge of the forest before sundown, and we'll have the potion from Zecora with us so all you have to do is get us to the campsite and make sure the rest of the girls are ready." Spike said before turning to Starlight and added "And Starlight, I need you to repeat everything I said to her when she gets out of her rant after we leave."

Starlight nodded as Spike and Princess Celestia started to walk away from the castle as Twilight continued to create the checklist for the night.

"And that should do it, now Spike, I'll meet you before sunset with the girls so we can safely head to the campsite, and don't forget to go to Zecora's and get the potion for tonight," Twilight said as looked up from her list, only to notice that both Spike and Princess Celestia were nowhere in sight as she was alone with Starlight in the foyer.

Twilight then turned to Starlight and opened her mouth but was interrupted by Starlight.

"They already left about five minutes ago, he was heading to Zecora's for the potion and he will meet us around sundown, and make sure that the rest of the girls are ready for tonight, now I have to go pack for tonight so I'll see you later
Twilight." Starlight said before making her way to her room upstairs, which made Twilight close her mouth.

As the mother and son duo walked to the edge of Everfree Forest, they started to catch up on the times they were not able to talk to each other as they both had to deal with the responsibility of their lives.

"Well first, I think we should head to Zecora's to get the potion for tonight. Spike suggested, "Then, we should head to the old castle to set up a small base camp in case of any emergencies."

"That sounds like a plan, plus I have always wondered what happened to the old castle after we left it over a thousand years ago." Princess Celestia said.

"Well, the last time I was there was when I was looking for a book in the library for Rarity with Owlicious." Spike said before adding, "Let's just say that was not my best decision, she kind of went crazy redesigning the whole town in what she thought was for the better."

Celestia sighed as she remembered the spellbook that was supposed to be moved to the current castle during the transition for safekeeping.

"Spike, you probably found the dark spell book called Inspiration manifestation, it allows the caster to create whatever they could imagine, but has a drawback of corrupting the mind of the caster so much that it becomes an obsession and they lose all common sense until the caster experiences emotions stronger than desire." Princess Celestia explained.

"You're telling me, Rarity was about to cover the entire world in gold and gems because I constantly told her that the changes she was making were good," Spike explained, "But after I finally separated my feelings for her from my common sense, I finally told her that the changes were actually awful, and that snapped her out of the spell's effect."

"I'm glad you were able to see through your own heart, but that does raise a question." Princess Celestia said.

"What?" Spike asked.

"What happened to the spellbook?" Princess Celestia asked.

"I ate it." Spike simply said.

Celestia was so shocked to hear about this that she stopped on a bit.

"You what?" Princess Celestia yelled in shock.

"I ate it," Spike repeated.

"Why?" Princess Celestia asked.

"I had no other option, plus I was only eleven and was trying to get rid of the book," Spike replied.

"Well, I was going to destroy the book long ago, but I never got around to it so I guess this was a fate a thousand years overdue." Princess Celestia said.

The duo continued to walking as they soon entered the forest. They continued to talk about some past events as they moved through the dark forest as the canopy of trees only allowed for a small percentage of the sun's light to reach the ground as they made their way to Zecora's hut.

When they arrived at the witch doctor's hut in the middle of the forest, Princess Celestia walked to the door and knocked on the door seated in the old tree.

(AN: I'm not good at rhyming so I have created a good excuse for Zecora)

The sound of creaking wood was heard in the forest as an older zebra mare opened the door to greet her unexpected guests.

"Hello, what can I do for you this afternoon?" Zecora asked before she looked at the unusual pair who decided to visit the witch doctor's home, "Aw, Princess Celestia, it's good to see you again. And who might this dragon be?"

"It's good to see you as well Zecora, as for who this is I'll let him introduce himself to you again." Princess Celestia said before she moved to the side to allow Zecora to see the older dragon that was behind her.

"Hello, my name is Zecora, I am a creator of potions for all who require them, and it's nice to meet a new face in my neck of the woods, pun a little intended, and who might you be?"

"Zecora, I'm a little hurt you don't remember me, how many times had I come to visit you over the years with the girls? How many purple and green dragons do you know?" Spike asked before turning to his mother and asked, "Have I really changed that much over the years?"

"You did grow three times your old size, your voice has changed, and you're mostly covered up in that getup so it's probably hard to be identified." Princess Celestia said.

"Granted, but how many dragons are this open with a princess of the nation and knows exactly where to go to find the witch doctor from another land who lives in the most dangerous forest in the world? And was one of the only two creatures who did not judge her for being different just because she does not look like a normal pony when she first arrived in Ponyville?" Spike asked before he returned his attention to Zecora, a silly smile on his face as he added "And if all these clues don't help you, then Zecora, I'm sorry for not being a bigger part of your life."

The second Zecora saw that silly smile on the dragon's face, Spike was force-tackled to the ground as he was glomped by a crying zebra.

"Spike, it's you, but how?" Zecora cried between sobs.

"I'll tell you as soon as I can get the air back into my lungs," Spike said as he was turning a new shade of blue from lack of oxygen.

Zecora had a bashful look on her face as she let go of Spike and got up

"Sorry about that, I just can't believe that it's you. Zecora said before asking, "Where have you been and what has happened to you?"

Spike got up and dusted the dirt off of his body and poncho as he told Zecora, "I'll tell you inside. Plus, we need to talk to you about a couple of potions."

Hearing the request, Zecora quickly opened the door to her home and led the duo inside. Once inside, Zecora led them to a couch and ushered them to sit and relax.

"Would either of you like some tea?" Zecora asked the duo.

"No, but thank you Zecora, and it's good to see you again," Spike said.

"If you don't mind, I would like a cup of tea." Princess Celestia said.

Zecora left the room and went to her kitchen to prepare the tea for the princess. During this time, Spike looked around the room and remembered all the times he spent time with Zecora in this room when he had to visit her for Twilight. Spike then drifted off to his memories as he remembered the last time he came to visit Zecora before he was teleported to Mudos. During this time, Zecora returned to the sitting room and handed the princess her tea as she placed her own cup on the table and look to the duo.

"Thank you for the tea, it's wonderful." Princess Celestia said before taking a sip.

"Not a problem princess, but I do have a few questions for Spike and yourself, so if it's not too inconvenient might I ask
why you are in the Everfree forest," Zecora asked before she turned her attention to the spaced-out dragon and asked,

"Spike, how are you here, alive?"

The Question snapped Spike out of his memories and he responded, "Well it all started about two years ago...."

One hour summarization of chapters 4-6 and explaining the scars later.

"Oh my, Spike I'm so sorry you had to go through all that," Zecora said.

"Don't be, I never wanted to leave but we can't change the past…" Spike said before adding, "Well, we can, but that would be a pain in the ass. Besides, I like my life now, and I wouldn't change a thing."

"Well, I'm glad to know that you have no regrets and are satisfied with how your life turned out." Zecora said, "Now, as great as it was to have you visit me after so long, what brings you to my home?"

"Well, Pinkie wanted to throw me a party to celebrate my return, but I need to train so we compromised and agreed to have a camping party tonight in the forest, and of course if you're free to join us we would be more than welcomed for you to join, but first we need to have some predator repellent made for protection," Spike said.

"Not a problem Spike, and I would be happy to join you and the rest of the girls tonight." Zecora said, "I'll bring the potions, but I'm missing a special ingredient that wards off the larger creators of the forest, but I know of a place to get the ingredients and it's the one you're quite familiar with." Zecora said.

"And where would that be?" Spike asked.

"In the garden of the old castle in the forest, your looking for a plant called 'Green Fang'," Zecora replied, "It's a rare plant that is found near where large packs of Timberwolves live to mark their territory and repels other Timberwolf packs and manticores."

"That's easy enough, but what does it look like?" Spike asked

"It looks like a rose with green petals, it has a dark green stem and is covered in red fang shaped thorns that have what berries that appear to be red drops of blood at the tip of each thorn," Zecora said.

(AN: picture a combo of all three above)

"That's perfect, we were planning to set up a base camp in the old castle for my training," Spike said "We'll be back to pick you up in about twenty minutes before sunset with the plant. And then Twilight will meet us outside of the forest to take us to where we're staying for the night."

"Excellent, I will have the rest of the potion ready for your return." Zecora said before adding, "But be warned, I have seen evidence of a rather large pack of timberwolves staying in the castle, so I want you to be fully aware of your surroundings because I don't want to lose you again so soon."

"Don't worry Zecora, I promise you on my mother's grave I will return safely," Spike assured.

"Hey, I'm still in my early fourth millennium!" Princess Celestia exclaimed, feeling offended by her son's words.

"It's a figure of speech mom, I'm not implying anything," Spike said.

"I still don't like that saying." Princess Celestia grumbled.

"Thank you for the sentiment, and don't worry princess, back home we have a similar expression, and rest assure that you don't look a day over two thousand," Zecora said.

"Thank you Zecora, also I'm glad to see Twilights lessons are paying off." Princess Celestia said.

"Lessons?" Spike asked, "What lessons?"

"Spike, haven't you noticed something different about how I'm speaking?" Zecora asked, that's when it finally clicked.

"You not rhyming anymore, but why?" Spike asked.

"Well, in simple terms, after you disappeared I was tasked with leading a large search party through the forest." Zecora explained, "But many ponies were having problems with understanding my speech so Twilight decided to help me adopt a more understandable speech pattern, have I said anything incorrect?"

"No, not at all." Spike said before adding, "But even before I was gone, I never had any problems understanding you, and to be honest, I kind of miss it. But let's not get bogged down with my preferences, I'm thankful for your help in the search."

"I would do anything for my friends, so think nothing of it." Zecora insisted, "And if you're ever in trouble, I'll be in the thick of it with you."

"Thanks." Spike said as he and Princess Celestia stood up from the couch," Well Zecora, we need to go set up a camp near the castle? And don't worry, I think a walking bonfire like myself will be able to deal with some walking driftwood. Is there anything else you want to talk about?"

"A few things, but that can wait until tonight." Zecora responded, "Just be careful while you're in the forest."

With everything arranged for tonight l, Spike and Princess Celestia were grateful for the kindness Zecora has shown them and headed to the old castle.

After leaving Zecora's hut, the mother and son walked through the forest while Singing a song together.

As they sang, they walked down a path that led to the Castle of the Two Sisters and came across a river. Due to a lack of a certain sea serpent, they walked down the river for a while until they came upon a rather large tree that had fallen due to erosion and was just the right length to span the river. Seeing no other way for Spike to cross, both he and Princess Celestia climbed atop the fallen tree and slowly and carefully walked across to the other side.

After crossing the river, the duo continued to sing the song as they continued to walk into the forest but unknown to them, there was a small timberwolf pack near the edge of the river and upon seeing a potentially good meal in front of them, the pack followed. However, one of the timberwolves was careless and accidentally stepped on a twig, snapping it and alerting spike to the pack's location.

"Mom we have a small problem," Spike said.

"Let me guess, Timberwolves?" Princess Celestia asked.

"Yep, from what I can tell, there's about five of them, one alpha and four betas from the sounds of it... probably that pack Zecora told us about." Spike said before asking, "So you want to deal with them, or should I?"

"You go ahead Sweetie, just don't destroy the hearts I don't want you to kill them, they're important to the ecosystem." Princess Celestia said.

Spike shrugged and cracked his knuckles before saying, "Fine, head to the castle. I'll meet you there."

"Ok, have fun." Princess Celestia said as she walked away for the castle.

"Don't worry, I will!" Spike yelled before turning his attention to the timberwolves who were still hiding in the trees, "Ok, who wants to play?"

All that Princess Celestia could hear was the sound of wood snapping as she walked away from the one-sided fight.

Ten minutes after Princess Celestia had left Spike to deal with the timberwolves, she arrived at the castle's bridge and she was appalled to see the state the castle was in. There were massive holes in the outer wall of the castle and she just stood there in shock.

Princess Celestia stood there for a while as she was too shocked about the old castle's state to notice Spike carrying a large pile of wood in his arms enter into her view.

Seeing his mother's shocked look, Spike tried to snap her out of it.

"Mom, are you ok?" Spike asked, but got no response, "Mom, Hello?" again nothing, "This is not good. Well, time for my trump card. MOM Discord has turned all the cakes in the castle into vegetables!"

Immediately after saying that, Spike stepped back and waited for the reaction.

Princess Celestia's eye started to twitch and her mane started to smoke. A few seconds later her mane was totally engulfed in fire and she looked like she was going to kill discord

"HE DID WHATTTTTTTT!?! WHEN I GET MY HANDS ON HIM, HE'LL WISH HE WAS STILL IN HIS STONE PRISON!!!!" Princess Celestia yelled in the royal Canterlot voice.

In Discords Dimension, Discord was unwatering his house plants when he felt a shiver up his spine.

"That's odd, either I'm getting the blue flu again or someone is out for my hide." Discord said to himself before shrugging,
"Well, might as well go see whom I have pissed off."

With that, Discord snapped his fingers causing him to disappear out of his dimension.

As Princess Celestia continued to rant about what she was going to do to Discord the next time she sees him, Spike was just waiting for the inevitable.

"Three, two, one, zero." Spike counted, with Discord appearing in front of him immediately after he said zero.

"You have summoned me, o master?" Discord asked as he bowed to Spike dressed like a Genie.

Spike then pointed to his mother.

Discord sighed annoyance and asked, "What did you do?"

"I told her you turned all the cakes in the castle into vegetables," Spike replied.

"And why did you do that?" Discord asked.

"Needed to snap her out of a funk, and there are only three things my mother will die for, her family, her subjects and her cakes, and the first two I'm not willing to use," Spike said.

"But why blame me?" Discord asked.

"It's something you would totally do for a laugh, and you know it," Spike responded.

Discord was shocked that Spike was able to grasp chaos logic so well, that he reached under his arm and pulled out a sash with the words "Assistant God of Chaos" and placed it on Spike, and then snapped his fingers and made a party hat appear on Spike's head.

Then Discord started to cry as he said, "I'm So proud!"

Spike looked at the sash and gave an amused chuckle at the thought of being a Chaos God, and he actually liked the idea of it. But that could wait for another time as Spike still needed to snap his mother out of it.

Spike then snapped out of his thoughts and said, "Discord be a pal and snap mom out of it."

"And why would I do that?" Discord asked.

"Two reasons, one I'll let you be the D.M on the game night this week, and two I don't think you want to be roasted alive, or am I wrong?" Spike responded.

Discord pondered on the thought and was about to agree but then he thought about something he wanted.

"Okay, but on one condition." Discord said.

"And that is?" Spike asked.

"I also get the recipe for your special nachos." Discord said.

Spike thought over this and was really debating whether to accept the condition or face his mother on his own. And seeing that one of his greatest secrets was worth possibly saving himself from the wrath of his mother.

Spike sighed in defeat before saying, "Deal!"

Hearing Spike agrees to his conditions made Discord so happy that he changed his shape into a rocket and launched himself into the sky and exploded as fireworks were produced.

Spike was in awe of the display that he didn't notice that Discord had reappeared behind him in one piece.

Discord then placed both his hands on Spike's shoulders and asked, "Cool isn't it?"

Spike was shocked to see his friend behind him and but quickly snapped out of it as he started to become used to the randomness of Discord's actions.

Spike then looked back to the sky and continued to watch the fireworks before saying, "Yeah, also, if that was a real job offer, ask me in a few decades, and I might even say yes."

Discord just shrugged his shoulders before saying, "Fair enough, just remember, the offer still stands. All you have to do is just say yes and phenomenal cosmic power can be yours all without the need for an itty bitty living space."

Discord then turned his attention back to the still ranting Celestia and with a snap of his fingers, a pitcher of water appeared over her head and was promptly poured down on her head with the force of a waterfall. The water completely doused her and extinguished her flames and anger.

"What happened, where am I?!" Princess Celestia exclaimed as she looked around and saw Spike talking to Discord.

Spike turned to his mother and talked to Discord who was behind his back, "Thanks, and don't forget game night is on Wednesday. And I'll have a copy of the recipe ready. Now you should go just in case she's still mad at you."

Spike then looked behind him and noticed a lack of Discord as a piece of paper slowly fluttered to the ground which read 'see you at seven, I'll bring the popcorn', Spike shrugged as he accepted his friend's actions

"Yeah, that's about right for Discord," Spike said to himself.

Princess Celestia was now fully aware of her surroundings as she looked to Spike and quickly put two and two together.

She then got up and looked to Spike and asked "Shocked?"

"Yep," Spike replied.

"Tried everything?

"More or less."

"Trump card?"

"Trump card."

"What?"

"Discord, cake, vegetables."

"How angry?"

"Almost Daybreaker"

"Conditions?"

"Game night D.M, a job offer, my nacho recipe."

"Job offer?"

"Assistant god of chaos, but not for a while."

"Fair enough, but I'm sorry you had to give up your nacho recipe for me." Princess Celestia apologized.

"It was either nachos or a thousand years on the sun for you, honestly it was an easy choice," Spike assured.

"Aww, thank you, Sweetie, now if you wouldn't mind grabbing my extra pair of clothes from my bag so I can get dry." Princess Celestia said.

"Sure mom," Spike said before he opened Princess Celestia's Bag and pulled out a pair of dark gray cargo shorts and a blue Hawaiian shirt and handed both to her.

Princess Celestia then used her magic and removed her wet clothes and teleported them back to Canterlot and magically got dressed in her new outfit.

Now that the whole Daybreaker situation was dealt with, Spike was curious about what caused his mother to become so shocked that he had to use the trump card.

"So mom, what the hell happened to you?" Spike asked.

"Oh, that's right." Princess Celestia said before she pointed to the now swiss cheese looking castle, "Would you just look at the state the old castle is in. You said it was only a few years ago when you last saw it right?"

"Yeah." Spike said before he gave the castle a more thorough look and had to agree that this was pretty bad, "Okay fair enough, but what the hell could have happened to it? I mean, the first time me and Twilight visited the castle, I thought it was in pretty bad shape and that was after over one thousand years of neglect, but the way it is now is only a step up from a mountain of gravel."

(An: Something like this is what I'm going for)

"Maybe setting up camp in there is not the safest option, so how about we set up camp outside of the main gate and go retrieve the green fang Zecora needs?" Spike asked.

"That sounds reasonable, but we need to be careful about the structural soundness of the castle from now on." Princess Celestia points out.

"Kind of obvious, don't really want a ton of bricks to land on me again, once was enough." Spike said, earning a confused look from Princess Celestia, "Long story short, some guy planted explosives on the other side of a wall and I was buried in a lot of bricks, and it was not fun."

"I don't doubt it, but we're on a schedule right now so let's hop to it." Princess Celestia said, getting refocused on tonight's party.

So without a moment's delay, the two walked across the bridge and approached the dilapidated castle. But as Spike got closer, he noticed that there was something familiar about a thin silver thread creating a superstructure that were holding up the walls of the castle, and that there was a rock hard substance in the place of the mortar.

The closer Spike got the more noticeable the threads became and the stronger the smell of the new mortar became. It was all too familiar to Spike, but he couldn't remember from where, until it finally dawned on Spike what was going on.
Spike turned to his mother and said, "Mom, I think we will be fine if we stay inside of the castle, it's perfectly safe."

Princess Celestia was in utter shock at what she was hearing as not five minutes ago, her son said it was too dangerous.

"What!?!" Princess Celestia exclaimed in shock, "No way in Tartarus are we setting up in that massive building code violation! What has gotten into you?!"

"Trust me mom, plus there a few friends I would like you to meet," Spike said.

"What friends?" Princess Celestia asked.

"You'll see," Spike replied before he proceeded to the front door of the old castle. Using his dragon strength, he pushed open one of the massive wooden doors and quickly made his way inside the main hall. Seeing that her son was adamant about going in, Princess Celestia reluctantly followed after Spike.

As Spike and Princess Celestia walked through the main hall of the castle, Princess Celestia started to get worried and was questioning her son's actions.

"Spike, are you sure this is a good idea." Princess Celestia asked, "I mean, I do trust you, but this place is dangerous, and what if we get separated and something happens?"

"Don't worry, Twilight had me memorize all of the old 'traps' and secret doors too well, it'll be fine. And like I said, the castle is probably the safest it's been in the last thousand years."

"And how would you know that?" Princess Celestia asked.

Spike then had a sheepish expression as he was reluctant to tell his mother about his ammo, but Princess Celestia was
giving him the unbearable mom glare and his defenses were quickly crumbling away.

With a sigh, Spike finally said, "Well... I might have left out the part where all of my ammo that I brought home kind of escaped when I landed."

However, Princess Celestia knew there was more to the story continued to glare at her son until he confessed the whole story.

"And?" Princess Celestia asked.

"And they probably, probably found the castle and ran all of the creatures who were living inside away." Spike nervously.
Princess Celestia continued glaring and asked, "And?"

"And the reason I know we are safe is because Bolamite silk and Stingbee wax are both super strong and can support giant structures. And I noticed the silk threads color and the smell of the Stingbees wax as we approached the castle, and the holes in the walls were probably my Boombats making an entrance. Also, do you remember the timberwolves I beat?" Celestia nodded her head, "Well, it was actually very easy to do because they were already pretty beat up, probably by some Thudslugs and Fuzzles. Plus, they smelled like Stunkz spray, and if that happened, then the Chippunks are probably here as well."

"Anything else?" Princess Celestia asked.

"Yeah, they are probably living here now, and that pretty much sums it all up." Spike said before he looked into his mother's eyes and asked, "Sooo... on a scale of one to ten, how mad are you right now?"

"For the damage, your ammo did to my old home or the fact that you lied to us about something this big?" Princess Celestia asked.

"Both?" Spike asked nervously.

"About a one for the castle, because it wasn't your fault." Princess Celestia said.

"And the omission about the ammo?" Spike asked.

"A solid seven, but you're not in trouble." Princess Celestia said.

"I'm not, sweet thanks, mom," Spike said as he sighed in relief.

"Hold on a minute, Spike." Princess Celestia said, "You're not in trouble with me, because tomorrow, will escorting all the girls and Zecora back to the castle and show them what has happened to it. And then I hope you're ready for a big
lecture from both Twilight and Fluttershy.

Spike then dropped to his knees and started begging for his life, "Please! Anything but a Twilight lecture! I can handle Fluttershy's, but twilights will last for days, and I don't want to lose my sanity!"

Just then, a piece a paper appeared in front of Princess Celesta and it read, "You owe him one for stopping Daybreaker, go easy on the kid. Love Discord. P.S. Tell him not to forget the cheese dip Wednesday."

Knowing that what Discord said was true caused Princess Celestia to sigh. She then turned her attention back to the sobbing pile of scales on his knees before her and said, "Spike, I'll make you a deal." This made Spike look up to his mother, "If you promise to keep track of these new creatures and promise to take care of them, you don't have to deal with either lecture. But you still have to come clean about them to the girls and Zecora, understand?"

The news that he wouldn't have to suffer the wrath of a double lecture instantly brought Spike out of his freak out and in no time.

"YES MA'AM!" Spike exclaimed happily.

"Good, now, you told me about who these friends of yours?" Princess Celestia asked.

"That's easy," Spike said as he wiped away his tears and got back on his feet, "But first, cover your ears."

"Why?" Princess Celestia asked.

"Because this is going to be loud, and the last time I did it, I was nearly run out of town for doing so," Spike responded simply.

Hearing this made Princess Celestia quickly cover her ears as Spike drew in a large breath and placed his two pinky claws at the side of his mouth before he blew with all his strength, causing a long, window shattering whistle that could be heard for miles around. It was so strong that it created earthquakes that ponies felt all the way in Canterlot.

After a good fifteen seconds, Spike removed his claws from his mouth and looked towards Princess Celestia, but he was met with the sight of his mother still covering her ears and crouched into a ball. He then walked over to her and tapped her on the shoulder. This action told her it was safe to uncover her ears. She then looked up at her son and was sure it was safe to get up, she got to her hooves and gave Spike a glare, which only confused him.

"What?" Spike asked, "I told you it was going to be loud."

Princess Celestia dropped the glare before saying, "Your right, but did it have to that loud?"

"Yes," Spike responded.

"Why?" Princess Celestia asked.

"A few reasons." Spike began, "One: Fuzzles and Chippunks are hard of hearing, so a lot of volumes is required. Two: Bolamites, Stingbees, Zappflys, and Thudslugs don't have ears, so you need to create a lot of vibrations to get their attention. Three: Boombats like to live in dark caves so, I bet they live in the lower levels of the castle so the range was needed. And lastly, Stunkz likes to live in moist areas with a lot of mushrooms, so they are probably living near the tree of Harmony, so I needed the echo to reach down the cliff. Anything else?"

"Two things." Princess Celestia said before asking, "first, how did you do that?"

"It's similar to the royal Canterlot voice, but I add my ability to roar to increase the volume and range." Spike explained, "Then, I compress it into a whistle. What's the other thing?"

"I hear by ban you from ever doing that again." Princess Celestia said.

"But why?" Spike asked.

"Spike, that was so strong that the tremors were probably felt in Canterlot, and knowing how jumpy the Canterlot ponies are, I bet nearly everyone is panicking. Princess Celestia said explained, "So I'm going to give you an out, you either tone it down, or Twilight's going to lecture you on all the ways that whistle causes problems. Understand young drake?"

With a combination of both understanding and fear Spike agreed to find a compromise, "I'll figure something out, and I'm sorry for frightening you, and everyone else."

"It's fine Spike, just be more aware of your abilities and surroundings." Princess Celestia said.

"I will, so we have about five minutes until the first one arrives." Spike said before asking, "So, is there anything you want to talk about?"

"At the moment, I want to understand why you would need to use that whistle in a town." Princess Celestia said.

"Oh, well that's simple." Spike said before explaining, "Stranger taught me how to summon a few at a time, so I just put it all together. As for why I used it in a town, I was kidnapped and robbed one day so I used my claws to cut the ropes and my strength to pry a metal pipe from a wall and escaped with my gear but no ammo, so I used my training to summon all of them and we defeated the whole gang. But in doing so, I might have gone overboard with the whistle and shattered the entire town's windows, but I got my moola from the kidnapper's bounties and that covered the damages, plus I got my friends back."

"You know, after hearing your story from before, I'm not surprised by anything anymore." Princess Celestia said before adding, "But next, you're going to tell me that on Mudos there is a race of one-legged aquatic creatures with three giant webbed toes."

"Wellllllllll, you're close, there was a race called Gabbit's who look exactly like that but they died out years before I arrived," Spike said.

"Not shocked in the least." Princess Celestia said, "So Spike, how much longer till I get to meet your friends?"

Spike was about to answer her question but the sound of buzzing quickly entered Spike's ears

"Now, and I think she brought her family along," Spike said as he then looked up to the ceiling and saw a swarm of large yellow and black insects enter through a large hole in the roof. He then extended his arm and a very large bee looking creature landed on it. The bee was buzzing happily at the sight of Spike.

Spike gave the bee a small scratch on the top of her chitin before saying, "It's good to see you too Queen. I'm so sorry I lost you guys earlier, can you ever forgive me?" Queen then left Spikes arm and landed atop Spike's hat and nuzzled his
exposed head spine.

"Thanks, also have you seen the others? There's someone I want to introduce everyone to." Spike said.

Queen buzzed a little as she was responding to Spike's question.

"I see, well, would you like to see Sparks?" Spike asked, making Queen buzz excitedly, "Okay, Okay, let me get him out of the ammo strap."

Spike then removed the armband that would normally hold his crossbow and pressed a little button on the side.

A few seconds later, a swarm of giant dark blue firefly-like insects with a light blue thorax emerged from the sides and quickly filled the room.

Princess Celestia was in utter shock as she said, "I stand very, very corrected".

A very large Zappfly stayed on the strap and quickly flew to Spike's shoulder and nuzzled him affectionately.

"Hey Sparks, sorry it took so long, but I didn't want your family to scare the town, but good news, we found everyone." Spike said, which caused Sparks to light up and wiggle with excitement, "But only Queen and her family have shown so far, so we might have to wait for the full family reunion." Sparks just buzzed and somehow shrugged.

Just then, the sound of an explosion was heard and Spike just let out a sigh, as he redirected his attention to Queen and said, "Queen, it looks like Banger and is cloud are up, could you please send some bees over and help them out, we are kind of in hot water already and I don't think the castle needs any more holes."

Queen then buzzed and most of her colony left to retrieve Banger and his cloud. Spike then made a disgusted face as there was a horrendous smell wafting into the room.

"Well, it looks like Belch and his surfeit are next." Spike said before he dug into his backpack and grabbed a rag and threw it to his mother, "Use this to cover your nose, it's about to get worse for you."

Princess Celestia quickly used the rag to cover her nose as a group of round skunk creatures hopped into the room and the leader quickly chittered something and made a beeline for Spike the moment he saw him as the rest of the group started to form a circle next to one of the walls.

The leader hopped his way to Spike and wrapped his long tail around Spike's left leg. Spike looked down and had a smile on his face and bent down and scratched behind the Stunk's ear, as the Stunk was chittering happily.

"I've missed you too Belch, and I'm sorry we got separated earlier, but nice job with the Timberwolves, I'm proud of you, Fang, and Wallop for protecting the rest of the family," Spike said, which made Belch chitter even louder. Spike then continued to talk to Belch, "Also Belch, do me a favor, can you guys stop the gas for a little while, I need to introduce you all to someone special and it's hard for her to breathe right now."

Belch nodded and hopped back to his surfeit and chittered something and returned to Spike's leg and gave him a nod.

"Thanks, Bud," Spike said with a smile.

Spike then turned his attention back to his mother and gave her a nod as well. Princess Celestia lowered the rag and took in a deep breath and looked like she was about to throw up after doing so.

Spike saw the look on his mother's face and added, "Trust me it could've been worse but the air will be clear in a minute, just bear with it."

Princess Celestia used all of her willpower not to pass out from the smell, and as Spike said, the air was slowly becoming breathable again.

Just then, the rest of Queen's colony returned, followed by a large group of round, brown bats with wings on the top of their heads. They all started to land upside down on the ceiling as a dark gray furred bat descended. Spike saw this bat and moved his tail to in front of him and allowed the gray bat to land while hanging upside down. The bat started to squeak a little but promptly fell asleep seconds after landing.

"Sorry for the early evening wake up call Banger, we'll talk later okay, but we'll need you up after everyone is here, but until then get some sleep."

Banger only squeaked one more time and nodded as he fell asleep again. The next thing Spike heard was the sound of insults echoing down one of the halls.

Spike then let out a sigh and turned his attention to his mother, "These guys are a tough pill to swallow so all I'm going to say is that they did not pick up any of the languages from me, but once they get to know you they will tone it down."

The next thing Princess Celestia saw was a pack of round chipmunks hopping into the room. They were led by a rather old looking chipmunk.

The second the gray chipmunk saw Spike, it started to yell, "Spike! You purple and green sack of fucking shit! Where the hell has you been you washed up cunt?! We thought you died in the forest! Also, where are we! We had to deal with a lot of shit in the past two days you know!"

"Yeah, I know," Spike said as he then began to smile. "Alvin, you rotten piece of shit, you look good for a ball of dragon jizz wearing a gray fur coat, but at least you helped the family-run the baddies away right, you quite ass rodent?"

"Damn right we did, you lazy fire shooting bag of scales." Alvin then turned to his scurry and yelled, "Right lads?"

"You know it you rotting piece of dragon jizz, Sir." all of the Chippunks yelled in unison.

"Good lads!" Alvin then turned his attention back to Spike and noticed Princess Celestia looking shocked from either the fact that it can talk or the fact her son used such horrid language in front of her, "Dragon, whos the slack-jawed bitch over there, she does know she's going to attract Zappflys like that." This comment made Sparks buzz angrily. "Present company excluded of course."

"First off, she is not a bitch, and if you ever use that word to describe her again, you're going to be my dinner, got it?" Spike said with the look of a killer in his eyes.

"Yes Sir," Alvin said before saluting.

"Good, and second we are waiting for everyone else to arrive, only Fang, Wallop and Char are missing," Spike said.

Just then, Princess Celestia noticed a large Spider lower itself onto Spikes' neck, and was going to shout for him to squish it. But before she was able to say one word, Spike opened his palm and caught the spider in his hand.

Once the spider was safe in Spike's hand, he brought his closed hand to the front of his face and slowly opened it, revealing a dark blue spider with large fangs, large red eyes, and a large red hourglass design on the abdomen, but instead of squashing it, Spike only laughed at it, which shocked Celestia even more.

"Nice try Char, but I saw the thread as you lowered yourself to my neck," Spike said to the spider, which made Char sign some things using her arms.

She continued signing to Spike as he slowly got the message. "Ok, so you were the first to find the castle and lead the rest of the family over and was the overseer of the whole operation," Spike said. Char nodded and continued to sign, "And during the operation, you, and the rest of the cluster did recon and supported both Wallop's and fang's groups. That's my girl, I'm so proud that you took the lead and protected your family."

Char nodded again as she had a twinkle in her eyes from the complement then she pointed to Celestia and cocked her head questioning who this was.

"She's someone I want to introduce everyone to, but we're still missing Fang and Wallop," Spike explained.

Char then used one of her arms and pointed it up to the ceiling, Spike followed the appendage and looked up.

When Spike looked up, his eyes settled on a rapidly descending fist-sized purple ball headed straight for his face. Seeing the incoming threat, he used his free hand and caught the object in his palm, and then brought it up to his face. Spike looked at the purple object and noticed that was slowly opening to reveal a pill bug-like creature with five red eyes and extending out from the shell were four insect-like legs.

Spike looked down in disappointment then looked back to Char and said, "Clever Girl, but you should have told me when he reached top speed, not before."

This made Char annoyed as she closed her maxillae quickly producing a 'Tch' sound, which made Spike laugh. He then turned to the other creature in his other hand and said, "And you, I'm so proud of you and the rest of the slugs for fending off those Timberwolves, Wallop. But guess what." Wallop pivoted his body to the side showing he was curious. "Well, thanks to you and Fang, I was able to deal with them relatively easily." This news made Wallop jump up and down in Spike's palm out of joy, seeing Wallop's reaction made Spike smile.

Spike then looked at both Char and Wallop with a questioning look and asked, "Where's the rest of your clusters?"

As if on command, dozens of Bolamites similarly descended from the ceiling to Char, and another couple dozen Thudslugs buzzed through one of the many holes in the castle's walls and landed at Spike's feet. Seeing that almost everyone was accounted for Spike questioned where his group of Fuzzles was.

Spike then asked all of his ammo, "Hey guys, has anyone seen Fang?"

There was silence for a few minutes as each leader thought about the location of the Fuzzle and his cete. One at a time each answered. Sparks, Wallop, Queen, and Char shook their heads, Banger was still asleep, Belch shrugged using his tail and Alvin responded with "Haven't seen the Dust bunny with teeth since we raided the castle."

This made Spike worry about his Fuzzles as he thought about everything he knew about them.

"Ok, Fuzzles, ambush and trap ammo, quick to attack if threatened, when developing a new home very reluctant to leave unless the leader orders it, the leader is determined by a show of dominance, and if the last leader is missing Fuzzles will try to determine the new leader as soon as it's safe. So I just need to reassert my dominance over the Fuzzles." Spike said to himself before yelling to every creature in the room "Everyone needs to get in the strap now. I need to win over Fang and the cete again."

This statement caught the attention of every creature in the room as they all quickly returned to their groups and one at a time entered into the storage system on the crossbow strap. After everyone was safe inside of the strap, Spike turned his head to his mother and told her, "This is not going to be as bad as last time, but it's still going to be bad. So I recommend that you use the paper and ink you brought and send a message to aunt Luna and Twilight to inform them to keep the citizens calm and that there is no threat."

Seeing the serious look on Spike's face and how his ammo quickly fled, Princess Celestia quickly grabbed the paper and wrote the message to both princesses. The second the messages were sent, Princess Celestia covered her ears again and waited for the upcoming audible assault.

Spike seeing that everything was ready started to inhale a large amount of air, once Spike was ready he opened his mouth and using his full strength released a blood-curdling roar.

The roar lasted for at least ten seconds and once it was over, Spike was so winded that he dropped to his knees and was panting.

"God, now I remember why I don't do that a lot." Spike between pants.

As Spike was trying to calm down after the roar, the sound of growling was heard coming from right outside of the castle's front doors. Fearing that his roar had attracted a rather large predator, he quickly grabbed his crossbow from his bag and attached it to the mounting on his arm. He then equipped both Banger and Wallop.

"You guys ready for a fight?" Spike asked the duo, earning a nod from Wallop, signaling that he was ready to go, and Banger was fully awake and was twitching with excitement, "Good, be ready to go. We still need to find Fang and the rest so stay safe."

With that said, Spike and his ammo slowly made their way to the front door and was about to attack the unknown intruder. But before he was about to kick open the door, the door was pushed open and a large mass of brown fuzzy creatures tackled the dragon to the ground.

The surprise of the sudden tackle triggered Spikes dragon instincts to kill his attacker, and he was about to unleash a torrent of emerald flames to reduce the attacker to ash in an instant, but as he was concentrating his inner fire towards his mouth Spike felt the sensation of soft fur rubbing against his scales. This feeling allowed Spike to regain control of his body and finally recognized the mass that tackled him was made up of a lot of small, round, fuzzy creatures with large sets of pointy teeth.

Seeing that he wasn't in any danger Spike let out a sigh and said, "I give, but can you guys get off of me?"

The group of fuzz slowly moved off the downed dragon, allowing him to sit up and get a clearer look at the new group.
Spike recognized the group to be the missing Fuzzle cete, and at the forefront of the cete was a single Fuzzle whose fluff was spiked so much that he resembled a hedgehog. The spiky Fuzzle had its tongue hanging out of its mouth and had the look of an excited puppy seeing its owner after being alone all day.

When Spike saw the excited Fuzzle in front of his cete, Spike looked into the Fuzzles eyes and said, "I missed you too Fang. I'm sorry for losing you guys the other day, but I promise you I'll never disappear again."

Spike then placed his hand on top of Fang's head and started to scratch his head. This elicited Fang to purr from the
the affection he was receiving.

As Spike continued to scratch the Fuzzle, he said, "Fang, I'm so proud of you for protecting the rest of the family, you and the cete did a great job." This made Fang purr even louder.

Spike then remembered that his mother was still covering her ears and curled up waiting for Spike to signal that the roar was over.

Spike then looked back to Fang and said, "Okay boys, I'll explain everything in a minute but I need everyone to go inside of storage."

The strange request caused Fang to tilt his head to the side but he trusted Spike's order as the rest of the cete followed him into the storage strap.

Spike then looked to the two leaders that were still loaded in his crossbow and said, "Sorry you two, false alarm, you can go back in."

Both Wallop and Banger looked disappointed but agreed, and went back into the storage strap. Now that everyone was inside the strap Spike, got up and walked over to his mother and tapped her on the top of her head showing its safe to get up.

Princess Celestia looked up to see the face of her son and her face instantly shifted to one of annoyance as she then got up and crossed her arms while glaring at Spike.

"I swear by me if you do that one more time you're going to get a full week-long lecture from Twilight about the repercussions that can cause." Princess Celestia said.

"Sorry, but I had to, or I would have lost my place as alpha of the cete," Spike explained, which made Princess Celestia let out an exhausted sigh.

"Fine, I can accept that." Princess Celestia said before asking, "So how long do we need to wait till they show up?"

"We don't, while you were still covering your ears and curled up into a ball, they arrived and we reconnected and they're now inside of the storage system already." Spike said before an excited grin formed on his face and he began to bounce up and down rapidly, "So, are you ready to meet the rest of the family?"

"Sure, but can I meet them one at a time?" Princess Celestia asked.

"Not a problem, but who do you want to meet first?" Spike asked.

"How about..." Celestia pondered on who would be best to start with, "...Oh, how about letting me meet the creatures that caused my newly acquired hearing problem."

"Ok, but I'm warning you, now they tend to be very defensive of the leader when around new faces so step back a bit." Spike warned, prompting Princess Celestia to take a few steps back until she was about twenty feet away from him, "That's good. Now, stay there and I'll bring over Fang. And once Fang accepts you into the cete, you can meet the others."

Spike then detached the crossbow on his arm and removed the strap from his arm. He then reached into the center of the band and pulled out a thin glass tube that has a button on the top and has a picture of a cartoon looking Fuzzle on it.

Spike then pushed the button and the whole cete returned with Fang at the front. Spike bent down and scooped up Fang and whispered to him, "Be nice, your about to meet the most important person in my life." Fang nodded as Spike used his other hand and covered him.

Spike returned to his mother and put his hands in front of Princess Celestia. He then opened his hands and revealed the Fuzzles to her.

When Fang caught sight of Princess Celestia so close to Spike, his mood instantly changed to one of vicious protection as his spiked fur was totally straight and was growling in a very threatening tone.

Spike saw the way Fang changed and became disappointed in the Fuzzle and said, "Fang, what did I say about being nice?"
Fang's mood shifted instantly to one of guilt as he had disappointed his leader.

Seeing this exchange between Spike and the one called Fang reminded Princess Celestia of the times she gave Spike the same look when he did something wrong.

Spike looked at his mother and said, "Sorry about him, he is really overprotective of me. But once he sees you're not a threat, you'll see how sweet he is."

Spike returned his attention to Fang and restarted the introduction, "Fang this is Celestia, she's the one I wanted you to meet, she is my mother." Spike looked to Celestia and said, "Mom, this is Fang. He is the co-leader of the Fuzzle cete."

Princess Celestia extended her hand and stopped it in front of Fang, wanting to see if she would be accepted by Fang. Fang was reluctant to trust the newcomer, but seeing that Spike trusted this figure, he slowly hopped towards Princess Celestia's palm before nuzzling his head against it.

Spike looked at the display and let out a breath that he didn't know he was holding and relaxed. He then wanted to expedite the exchange.

Spike then looked to his mother and said, "Mom, lay your palm flat and hold it there."

Princess Celestia followed his instructions, seeing this Fang cautiously hopped into Celestia's open palm and sat there while he stared at her. After a few minutes of just staring at each other, Fang's cautious expression changed to one similar to a dog meeting a new friend as he hopped up to Princess Celestia's shoulder and started to nuzzle her cheek.

"And there you go, your now part of the cete," Spike said a smile on his face.

Princess Celestia released a long-held breath as she was relaxed by the feeling of the Fuzzle's fur on hers. She then looked into Spike's eyes and admitted, "That was the most stressful thing I've done in years. Please tell me the hardest part is over?"

"It is." Spike assured, "Fang is like a father protecting his family from danger, and now that he has accepted you, the others will be more than welcoming. So, who do you want to meet next?"

"How about that little bat thing from earlier, he is probably nocturnal, so I want to let him get as much sleep as possible." Princess Celestia said.

Spike, seeing the logic in his mother's words, pulled the Boombats tube from the underside of his band and pressed the button. The room was soon filled with a large number of brown bats who all started to hang from the ceiling except for the same gray bat who perched on Spike's tail again.

"Mom, Banger is the grandfather figure of the family." Spike said to his mother before saying to Banger, "Banger, this is my mother, Celestia."

Banger let out a squeak and then looked at Fang nuzzling Celestia's cheek. He then gave a nod to Spike before he flew back to his cloud and landed upside down and fell asleep. Princess Celestia cocked a brow at the weird bat and looked questioningly at Spike.

Seeing the look, Spike told his mother, "He likes you very much, but he is still sleepy and didn't want to be rude and fall asleep during your conversation."

Princess Celestia was surprised by how well mannered the old bat was.

"Well that is very kind of him, and I can't wait to talk to him tonight with Luna." Princess Celestia said before asking, "So whos next?"

"Well, we have Alvin, Wallop, Charlotte, Belch, Sparks, and Queen left so it's up to you," Spike said.

"Let's get the worst one out of the way." Princess Celestia said, "Bring out the foul-mouthed rodent who called me a bitch."

"Are you sure? He can be very unpleasant and he will insult you even more." Spike asked, earning a nod from his mother.

"But before you let them out, is there anything I should know before we meet?" Princess Celestia asked.

"There's a chain of command among the group, and since you want to talk to Alvin, you're pretty much challenging his rank in the scurry, which is only second to me." Spike explained, "So if you want to outrank him you'll have to out insult him."

"What do you mean?" Princess Celestia asked, unsure as to what her son meant.

"Do you remember when Alvin first showed up?" Spike asked, earning a nod from his mother, "Well, it works like this; whoever has the better insult is made a higher up among the rest of the scurry, and there are only three rules you need to follow. One: you can't repeat any insult. Two: the rest of the scurry act as judges and their ruling is final. And lastly, it is all in good fun so there is no resentment if you win or lose. Now, are you ready?" Princess Celestia nodded.

Spike then removed the Chippunks ammo tube and pressed the button, and then the room instantly became full of the sounds of insults being flung between all the Chippunks, until Spike spoke up that is.

"Lad's form up!" Spike announced, the command made the room fall silent as all the Chippunks fell into rank with Alvin placed in the front.

"Reporting for duty Sir!" Alvin yelled as every Chippunk used their tails to salute.

"At ease lads." Spike said, allowing all Chippunks to lower their tails at spikes command, "Alvin come here."

Alvin approached the dragon and stood a few feet away from him. Spike bent his knees and opened his palm and motioned for Alvin to hop on. Once Alvin was safe in the hand Spike returned to his full height and let Alvin look Celestia in the eye.

"Alvin this is Celestia and she is my mother." Spike said, "Mom, I believe you remember Alvin."

"How could I forget?" Princess Celestia asked rhetorically, "It's nice to see you again you sundried piece of shit. But if I remember correctly, you called me a bitch, and I don't take kindly to that word, so please refrain from using it."

"My most apologies for my crass language earlier, I was unaware of your relation to the commander," Alvin said, his response catching both Spike and Princess Celestia by surprise. But then Alvin gave a weak chuckle and added, "But I can see you want to join the ranks. So, shall we begin?"

Princess Celestia hesitantly nodded.

"Good." Alvin said, "Now, I shall start since I have been challenged. Good luck, you over bleached, overstuffed, namby-pamby pony princess."

"Well thank you so much, but I won't need it you impotent nut munching furry testicle." Princess Celestia said back.
Spike was shocked to hear the insults his own mother said, but he snapped out of his shock and asked the rest of the scurry l, "Lads, your verdict?"

"Alvin is an impotent nut munching furry testicle, Sir!" They all yelled while saluting with their tails.

"Your new second in command is Celestia unless told otherwise, understand?" Spike announced.

"Sir, yes Sir." the scurry said.

Spike then placed Alvin back down on the ground and nodded to Celestia.

"Now, Fall in Lads!" Princess Celestia ordered.

"MA'AM, YES MA'AM" they all shouted as they all returned to attention at her command, as Alvin returned to the scurry and fell into rank.

"Good, now at ease." Princess Celestia said.

Princess Celestia then looked to her son and yanked on one of his ear frills.

"OWWWWWW!" Spike yelled, "What the hell mom?!"

"If I ever hear you use such language to anyone other than the scurry you will be grounded for a month and will get a lecture from Twilight about the common conversation to boot." Princess Celestia said.

'Ma'am, yes ma'am." Spike grumbled, hearing the rest of the scurry chuckling at his predicament.

After the laughter died down and Spike's frill stopped hurting, Spike said, "Let's meet Sparks and his swarm now."

Spike grabbed the Zappfly bottle and pushed the button on the top. The next thing Princess Celestia saw was the return of the large swarm of firefly looking insects flying around the room as the largest one left the swarm and landed on Spike's shoulder and began to glow brightly.

Spike gave the excited bug a loving pat on the head and asked, "Sparks are you ready to meet her?" The Zappfly glowed brightly and wiggled, "Good, look over there."

Sparks looked in the direction Spike was pointing and saw Celestia looking towards the duo.

"Sparks, this is my mother, her name's Celestia." Spike said before he looked at his mother and added, "Mom, this is Sparks, the Zappfly."

"Hello, it's nice to meet you, Sparks." Princess Celestia said.

Sparks flew over to Princess Celestia and landed on her unoccupied shoulder and started to wiggle with excitement. This caused some electricity to the ark to Celestia.

"Ouch, what was that?" Princess Celestia asked.

"Sorry should've warned you." Spike apologized, "When a Zappfly gets too excited, they can produce electricity. But don't worry, it's only slightly stronger than a static shock. So it'll only sting for a few seconds. So you're fine."

"Why didn't you warn me about that beforehand?" Princess Celestia asked.

"Scales don't conduct electricity, Stranger told me about it, also he will calm down in a minute just pat his head and show him some affection," Spike said.

Princess Celestia followed Spike's suggestion and gave the excited lightning bug a small pat on the head and began to feel the electricity vanish as the Zappfly started to glow a bright blue. This caused Princess Celestia to cock an eyebrow and look to Spike.

"Is this normal?" Princess Celestia asked.

"Pretty much, that signifies contentment." Spike said, "Now try making him annoyed."

Wondering why Spike would like to annoy his friends, Princess Celestia stopped patting the zappfly on her shoulder and instead started to tap his head with her finger. This caused the Zappfly's abdomen to change to an orange color.

Princess Celestia saw the new color and stopped tapping his head and looked to Spike with a questioning look.

"I can explain." Spike said, "One of the lesser-known names for Zappflys is 'Light Bugs'. They can change the color they glow depending on what emotion they are feeling. Green means calm, relaxed, or tranquil. Light Blue as you saw means excitement while dark blue shows sadness. Orange shows annoyance, Red is anger, and Pink, love. There's also Yellow for curious, and purple for embarrassed. And depending on how dim or bright the light, the stronger the emotion."

After Princess Celestia heard the new information about the Zappflys as a whole, she just looked at Sparks with amazement in her eyes at the wonderfully expressive bug.

"That's amazing, I can't believe some creature like you exist." Princess Celestia said to the now purple glowing Zappfly on her shoulder. She then looked back at Spike and asked, "So who's next?"

"Let's go with Belch," Spike said, holding up the Stunkz bottle.

Spike then let Belch and the surfeit out of the bottle as the room instantly became slightly smelly, but it wasn't as bad as when they first arrived so Princess Celestia was able to breathe the air but still had to hold down her lunch.

Then, the same Stunkz from earlier hopped back to Spike and wrapped its tail around his leg. Spike looked down at his feet and saw Belch with his tail wrapped around his leg.

"Good to see you again, Belch are you ready to meet someone special?" Spike asked.

Stunkz chittered something and nodded his head.

"Good, now you see that person over there?" Spike asked as he pointed at his mother.

Belch looked over to where Spike was pointing and saw Celestia standing there.

"I know you don't know her, but rest assured that she's a good person and will not harm you, but I would like you to meet her, is that ok?" Spike asked.

Belch started to shake at the thought of meeting Princess Celestia, but he was willing to do it for Spike, so he nodded at him.

"Thanks, little buddy, I know it's hard for you when you meet new people, but I think you'll like her very much," Spike assured as he picked up Belch and moved back to Princess Celestia.

When Spike approached, Princess Celestia noticed the Stunkz shaking in his hands, so to make herself look less threatening, she put on a comforting smile and this seemed to calm the Stunkz down a good amount.

When Spike arrived, Belch was still shaking and looked more terrified than Fluttershy could ever be.

"Now Mom, This little guy is Belch." Spike said, showing Belch in his hand, "He's a little skittish around new people. I found him when he was a kit after his family's mushroom patch was destroyed by outlaws, so I've been raising him for nearly two years, so he trusts me." Spike then looked at Belch and added, "Belch, this pony is my mother, Celestia," Spike looked to the still shaking Stunkz and added, "Belch I want you to know that I lost my parents before I was hatched and she found my egg and after I hatched, she adopted me and raised me along with my sister who you will meet tonight. But in this world, dragons are very dangerous, but instead of tossing me back into the dragon lands, she let the kindness in her heart guide her and while raising me. She showed me that you should always let your kindness guide you, and that led me to meet you and the rest of the family."

After hearing Spike's story, Belch looked back at Princess Celestia, who was crying at both Spike's opinion of her and the news that Belch was just like Spike. She then slowly grabbed Belch from Spike and started to cuddle him, as she wanted to show Belch the love that he should have had with his parents. This action seemed to relax the Stunkz as Belch had stopped shaking and was snuggling into Celestia's arm.

Spike was stunned at how easily accepting Belch was with Princess Celestia, but he just shrugged it off as it being her motherly side taking control of her and wanting to protect Belch.

After a few minutes of cradling the Stunkz in her arms, Princess Celestia stopped before looking at Spike and asked, "Who's left?"

"We have Wallop, Char, and Queen," Spike said.

"Well let's not leave the queen waiting." Princess Celestia said with a shrug.

"One Hive of Stingbees coming up." Spike as said he pulled out the Stingbee tube and pressed the top button.
The room instantly became very noisy as a full swarm of Stingbees flew out. After every Stingbee was out of the tube, they all flew to the ceiling and just hovered there. Then the same larger Stingbee flew down and again perched on top of Spikes head spin. Spike looked up and moved his open palm and waited for Queen to move to his hand. Queen looked at the open hand and crawled onto it.

Spike lowered his hand and looked at Queen and asked, "So Queen, are you ready to meet someone important?" Queen buzzed and nodded, "Good, look behind you." Spike pointed at Princess Celestia as Queen followed his claw.

"Queen, this is Princess Celestia, she is the ruler of this land and my mother." Spike said before he looked at his mother, "Mom, this is the queen of the Stingbee hive, Queen."

"It's an honor, your majesty." Princess Celestia said, using all of her past knowledge about how to deal with other royalty as she bowed to the ruler standing in her son's palm and added, "And thank you and the rest of your hive for protecting my son. Without you, I don't know what might have happened to him."

"Ummm, Mom what are you doing?" Spike asked, giving his mother a questioning look.

"Showing my respect, what else?" Princess Celestia responded.

"She's not too big on formality's, she's more likely to go out drinking with you, then bowing to you," Spike said.

Queen nodded at Spikes statement and flew up to Princess Celestia's horn and landed on it. Princess Celestia looked up to her horn and looked at Queen, then she looked at Spike with a confused look.

"She trusts me, I trust you, so she is putting her faith in you as well," Spike explained.

Princess Celestia just looked flabbergasted as she stared at the Stingbee holding onto her horn. Spike just shrugged and grabbed the last two tubes from his ammo strap and pressed the button on both, as both Thudslug and Bolamite clusters were released and flooded into the room.

Princess Celestia took notice of Spike's actions and wanted to ask why he let both out, but Spike said, "They're a package deal because they work so well together, so I thought that it would be best for you to meet them together."

The same dark blue spider and dark purple pill bug slowly crawled up Spikes back and planted themselves onto his shoulders. Spike looked at his mother and using his hand pointed at his left shoulder.

"Mom, this is Wallop, he's a good friend who has gotten me out of a lot of sticky situations…" Spike then pointed to his right shoulder and added, "...and this is Charlotte, but she likes Char more. She's in charge of the rest of the family when I'm not around..." Spike then used both of his hands and pointed to Princess Celestia, "...You two, this is Celestia, she's my mother. Now, mom, this is going to hurt a little, but is the only way they will not see you as a threat."

Before Princess Celestia could ask Spike about what he meant, Charlotte shot a string to the ceiling and swung over to Celestia and landed on her shoulder and quickly crawled to the back of her neck and using her fangs gave Celestia a bite. But before Celestia could worry about the bite, Wallop extended his hidden wings and flew straight towards Celestia. Celestia tried to cover her face using her arms but to her surprise nothing hit her, but when she lowered her arms she saw Wallop hovering above her left hoof and then he stopped hovering and started falling, and landed on Celestia's hoof.

Princess Celestia started to hop on one leg and used one of her hands to cover the bite as she was shouting. "Ouch, Ouch, Ouch!" She then looked at Spike who was chuckling at the silly sight of his mother and gave him the worst look he had ever seen, and it was clear that this was his last straw.

Spike just gave her a deadpan look back and said, "It could have been worse. I had to be bitten by her whole cluster, and he fell from at least two hundred feet and landed on my tail."

Hearing this piece of information Celestia dropped her look as she gave a thought to what Spike said and she was actually happy with the little amount of pain.

After Celestia was done hopping around she looked to her son and asked, "If I remember correctly, that was everyone right?"

"Right, so now that we know it's safe in the castle, let's set up base camp and look for the Green Fang. But before we go, I need to say a few things." Spike said he then placed the two tubes back inside of his wrist strap and moved to a wall and positioned himself so he could address every creature in the room. He then yelled, "Okay, I know the last few days have been stressful for everyone, but I have good news!" This caught every creature's attention, "Everyone, this is your new home during downtime, but we will start training again today, so everybody back inside. But I need to speak with the heads alone so you guys stay out!"

With the orders given, every creature in the room made their way back to the wrist strap and back into their designated tubes.

Once every creature was back in their tubes, Spike looked at his eight heads standing in front of him and said, "Okay, guys, we are not in Mudos anymore. We are in Equestria. There are no Clakerz, only ponies similar to my mother, so I need you to behave and not cause trouble, I mean it, Alvin." Alvin just shrugged and continued to listen, "Tonight after training, I'm going to let everyone get some shut-eye, but we will be attending a party where I'm going to introduce you all to the other side of the family. But there are a few ground rules..." Spike looked at Alvin, "No one is going to try and join in so no bad language..." Spike then looked at Belch, "...Ponies cant handle the smell so much so do your best to keep it down..." Then to Char and Wallop, "...no biting them, and no falling on them. Does everyone understand?" They all nodded in response.

"Good." Spike then looked at Char and said, "Char, I know you and the rest of the cluster inspected the castle already, correct?" char nodded, "Excellent. Have you seen a plant that looks like green rose with red berries on its thorns?" Char thought for a second and nodded again, "Good. Can you show me?" She nodded again and pointed down the hallway leading to the rest of the castle. "Thanks I need you to guide me to the flower so jump on..." Spike looked to the rest of the heads and continued, "The rest of you, join up with the rest and be ready for some training."

After Spike was done with his speech, char shot a string to the ceiling and swung herself around, and landed on Spikes's shoulder as the rest of the heads returned to their tubes.

Once the heads were inside, Spike grabbed his now full strap and placed it back onto his arm.

Spike looked over to Celestia who was just standing there patiently waiting and asked, "Do you want to stay here and set up the base camp, or do you want to join us and find the Green Fang?"

"The base camp can wait, I would like to see the rest of the castle." Princess Celestia replied.

"Fair enough." Spike said with a shrug as he looked back to Char, "So where to girl?" Char then pointed down the hallway, "Good, let's go."

With that, Spike and his two companions walked down the dark halls of the castle.

Night Under The Stars Pt.2

View Online

In the ancient castle in the Everfree, the solar monarch, her recently returned dragon son, and a giant spider-like creature from another world was walking along the dark hallway following the instruction of the most unusual of the three.

"So Char, are you ready for some training?" Asked Spike looking at the Bolamite standing on his shoulder. Char nodded as the trio reached a fork in the hallway, Spike then looked at Char and asked "Left or right?" Char pointed to the corridor on the right and the trio continued down the hall.

Celestia was interested in how the relationship between her son and his pseudo army came together during his time away, so she decided to ask. "So Spike how exactly did you meet all your friends?"

Spike looked at his mother and responded to her inquiry. "Well, I first met Sparks one night while traveling with the caravan when I saved him and the rest of the Zappflys from a crate some local outlaws were using as cover when they ambushed us. Then came Char and the cluster after I saved them during a forest fire." Char nodded at the memory and nuzzled spikes cheek showing that she was still grateful, Spike returned the affection with a scratch on her abdomen, as he continued. "Then I took Belch in after he lost his family. Banger was next, he and his cloud were outside of their cave when a bandit caused a rock slide and blocked the entrance off, I was nearby and tried my best to help them but the cave was under hundreds of tons of solid rock at least forty feet deep, so after some teamwork, they agreed to join the family. When on a hunt for a particularly nasty outlaw who used Stingbees and Fuzzles as both ammo and traps and treated them horridly, I rescued both Fang and his cete, and Queen's hive from the outlaw and gave them the love that they never got. Alvin and the troops were just an 'unlucky'..." said Spike giving air quotes, "...find after returning from seeing Doc for a status report on the teleporter. Lastly, Wallop joined us after he accidentally caused me to lose my target when he knocked at boulder off a mountain and crushed the outlaw, he's paid off his debt long ago but I asked him if he would like to stay and he agreed and now he sees Char as an older sister similar to me and Twi. After every new member joined the family there was a little argument among the older members but I quickly quelled them and once each saved my life they would be accepted with no more issues."

Celestia thought to herself 'Dam right I raised you right my little commander.' she let out a giggle.

Spike heard the giggle and was wondering why she was giggling, "Umm, Mom, what's with the giggling?"

Celestia was brought out of her thoughts and responded. "I was just remembering the times I taught you about leadership and kindness before you moved to Ponyville with Twilight, and how you used what you learned in those classes to bring together not one but eight different species to help you, I mean I'm not shocked at all you did ally with both the dragons and the changelings and you were only like twelve, but still you show true friendship to everyone you met and that was able to bring you back to me."

Spike had a sheepish look on his face as he listened to his mothers praise, but Spike was brought out of his ego infused daydream when he felt a hard wooden object hit his snout which snapped him back to reality as he had walked straight into the castle garden and proceeded to get to first base with a tree that stood in the center of the garden. Spike heard the sound of muffled laughter from his shoulder and from behind him and was completely embarrassed and annoyed and quietly said three little words to the others in the room. "Not One Word." Spike then took in his surroundings and noticed the large variety of flowers and bushes scattered around in multiple large flower beds and the large willow tree planted in the middle that has stolen Spikes first kiss and then it clicked that they had reached the castle gardens.

After the muffled giggles died down Spike looked at his mother and asked if they were in the garden. "So is this the royal garden?"

"It is, I'm shocked that there is anything alive after years of neglect."

"Well the roof is missing so rain isn't a problem and there have probably been years of animals living in the castle before Twilight and the girls first got here to stop Nightmare Moon the first time. Also when I and Twi came here to explore the castle there were thousands of star spiders scattered around the halls, so there wouldn't be a problem with fertilizer, and once the seeds drop they probably replanted themselves and so on until we reached this point."

"Zecora really did teach you everything about plants didn't she?"

"She did." Spike then looked at Char on his shoulder and continued "So Char is this where you saw the Green Fang plant?" Char nodded her head and pointed to the other side of the willow tree. Spike looked to the other side of the tree and sighted the very unusual ingredient sitting right by one of the roots of the tree, Spike then looked at Char and started to scratch her abdomen. "Thank you, Char, I bet we can get back to the main hall on our own so why don't you head in and get ready for training."

Char gave Spike one last nuzzle as she returned to Spikes' arm strap and disappeared. Spike grabbed the flower and pulled the whole plant out of the ground, roots and all, and placed it in his backpack. Once the flower was in his backpack Spike looked back at his mother who was taking in all of the sights of the plants in the ancient garden, Spike walked over to Celestia and tapped her shoulder, and commented on the garden. "It's beautiful isn't it?"

"It truly is Spike, I remember when I and Luna first planted the garden over a thousand years ago, but it saddens me to think that she never saw the results, but I think that Luna would be proud to see what has come of our time together."

"I'm sure she would, we can show her the garden tomorrow when we bring everyone here to show them the rest of the family but until then let's head back to the main hall and finally set up base camp."

"Let's."

Spike and Celestia finished setting up the base camp he would use during his time training, as Spike used his fire breath to light some wood that he had collected from the Timberwolves he had taken down beforehand.

"And there, the campfire is done and burning, I have cleared the area of rubble so I can rest and I can always head to the river that we passed to collect water for both cleaning and drinking. So it's time to train." Said Spike as he clapped the dirt off his hands looking proud at his and his mother's work.

Spike then looked at his mother who was using her magic to lift and arrange the larger pieces of rubble into a chair and table where he could prepare food and eat. "And done, you now have some rare Princess Celestia originals for your personal use." Said Celestia with a sparkle in her eyes at the work she had done. Spike just rolled his eyes at his mother's ego as he knows that she relished doing simple things by herself without the palace servants insisting on doing them for her.

Celestia was brought out of her self praise by Spike's talking, "You did great mom, I don't think I ever had such a lavish set up for a base camp before."

Celestia looked shocked at how a simple stone chair and table was lavish and wanted to ask her son about what he normally had in a base camp but Spike noticed his mothers look and predicted the question and answered "All I had was a fire most times and maybe a tree to sleep in for the night if I was lucky." Celestia closed her mouth and cleared her dry throat and nodded.

Spike continued to look over their work and was smiling at the display, satisfied with the camp, he was determined to start training. "Ok mom the camp is ready, are you ready to see what I call training?"

Celestia nodded and answered, "Of course, but let's head outside for this, I don't think the castle could withstand any more damage."

Spike nodded and shrugged as the two walked out of the front door and made their way to the forest on the other side of the bridge.

Once Spike and Celestia arrived at the edge of the forest, Spike then instructed his mother to stay there as Spike walked over to one of the trees and used his claws to cut it down. As the tree fell to the ground Spike walked over to the top of the tree and using his fire burned the foliage leaving a naked tree lying on the ground and with little effort embedded the claws on his left hand into the tree's trunk and lifted it off the ground and walked back and placed it in front of his mother.

Celestia was wondering why Spike cut down, burned, and placed the tree in front of her and was about to ask him but before she could, Spike walked away towards a large group of boulders that had probably landed there years ago after a landslide. Using one hand Spike punched a boulder, but at first, nothing happened and Celestia was worried that Spike had crushed his hand but then cracks started to form on the large rock, the cracks spread quickly and the boulder was split into eight equal sections. The sight of her once pudge, comic book obsessed, timid son splitting rocks that probably weighted in the ten-ton range with one punch left Celestia slack-jawed, but what made it worse was how he lifted all eight pieces at once and carried the pieces over to her.

Spike noticed his mother's open mouth and using one finger closed it and responded. "After Wallop joined I needed to move the boulder so I could get some of the money I would have gotten from that outlaw, so I tried to push it off of him, it did not move, so I tried to blast it off, didn't work, so I used my head and figured out that if I could find the right spot on the rock and apply enough force I could shatter it. This..." Spike pointed to the former boulder on the ground "... Was nothing compared to the one from before." Celestia just nodded slowly in acceptance.

Spike returned his attention to the tree and used his claws to slice large sections of the trunk into circles and using his fire breath burned a target on each section, Spike walked back over to the boulder sections and repeated the process. Once Spikes targets were finished Spike walked over to his mother and asked. "Mom, could you please place those pieces of tree and rock within a half-mile radius of right here?"

Celestia nodded and used her magic to teleport the targets to random places around the forest. Spike noticing the lack of targets, thanked his mother "Thanks mom, now are you ready to see something cool?"

"I must say that I am intrigued to see your training, but I don't think you would like for me to follow you around the forest would you? So how about this." Said Celestia as she lit up her horn and pointed it at Spike. Once the glow died down Celestia and Spike were looking at a large screen of magic hovering in front of them with an image of Spike on it. "This is a specialized tracking spell I developed in my younger years, it allows for real-time tracking and monitoring of the target, but it only works with those the caster has a magical connection with, so it's very impractical, but it should allow me to watch you train."

Spike only laughed at the display as he spoke "Reminds me of the screens back on Mudos, but it should do." Spike then walked away from his mother and pulled out two ammo tubes from under his strap and released both Zappflies and Bolamites in front of him.

Once both of the insectoid ammo tubes were emptied, both Sparkes and Char positioned themselves on Spike's shoulders and gave him a quick nuzzle. Spike looked at his left shoulder to Char. "Char my mother has placed ten wood targets and eight rock targets in the forest, range: half a mile, I need you and the cluster to scout for the targets..." Spike then looked at his right shoulder and began to talk to Sparks "... And Sparks I want eighteen of you guys to mark them, use red for the rocks and blue for the wood, once all targets have tagged the rest are to return to me, also they have permission to abandon a target if, in danger, I don't want anyone to get hurt understand?" Sparks buzzed and nodded. "Good..." Spike turned to the rest of the two groups and announced. "Its time to train, we have eighteen targets, ten wood, eight rock, flies will tag with blue on wood and red on rocks, Mites will scout the training area of half a mile, use the 'Fly in the Web' formation, four mites to one fly, once all targets are tagged everyone, not on a target is to return, you have fifteen minutes to get back or we'll be coming in after you and you will be benched for a week. Lastly, if you are in danger do whatever it takes to come home, understand?" Every creature nodded, and Spike smiled. "Mark, set, go!" yelled Spike as nearly a hundred squads dispersed to locate the targets.

Celestia was impressed at Spikes's leadership and military tactics. Spike then placed the two empty tubes into his left boot and readied his crossbow as both Queen and Fang appeared on his wrist. "Ok, here's the scenario, half-mile range, eighteen targets, ten wood, Queen's hive gets five, Fang's cete gets five, repeat back to the others." Said Spike as the two ammo heads nodded in response and returned into their tubes. Then both Wallop and Banger appeared. "Half mile range eighteen targets, eight stone, four each got it?" both nodded and returned to their tubes to report the orders. Spike then let out Alvin and Belch and continued "Dangerous in the forest might need a quick getaway so Alvin your guys are on distraction and Belch you on dispersion, now go back in and repeat your orders." Belch nodded and returned to his sulfite.

Alvin responded in his usual way. "Try not to fall to your death this time sir, don't want to have Char save your scaly ass now do we?"

Spike responded in kind. "Oh like the time you were punted halfway across town because you insulted the mayor's wife's hat, just get back in and don't get hurt." Satisfied with the answer Alvin nodded and went back into his tube.

With his orders given Spike walked to his mother. "Mom, can you pull up an image of all the targets?"

Celestia nodded and in an instant eighteen more screens popped up.

Spike looked at the screens and noticed that seven of the wood targets and six of the stone targets had a Zapfly already. After a few minutes, all eighteen targets were marked, as both the Bolamites and Zapflies started to return. Spike pulled out the two tubes from his boot and allowed for the scouting party to get some rest as they went back into their respective tubes. As both Sparks and Char crawled up to Spike's shoulder. "Good job you two..." Spike looked at Sparks and continued "Sparks your part is done so head back and get some rest..." Spike looked at his other shoulder and continued ".... Char I might need you for travel so get ready to spin." Sparks nodded and illuminated very brightly as he headed back into his tube, as Char climbed onto the underside of Spikes' wrist ready to act as a rope swing. Spike then replaced the two tubes into their slots and walked over to the edge of the forest and got into a running position, as he looked to his mother and asked "Can you give me a count down?"

Celestia nodded and started counting down. "Five...Four...Three...Two...One...GO!" Yelled Celestia, and once she said 'GO' all she saw was a Spike shaped dust cloud where her son once was.

Spike was jumping from tree to tree looking for the last wood target, Fang was ready to go, but Spike couldn't pin down the smell of the burnt wood and couldn't see the last Zappfly's light anywhere. This made Spike worry as he feared that something happened at the last target, so he jumped down from the tree and landed on the ground, and started to walk back to his mother.

As Spike walked back to the castle he was too lost in his thoughts that he was unaware that three fillies were following him trying to get his attention.

"Spike." Said AB

"SPIKE." yelled Scootaloo

"SPIKEEEEEEE!" Shrieked Sweetie bell.

Spike was snapped out of his thoughts and was about to attack, but was stopped by the sight of the CMC holding out a Zappfly to Spike. The second the Zappfly saw Spike it dashed to his side and was starting to shake in fear. Spike noticed the Zapflys actions and grew concerned. "Hey, it's alright your safe now, calm down and tell me what happened." The Zapfly started to flash, blue, then yellow, white, orange, then it pointed to the three fillies then it buzzed. Spike only nodded in understanding

Spike looked at the three fillies. "What's your side of the story?"

Sweetie bell stepped forward and responded, "We were going to visit Zecora and found a weird wooden target in a tree and that was attached and wanted to show it to her, so we captured him and he started to zap us but we caught him and then we spotted you walking around and talking to yourself." Sweetie then cocked her head and added. "Spike do you know what this thing is?"

Spike nodded and responded, "This is called a Zappfly and he is from Mudos, he was acting as a target for my training, and from what he told me you scared him so he left the target and tried to run but was caught by you three..." Spike then looked at the Zappfly on his shoulder and spoke in a calming tone "These three are friends of mine and they didn't mean to scare you, but I'm proud of you for seeing a potential threat and deciding to run and find help, why don't you get some rest after you report to Sparks, I don't wont to see you back in the rotation for a few days." The Zappfly nodded and flickered a green color and crawled into Spikes strap.

Spike looked at the three fillies and sighed. "Girls follow me back to the old castle." The girls nodded and followed the dragon.

Spike and the CMC arrived at the edge of the forest by the old castle and saw a very upset Celestia glaring at the fillies.

"You three are in so much trouble when I tell your sisters that you blindly followed an unknown creature you found in the forest just to show it to Zecora, not to mention how Fluttershy is going to react when she finds out you tried to capture it." Said Celestia in her disappointed motherly tone.

All three of the girls gulped and started to shiver. Celestia then walked over to the three and dropped to her knees and gave them all a big hug, as she cried "What would have happened if you girls got hurt, or worse, I don't think I could have lived with my self if I let three innocent girls get hurt, especially when I was so close by, promise me you three won't go into the forest by yourselves ever again."

The CMC was shocked by the princess's reaction and tried to comfort her. "We promise, your highness." Said the CMC in unison.

Celestia released the three fillies and wiped away her tears as she calmed down. "I'm glad you understand." Celestia looked at Spike and informed him about his training "Spike you got to all seventeen targets in twenty-three minutes and seventeen seconds."

Spike smirked and shrugged "Not bad for me, back on Mudos it took me about half an hour to take down twenty targets, but that's after I place them by hand and up to two miles away. But since I was flying blind I think it works out to about average." Spike then felt a pinch from under his wrist and was reminded about Char. "Crap, Char I'm so sorry." Char detached herself from Spikes writs and walked to his hand so he could introduce her to the CMC.

Spike moved the Bolamite in his hand and showed it to the fillies as he introduced her. "Girls this is Charlotte but she likes Char, she is a Bolamite. Char these three are the CMC." Spike pointed to Sweetie bell "This is Sweetie bell" Then he pointed at Apple Bloom. "This is Apple Bloom" and lastly at Scootaloo "and this is Scootaloo, their friends of mine from when I was younger, also no biting them," said Spike as he noticed Char about to swing to the first filly. Spike then continued talking to the Bolamite. "You did good today Char but now I have to deal with these three so head back and get some rest while we wait for the 'spent' to get back." Char nodded and crawled back into Spikes strap.

At this point, Celestia spoke up and informed Spike that it took him twenty minutes to get back to her with the girls and that everyone had already returned to the castle. "Spike every creature you used is back at the castle already, you spent the last twenty minutes walking the CMC back here."

Spike let out a sigh. "That makes matters easier." Spike then looked at the sun and sighed again "Besides it's almost time to go get Zecora and meet the girls." said Spike as he started to walk back to the castle followed by his mother and the CMC.

Once the group arrived at the castle Spike ordered the CMC to stay outside and wait there. Spike and Celestia walked into the main hall and Spike removed his crossbow and triggered the mass release function releasing all of his ammo. "Training is over for the day, everybody gets some rest, but I need the heads to stay." Yelled Spike as each ammo returned to their desired location in the castle until only the leaders were left. Spike looked at the leaders and continued "We have a meeting tonight so jump into the bag for now and go over what happened today in training." said Spike as one by one they entered the backpack with the flower. Spike then placed the backpack on his back and snuffed out the fire as he walked over to his mother who was waiting patiently for Spike to wrap up.

Spike sighed and gave a small smile to his mother, "Today has been interesting, hasn't it?"

Celestia returned the smile and nodded, "It sure has, and I was really impressed by what I saw today." Said Celestia who kissed spike on his forehead.

"Thanks, Mom, now let's go get the CMC and head back to Zecora's and then meet the girls." Said Spike as he hugged his mother.

After a small walk back to Zecora's to give her the Green Fang, the CMC getting a long lecture from the zebra witchdoctor about safety, and the brewing of four anti-predator potions the group of six arrived at the edge of the forest near Ponyville, where seven mares were standing all packed and ready for a night in the forest but instead of a warm greeting upon arrival four of the mares looked very crossed. Spike being the ever somewhat oblivious one didn't notice the angry expression on Twilights face and walked up to her to greet her, "Hey Twi, we got the potions, plus Zecora will be joining us tonight isn't that great?"

Twilight looked around Spike and noticed the zebra mare standing with Celestia and greeted the zebra. "Well hello Zecora, it is wonderful to see you, I'm glad you decided to join us tonight."

"Thank you, princess, it truly has been too long since we last talked."

After the pleasantries were over Twilight returned her glare to Spike and quickly grabbed his right ear fin. "Owww, what gives Twi?" asked Spike.

"Earlier I received a letter from the princess informing me that it was you who caused the earthquakes, and made that horrible sound that caused the citizens to panic, and so help me the second we get back to town tomorrow your getting a lecture on hearing damage and disturbing the peace." Said Twilight with a glare at the sweating dragon.

At this point, the other alicorn decided to intervene. "Twilight, please release my son's ear, I already agreed to pardon his actions today as long as he finds a more practical method of calling his friends."

Twilight released Spike as she had a questioning look on her face, "What do you mean 'calling his friends'?"

Spike was able to fight the pain and responded to Twilight " I'll explain once we get to the campsite, then I'll let you meet them, but one of them is still tired and another will attack you if you get too close to me without getting his approval first. So I'm telling you all now don't crowd him or you will lose a finger or three." At this information, all seven mares took a step back.

Rarity gulped, "I can't wait to meet the dears, I believe that any friend of Spikes is a good pony."

"They're not ponies, but that can wait for later I have a feeling that three fillies are about to get a talking-to from their sisters."

Rarity, Applejack, and Rainbow Dash's face are all changed back to glare as the fillies in question approached.

The CMC walked up to their respective sisters and in unison asked "how much trouble are we in?"

AJ was the first to speak to AB "You are grounded for the rest of the week, and you're going to be in charge of cleaning out the pig pin every day before school, but you are still allowed to come to the Crystal fair next week, also as a show of mercy you can join us tonight for the party."

AB slowly nodded her head and responded "Yes, sis."

Rarity was the next to talk, "Sweetie Belle, you are also grounded for the week and will be reorganizing my supply room tomorrow, giving opal a bath and will be helping Fluttershy with her animals after school, but you can still go to the fair and can join us tonight if you want."

Sweetie Bell slowly nodded her head as she had a small smile on her face. "Yes ma'am."

Rainbow was the last to deal out the punishment as she continued. "I talked to your aunts, they are disappointed with you but I managed to talk them down to a grounding for the week, and you are going to work at Sugar Cube Corner with Pinky for the week after school, also you will be going to the crystal fair next week and can join your awesome sister tonight and maybe we can tell scary stories like last time, just maybe not as scary." Said RD with a smirk.

Scootaloo's eyes were wide as she nodded her head quickly. "Yes! Thanks, Dash."

After the punishment was dealt all three mares pulled their sisters into a hug and in unison added "And if you ever do something that reckless again you will be cleaning the bathroom with a toothbrush." All three fillies nodded quickly and promised to never go into the forest alone.

After the fillies were released from the hugs Celestia lowered the sun to right above the horizon leaving the sky a deep orange color as a few stars could be seen as back in Canterlot her sister began to raise the moon. Spike saw the display of the solar bodies and grew a smile as he looked at the setting sun. "That never gets old."

Celestia came from behind and hugged spike and added, "It only makes it better knowing you got to see it."

After the display of affection between mother and son was over Twilight cleared her throat. "Alright if everyone is ready to go gather round and I'll teleport us."

Everyone gathered around twilight as her horn started to glow and in a flash of light the entire group was teleported to the campsite.

The group arrived at the campsite in an instant in the same position as they left, all except for spike as he had landed face first in the dirt as he grumbled something. The rest of the group saw the face down dragon and then looked at Twilight who was just as surprised. "What happened, I thought I performed the spell perfectly, and it's not like it's the first time Spike has teleported with me."

Spike pulled his face out of the dirt and got back on his feet as he had a possible solution to this question. "Twi I think that it's the fact this is only the second time I have teleported in the last ten years, so maybe I'm not used to the magical surge that comes with teleporting."

Twilight was overcome with the possibilities of what Spike said is true that she didn't notice that she had gone into full research mode. Spike let out a sigh at the now mumbling alicorn and knew it would be best to just let her get it out of her system.

Spike looked at where his sister had teleported them for the camping trip and was shocked to see where she had chosen. They were in a large clearing in the forest, the trees were about two dozen feet away in all directions and in front of Spike was a small lake being fed by a waterfall. Spike was in aw at the fact that this place even existed in the forest that he didn't hear the sound of clicking emanating from his backpack.

Spike was brought out of his awe by Pinky who quickly pulled out her party cannon from her mane and pulled the cord. After the party pony pulled the cord a folding table with a full party's worth of snacks flew out and landed perfectly in front of two poles that help a banner saying 'Welcome Home Spike! YAY your not dead!' on it and the side was a pink tent with party balloons on it and what appeared to be a small green baby alligator standing in front of the tent.

Spike was about to question how Pinky did that but just mumbled "It's Pinky Pie, don't question it." Spike then looked at the rest of the girls and noticed that they were setting up their tents as well, and Spike the ever so gentle rake walked over to Rarity who was struggling to put her oversized tent up, and offered to help her. "Rarity do you need any help?"

Rarity looked over to the dragon and gave him a small smile as she accepted " Why to thank you, dear, I don't remember it being this hard last time we went camping." Spike remembered hearing about how she had Sweetie Bell put it up last time they went camping with AJ and Apple bloom, and just rolled his eyes.

After Spike had finished helping Rarity with her tent, Spike noticed that they still needed to build a fire for the camp. So Spike walked to his mother and informed her that he was going to go get a tree and a rock. "Hey, mom we still need some wood for a fire so I'm going to go get a tree and maybe a rock to build a fire pit holds down the camp till I get back."

Celestia nodded and spike walked away to find a boulder and a tree for the camp, but to Spikes surprise, he didn't need to go far as after walking into the woods he found a small boulder the size of Tom and it had knocked down a good-sized tree. Spike used his claws and lifted the tree on to his shoulder and then used his claws to pierce the boulder, using his tail for support carried the boulder and tree back to the camp.

Once Spike arrived back at the camp carrying the tree and rock he noticed that all the mares and fillies aside from his mother had their jaws dropped at the sight. Spike gave his mother a look and she explained, "They are shocked that you are carrying a boulder that probably weighs about two tons and a tree that is at least twice your size and the fact you're doing it with ease. It's a little overwhelming."

Spike shrugged and walked past the slack-jawed mares and fillies and placed the boulder on the ground and dropped the tree. Spike then dug a small hole into the ground, after the hole was dug he punched the boulder and it instantly broke apart into small fist-size rocks. Spike placed the small rocks into the hole and arranged them into a circle, once the framework for the fire was done Spike walked over to the tree and proceeded to burn all the leaves off, he then used his claws to cut off the branches and tossed them into the fire pit, he then cut fourteen rounds for everyone to sit on and placed them around the fire, and to top it all off Spike used his fire to light the wood in the pit.

After the fire was lit Spike looked over to his companions and noticed that Luna had appeared and had the same expression on her face as the girls. "Ohh, Aunt Luna when did you show up?"

Luna was stammering. "Tree....rock....punch....you cut....fire."

Spike was able to piece together what she was saying and figured that they needed an explanation. "Let me explain, my body has developed very much over the years and I had to get stronger. Right now I can lift about seventeen tons, and can break solid rock with a single punch," said Spike like it was obvious.

Celestia giggled at the sight of the rest of the girls as she walked over to the campfire and took a seat next to Spike on one of the seats that spike had made. "Thank you, Spike, for building the fire but this is your party so for the rest of the night you relax and have fun."

Once the word 'party' came out of Celestia's mouth Pinky snapped out of her shock and yelled "PARTY!!!" and out of nowhere, Spike was hit in the face with confetti. This sudden outburst snapped the rest of the girls out of their stupor and started to laugh.

Spike laughed as well at the antics of Pinky. But was stopped when he heard Rarity scream in horror. "AWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWW, Spike looks out there's something on your shoulder don't move an inch."

Spike looked at his shoulder and noticed that there was only Char on it, then his face turned to one of disappointment as he started to talk, "Char what the hell girl, I wanted to introduce you to everyone but instead you decided to just pop out." Char then started to sign some words as spike nodded and then realized the problem. "Oh, sorry about that it must have been uncomfortable for you guys, I should have known, look I promise no more teleporting unless your inside, but the cats out of the bag now so head back in the bag and get the others ready, ok?" Char nodded and crawled back into the backpack.

All the girls who have yet to meet the Bolamite were shocked to see that it was able to communicate with Spike and how casually it did so.

"Spike... How... What... Who....why?" Twilight stammered as she tried to focus her mind but was stopped by Celestia walking to her and placing both of her hands on Twilights shoulders.

"Trust me when I say This is only the tip of the ice burg." Said Celestia as she looked into her student's eyes.

Twilight calmed herself down using Cadence's breathing technique and walked over to the sheepish looking dragon. "Spike what in the name of Celestia was that thing on your shoulder a moment ago and how did you talk to it?"

"First off 'she' is not a thing 'she' is one of my friends, and second 'she' was supposed to wait until I introduced her to everyone, but it turns out that my friends didn't do so well with the teleport." Spike then removed his backpack and placed it in front of him as everyone was reluctant to approach him in fear of the creature in his bag. " Twilight first off I'm sorry for not telling you this earlier, but when I was sent back I had in my possession eight large groups of creatures from back on Mudos and when I fell, my bag ripped and they all escaped into the forest. The only one I had left was what I used to attack you and the girls that night, but the others fled and found a home in the old castle which I will take everypony to tomorrow, but I only found this out today. Also, each type of creature has a leader who is in charge of their group, and to me they are family and I do hope you will come to see them as a family as well."

Spike unzipped the bag and placed his claw inside until he felt something fuzzy and brought it out. Spike then turned his back to the group and whispered something to his closed hand. Once Spike stopped whispering he turned back around and brought his hand in front of Twilight. "Twilight in my hand is Fang, he is very protective of me and will attack anyone who he sees as a threat, so do not go all study mode or you will lose fingers." Spike then addressed the other mares and yelled "That goes for all of you as well." Spike then returned his attention to Twilight and continued "So Twilight, I would like to introduce you to Fang the Fuzzle." Spike slowly opened his hand and gave Twilight her first look at a real Fuzzle.

The second Fang saw Twilight so close to both him and Spike his protective instincts kicked in and he started to growl menacingly at the lavender alicorn, this made said alicorn take two steps back in fear of the Fuzzle. Spike saw the fuzzles reaction to twilight and grew angry. "Fang, Stop that right now!" yelled Spike. Spikes yelling made the Fuzzle whimper. Spike took in a deep breath and calmed his anger as he continued. "Fang, what did I tell you about not being so aggressive around new people, I trust them to get this close because I know they won't hurt me, and you know I won't let them hurt you, so for me no more growling," asked Spike. Fang nodded, this made Spike smile as he scratched Fang's body.

Spike then looked at Twilight who was still standing back from the Fuzzle and gave her a nod. Twilight approached the Fuzzle in Spike's hand and to her surprise, it didn't growl at her. "Let's try this again, Twilight, this is Fang. Fang this is my sister Twilight."

"Um, hello Fang, I'm sorry for scaring you earlier, I hope we can become friends." Said Twilight as she moved her hand closer to the Fuzzle. Fang hopped closer to Twilights hand and slowly rubbed his head on it.

"Now Twi lay your palm flat." Said Spike.

Twilight followed what spike instructed and opened her palm and to her amazement, Fang hopped into her palm and began staring into her eyes. After a few moments, Fang hopped off of her palm and up to her cheek and gave her a nuzzle showing that he likes her. Twilight let out a sigh as Fang continued to nuzzle her.

Spike relaxed at the sight of affection. "Fang we still need to meet the others so hop back and remember, I won't get hurt."

Fang was introduced to everyone, with mixed reactions, Starlight, Applejack, Pinky Pie, Zecora, Luna, and Rainbow Dash had similar reactions to Twilight. Rarity was so scared of him that Fang started to whimper but after a few minutes of acclimation Rarity and Fang became friends. When Fang met the CMC he was actually scared of them and tried to run back into the bag, but Spike stopped him and rather reluctantly allowed the CMC to pet him. The weirdest reaction was with Fluttershy, the second Fluttershy saw Fang she promptly passed out, but to Spike's surprise, Fang hopped over to the passed out pegusis and nuzzled her cheek and then hopped back to Spike and sat on his shoulder.

Once Fluttershy woke up Spike pulled out Queen. Queen buzzed and looked at Spike who only nodded. Queen saw this and flew over to Twilight and landed on her horn. Twilight had a questioning look. "Spike, two things, one: what is this and two, why is it on my horn?" Asked Twilight.

"That is Queen, she is the leader of the Stingbee hive, and like I told Mom, She trusts me, I trust you all, so she's going to trust you all as well, but don't break that trust or you will be stung by the whole hive. Simple as that."

After Queen left Twilights horn she flew to every pony and landed on either their horn or the top of their heads, showing that she will trust them until they broke that trust, and once she was finished she flew back to spike and landed on his top spine.

Next up was Belch, and once he saw all the unfamiliar faces around him, he started to cry, Spike seeing this reaction yelled to everyone "Everyone quickly covers your nose he's going to blow." Spike then ran past the girls to protect them but to Spike's surprise, he was stopped by the yellow pegusis who just cradled the Stunkz in her arms as it slowly stopped crying and fell asleep. After the situation was defused the sleeping Belch was introduced to everyone. "Guys this is Belch, he is very skittish and was about to gas us, but he is very nice, but let's leave him be until I can introduce him one at a time." Everyone nodded.

Spike then grabbed Belch from Fluttershy and carefully placed him back in the bag. Spike then let two insects crawl up his arms one was the same creature from earlier and the other was a purple pill bug. Spike pointed to the insect on his left arm. " I would like to introduce you all to Charlotte, but she prefers to go by Char, she is a Bolamite, she is also the one who popped out of my bag earlier, she is also in charge of the rest of the family." Spike then pointed at the Thudslug on his other arm and continued. "And this is Wallop, he is a Thudslug, he also is the unofficial little brother of Char."

Char got a good look at the new faces and started to sign some words to Spike. As Char was signing Spike answered "Well you already know my mom, the dark blue one is my aunt Luna and the purple one is my sister Twilight. As for the others, The light purple one is named Starlight, the Pink one is Pinky, the one with the hat is Applejack and the one next to her is her sister Apple Bloom, then we have Rainbow Dash and her little sister Scootaloo, the Yellow one is Fluttershy, next to her with the black and white mane is Zecora, the little white one is named Sweetie Bell and the taller white one next to her is her older sister Rarity." The second Rarity's name was called Char stopped signing to Spike and began signing stuff to Rarity.

Rarity was confused at what Char was doing and looked at Spike who was wide-eyed at the language Char was using. "Um, Spike darling what is she trying to say to me, I'm afraid I don't quite understand?"

"She said and I quote, 'If you ever use Spike as a pin cushion again, I will get the family and demolish your store without a second thought, Spike be damned you white whore' end quote." Spike looked at Char and glared at her. "What the Hell, Char how do you even know about that?" Char looked back and signed to Spike. "I talk about the past when I'm drunk and it was my 21st birthday and the topic of Rarity came up and I didn't shut up." Spike had a sheepish look on his face. "Char first off, don't listen to what drunk spike says ever again, second it was only one time, now say you're sorry to Rarity for calling her a white whore." Char sighed and looked back at rarity and started to sign.

Once char finished signing Spike translated. "She says she is sorry about the whore comment and that was uncalled for, but the threat about your store is still open so don't cross her." Spike looked at Rarity and added, "Look Rare I'm sorry about her, she normally isn't like this, but once she gets to know you more, she will see that your nothing like what 'drunk spike' described."

"Don't worry about it dear, I have to admit that I was a little over-eager to put you through all that back then, but once you disappeared it made me sick to think about how I treated you, I do hope you can forgive me."

"Rarity I hold no Ill will against you and I forgave you years ago."

"Thank you, Spike."

Spike felt something tapping his arm and noticed that Char was signing something. "You will forgive Rarity for everything if she allows you to bite her." Char nodded. "No, out of the question, she doesn't have to do that, I forgave her years ago, and - I'll do it," yelled Rarity interrupting Spike.

Spike looked at the alabaster mare with wide eyes and mouth hanging open until he was brought back out of his shock when he felt someone close his mouth. Spike looked down to see Pinky Pie smiling at him. "Thank you I needed that." Responded Spike as he returned his attention to the conversation he was having with his spidery companion. "No you will not bite Rarity, she even apologized for everything," yelled Spike.

As Spike was yelling at Char, Rarity sighed and walked over to Spike and Char, extended her hand in front of the Bolamites mouth interrupting the two's conversation. Spike saw the white hand in front of the Bolamite and was about to intervene but was stopped by a white finger placed on his snout shushing him. "Spike dear, I know that you don't want to see any of us hurt, but I want to make amends for everything I did to you and if this is the only way I can show you that I am truly sorry for what I did, then so be it." Said Rarity as she looked into the dragon's deep emerald eyes with her blue eyes showing that she was serious. She then looked at Char and nodded showing that she was ready and shut her eyes waiting for the bite.

After waiting for a minute Rarity didn't feel anything and opened her eyes. She noticed that Char was now on Spike's shoulder and was signing something. This left the fashionista confused.

"...Char I...fine but I don't want you to go behind my back and still bite her understand?" Char nodded as Spike looked over to the confused mare and began to explain. "She was never going to bite you, it was a test to see if you would be willing to experience a small amount of the pain I felt years ago, you passed and she would like to talk to you about having the rest of the Bolamites produce some spider silk for you."

Rarity hearing the news that this was a test dropped her jaw and was processing the last few minutes. Pinky repeated her actions and was thanked by the slack-jawed mare. Rarity then returned her attention to the Bolamite. "Thank you for accepting my apology and I would love to talk about getting new material for my shop, we can talk later." Said Rarity as she walked back to her sister and took a seat.

Seeing that everyone has relaxed from the tension between the Bolamite and the fashionista, Spike returned to his bag and pulled out Wallop. He looked at the fist-sized Thudslug in his hand as Wallop slowly revealed his eyes and looked upon the staring mares and quickly recovered up in a defensive position to protect himself. Spike looked at the curled thudslug and sighed and looked over to the Bolamite on his shoulder. "Char, Wallop needs some help opening up can you help?" Char nodded and crawled down Spike's arm and stopped on his hand. She then started to knock on Wallop's shell. Wallop opened his shell and looked at the Bolamite and became relaxed, Char then started to sign to wallop.

After Char was finished Wallop turned to the mares and extended his wings and flew to Twilight and just hovered in front of her face.

Twilight, unsure of what to do decided to greet the strange creature in front of her. "Um, hello my name is Twilight Sparkle I am Spikes big sister, it's nice to meet you." Wallop then flew to her head and landed.

"That means he likes you," stated Spike as he looked at the purple alicorn with a thudslug on her head.

Wallop repeated his actions with everyone else who he hadn't met already.

After Wallop was finished meeting everyone he flew back to Spike and landed back on his shoulder next to Char as Spike reached into his bag and when he pulled his hand back out there was an old, gray Boombat hanging from one of his fingers.

Since it was night time Banger was wide awake and much more active. Once Spike brought Banger to his face Banger started to squeak. "....Yes I know....about the same... Over there," responded Spike as he was pointing to the group of ponies. Spike showed Banger to the girls and introduced him. "Everyone this is Banger the Boombat. He is not the youngest so his hearing is not great so if you ask a question you might have to say it a few times, but he is very smart and kind." Banger looked at the mares and nodded his head at each. Spike then moved his tail to make a perch and allowed for Banger to fly off of his hand and land on Spike's tail as the first to approach Banger was Fluttershy.

"Oh my Celestia you are so cute." Said the mare as she flew over to the perched Boombat. Banger squeaked and Fluttershy began to blush. "Why thank you, but I'm too young for you but if your interested I know a few older fruit bats that might be interested in meeting a strong bat as yourself." This made banger squeak again and nod. Fluttershy returned to the group of ponies as she was giggling.

Rainbow dash had a questioning look. "Hey Shy, care to translate for all the nonanimal talking ponies here?"

"Banger said that I was hot and if he was only thirty years younger. But I told him that I know a few fruit bats around his age that are looking for someone to spend time with within their golden years. I was thinking that maybe Mable would like him." responded Flutters.

The next to approach was Celestia and Luna.

Celestia walked to the perched Boombat. "It's good to see you again Banger, I am sorry for the earlier intrusion but I like to introduce you to my little sister Luna."

Luna walked over to the hanging bat and greeted him. "Greetings Sir Banger, truly I am in your debt for protecting my dear nephew in my absence, you and your cloud are welcome to accompany me in my nightly duties as you see fit, it can be very lonely to be one of the few nocturnal creatures and some company would really liven up the time I spend alone."

Banger squeaked multiple times and flew up to Luna's horn and used it as a perch. Luna looked at Spike in hopes of a translation. "He said, it was an honor to help Spike over the years and that he would be glad to join you during the night as he understands the challenges that creatures of the night face socially." Spike then looked at his mother and added " he also forgives us about earlier." This news made Celestia smile. Banger returned to Spikes tail and waited for the rest of the girls to introduce themselves to him.

Everything was going well. Banger had introduced himself to Zecora, Rarity and Sweetie Belle, Applejack and Apple Bloom, Twilight, Pinky Pie, Starlight, and Scootaloo. But then he met Rainbow Dash. When Rainbow walked up to Banger she gave him a questioning look, Spike saw the look she was giving Banger. "Um, Rainbow what are you doing?"

"Isn't he a little too old to do anything?" asked Rainbow. Banger squeaked angrily in response and after he finished the shot Spike a glare and gave a short squeak.

Banger flew off of Spike's tail and landed in the crossbow's left chamber as Spike sighed and got up as he motioned for Rainbow to follow him and they walked to the edge of the forest. Everyone else noticed the interaction and followed behind the two.

"Ummm Spike what are we doing out here?" asked Rainbow as she followed behind Spike.

"Banger wants to show you what it is that he does best and it seems that you need to learn how to respect your elders."

Once the whole group was near the edge of the forest Spike pointed to a tree in the distance and instructed them to stand back. After everyone took two steps back Spike readied his crossbow and aimed it at the tree. Once he was ready Spike launched Banger straight to the tree and in an instant, there was a large explosion and sprinkling of splinters falling on everyone as the tree was no more but a charred stump in the ground now. Rainbow was shocked as her eyes were wide and her mouth was wide open.

A soot-covered Banger flew back to Spike and using his tail as a perch allowed for the elderly bat to hang there as he gave Rainbow a smug grin. Banger squeaked and blew a raspberry at the rainbow-haired pony as he slowly nodded off to sleep.

Rainbow recovered quickly and was so excited. "That WAS AWESOME. Can he do that again?"

Spike shook his head. "Sorry Rainbow, after a Boombat goes off they need to recharge for a few hours, right now he is asleep, and its best to let him be."

The group returned to the campsite as Spike lowered Banger back into his bag to let him rest. Spike then turned to his mother. "Mom, I am getting Alvin out, so as second in command I am giving you permission to shut him up by any means necessary." Spike then looked to everyone else. "This next one is a hard pill to swallow, also I did not teach him any of the words you are about to hear, also I will have to use some strong language so Twilight doesn't get mad." Spike then pulled out Alvin and presented the Chipunkz to the group. "Everyone this is Alvin the Chipunkz, Alvin these are the girls."

"Aw yes, the commander mentioned that I was going to meet his original family, it is an honor to meet you all." Said Alvin as he salutes with his tail. Everyone was shocked by the fact that the small furry creature in Spike's palm was talking that all of their jaws dropped.

Alvin sighed. "Seriously Sir is every slut you know a slack-jawed hoe, it is like they have never seen a fucking talking animal before."

Spike became angry when he heard the words slut and hoe used to describe his friends and family that he punted Alvin into the sky. Spike then looked at the still slack-jawed mares. "I'm so sorry about him, he has a mouth. But don't worry they are a resilient species, who in my opinion are near indestructible." Said Spike as Alvin hopped back.

Spike looked down at Alvin. "Ready to try this again?" Alvin nodded.

The second attempt at Alvin's introduction was better than the first. Spike made Alvin apologize for the slut and hoe comment and after everyone was able to respond they all shared their opinion of what Alvin said.

Spike placed Alvin on the ground as the Chipunk wrapped his tail around Spikes leg. Spike was ready to introduce the last member as he pulled out Sparks. Spike looked at Sparks who was buzzing and glowing brightly. "Are you ready for the meeting?" Sparks nodded as his light changed to yellow to say that he was curious to know he was going to meet.

"Sparks I would like to introduce you to my pony family." Said Spike as he showed the Zappfly the group of mares. "Girls I would like to introduce you to Sparks the Zappfly." Sparks' light changed to light blue showing he was excited to meet the ponies.

Twilight walked over to the Zappfly in Spike's hand and started to examine him. " So Spike is this the type of creature that you used to attack us when we found you?" Said Twilight as she started to poke him, much to Sparks's annoyance as his light changed to a dim orange.

"Yes it is," said Spike as he took notice of Sparkes change and added. " Also if you don't want to be electrocuted I would stop poking him."

Twilight looked sheepish as the thought of being shocked quickly shut down her instinct to thoroughly study anything she finds interesting as she quickly retracted her hands. This action on the twilights part caused Sparks light to change back to a light blue.

Sparks light then changed color to orange then to a dim red, as he pointed to Applejack. Spike nodded in understanding. "In her defense, she didn't know it was me, plus it could have been worse, she could have bucked me in the face." Sparks light changed to a dim orange then to a dim green, showing that he was still annoyed but could accept that.

Twilight was very interested in Sparks. "So Spike how is it that you can understand him and what did you mean when you said that I would get electrocuted?" Asked Twilight.

Spike smiled at Twilight as he started to explain. "First off, I don't understand him per se, I piece together what he means because Zappflys can change the color of their lights depending on their emotions, so over the years, I taught him to string together his colors to make it easier to communicate. It goes like this, if he only uses one color it means his emotion, if he chains two colors, he uses the first color to describe the person of interest, and the second to show emotion, and if he uses three or more he puts a pause in between the people and the emotion. But if he doesn't leave a pause he is telling me that he is experiencing multiple emotions at once." Said Spike as he explained his unorthodox method of communication.

"As for the whole electrocution thing, Zappflys are similar to Twittermites in that aspect, just much stronger. A normal Zappflys shock can range from static electricity, all the way up to about sixty volts. But I have discovered that if a zappfly is shot at high speed the range is shifted to lethal levels and can be on par with the power of a lightning bolt. But the way you were annoying him the worst he would have done was maybe give you a shock that would leave you stunned for a few moments." Said Spike as he finished explaining the inner workings of Zappflys.

Sparks then used his wings and flew to twilight and landed on her horn as he changed his color to purple, purple, green, then he paused for a second then he changed to pink, then dim green. Twilight looked at Spike curiously hoping that he could translate for her.

Spike looked at Sparks and deciphered his message. "He either said 'you and I are in love with each other and are happy with that, or that we are in a relationship that is similar to the one he has with his family.'" Spike then looked at the Zappfly as he explained. "We are related in a sense, she is my older sister." Sparks nodded and flew to each of the girls and repeated the process.

Sparks flew to RD as he flashed purple, green, light blue, pause, yellow. " She is Rainbow Dash, she is my friend, she is very loyal and would risk her life to help her friends." Rainbow smirked at how Spike described her until he added, "But she has the biggest ego I have ever seen."

Next Sparks flew to Fluttershy as he flashed yellow, purple, green, pause, yellow. Spike nodded "That is Fluttershy, she is the kindest pony I have ever met, but she scares easily, so don't do anything that could upset her."

Next was Starlight as Sparks landed on her horn and flashed purple, purple, green pause, yellow. "She is Starlight, she was a villain but after she was stopped by me and Twi she says the errors of her ways and we became friends."

Sparkes then flew to Zecora and flashed bright yellow, bright dark blue, purple, green, pause, yellow. Everyone was curious to see what that odd combination of colors meant. Spike quickly explained. "Zappflys can't produce the colors white or black so they compromise by changing the brightness of the two most similar colors." Spike looked at the zappfly and explained. "She is Zecora, she is my friend who moved to town years ago but stayed to her self to the point that she became an outcast with wild and ill-founded rumors about her, but after a hilarious chain of events she became a pillar of the community."

Sparks flew to AJ and landed on her hat as he flashed orange, pause, dim red, pause, purple, green, pause, yellow. Spike nodded as he sighed. "Like I said she did not know it was me." Sparks then flashed dim red to show he was still mad at her. Spike sighed as he began to translate for AJ. "First off he is mad at you for tying me up."

AJ's face shifted to a frown. She then took off her hat and looked the attached Zappfly in the eyes. " Look I'm sorry for what happened that night, but I promise you that if I knew it was Spike I would never have done that to him, he is my friend and from the bottom of my heart I am sorry." Said AJ as she continued to stare into the Zappflys eyes.

Sparks then lit up bright light blue as he buzzed.

Spike translated. "He is happy to know that you are truly sorry about your actions."

Sparks then flew over to the CMC and flashed orange, bright yellow, yellow, purple, green, pause, yellow. "They are Scootaloo, Sweetie Belle, and Apple Bloom, they are my friends from when I was young, they are also the little sisters of Rainbow Dash, Rarity, and Applejack respectively."

Sparks then flew to Pinky and no one's surprise was able to communicate with Sparks as her mane changed color to light blue, then back to pink, then to purple, then green, and back to pink. Sparks responded by flashing light blue.

Spike was shocked for only a moment until he muttered "It's Pinky Pie don't question it." As Sparks flew to Rarity and landed on her horn as he flashed bright yellow, purple, green, pause, yellow, then bright pink.

Spike noticed the message and quickly interrupted. "If you must know she is Rarity, and as for the second part all I have to say is 'no comment' and if you want to know more talk to Char later she knows the whole story." Sparks snickered and lastly flew to Luna and landed on her horn as he flashed dark blue, purple, green, pause, yellow.

"That is my aunt Luna, she is the one who turned evil after feeling underappreciated for her work, but she has seen the errors of her ways and was able to return from over one thousand years of banishment."

Sparks nodded and returned to Spike's shoulder. Spike smiled at him as he used his claw to scratch his chitin. Spike then looked at the group of mares and gave them a goofy smile. " So now that introductions are over let's get this party started."

For the next three hours, the group celebrated Spike's return.

Everyone was passed out from partying for the last three hours, but Spike was laying on the dirt ground still awake as he stared up at the night sky as only one thought was in his brain, 'I'm going to die when Twi sees the state the castle is in.'

Thank God Your Princesses Are In Another Castle

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Spike was semi awoken by the sensation of something rubbing up against his scales, but after a long night of partying and the lingering thought of how the girls would react to the current state the old castle was in, hampered Spikes brain from truly achieving a deep sleep for hours. But much to Spikes annoyance the sensation persisted and even intensified in response to the dragon's unwillingness to awaken. This continued for a few minutes until Spike used all of his will and mental composure and opened his eyes to identify his soon to be dead, wake up call.

But when he did open his eyes, he was met with the sight of Fang nuzzling up against his cheek. Spike sighed and decided to fully wake up for the day as he gave the Fuzzle a scratch on its head, "Good morning to you too Fang." said Spike as his greeting was followed up by a playful lick to his cheek. Spike sat up, took notice of his surroundings, and noticed that he was the last one from the party to awaken, he saw that everyone's tents were packed and the remnants of the party were completely gone. Spike then looked to see everypony was sitting around the campfire chatting.

Spike pulled himself to his feet and walked over to the group of ponies. "Good morning everyone."

"Good morning to you sweetie, how did you sleep?" asked Celestia.

"Not too well, couldn't stop thinking."

"Aw, yes I had a feeling this was the reason why I couldn't enter your dreams last night, prey tell nephew what were you thinking of?" asked Luna.

"A few things, How I'm going to get attacked by the crystal ponies when they find out I'm still alive and thinking about Discord's job offer, among other things." Said Spike as he avoided mentioning his plan on how he is going to snap out Twilight once she sees the castle.

"Discord offered you a job?" Asked everyone other than Celestia.

"He did, he wants me to become his assistant god of Chaos, and I think I will agree to take it." Spike saw the looks everyone had from hearing the news as Spike quickly added "But not for a couple of decades." hearing this seemed to calm everyone down somewhat as Spike decided to ask a question that has been on his mind the moment he woke up. "So how long has everyone been up?"

"Oh we haven't been up too long darling, it's still only seven-thirty, but our friendly neighborhood bookworm princess woke us all up at the crack of dawn, she was so excited to see the old castle again it was like a foal on hearts warming morning." Said Rarity.

"No I wasn't!" yelled Twilight out of embarrassment. Everyone laughed at Twilights' outburst.

"...And now that you are up we can finally see what has become of the old castle." Added Rarity.

The group gathered their belongings and grouped around Twilight so she could teleport them to the castle, but she was stopped by Spike. "HOLD IT!" yelled Spike, "Twilight, which direction is the castle from here?"

"It's about four miles southwest from here, but why do you want to know?"

"I'm going to get there on foot, teleporting doesn't agree with the group and I don't want them to get sick. So meet me at Zecora's place in like ten minutes." Said Spike as he started running towards the forest, but before he reached the edge he dropped down to all fours and disappeared into the darkness.

Twilights face changed to one of sadness as she sighed when she lost sight of Spike. Celestia noticed the change in her student's mood. "I know what your thinking. I wish he was still the same little dragon he was before he disappeared too. We must not dwell on the past, but embrace the future, that is the only way to find happiness." Said Celestia in her mentor voice.

"I know, but I still feel like it was my fault, I know Spike is happy with his life but it still doesn't stop me from wondering what could I have done differently to prevent this from ever happening, does that make me a bad pony?" Asked Twilight who was on the verge of breaking down in tears.

"Twilight." The sound of her name being called made her look up to her mentor as she continued. "I have done many things that I regret, but I choose to bear that weight every day as I see what has resulted from that decision, when I banished my sister to the moon I was saddened, but I knew that one day she would return to me, and look what happened, You and the elements freed her from nightmare moon, you defeated Tirek and became a princess, Fluttershy reformed Discord, not to mention raising Spike so well that he allowed for the changelings to be reborn to what they are now and creating a treaty with dragons. Now imagen what would have happened if I was more aware of my sister's pain and stopped her from changing into Nightmare, The elements would still be bounded to the two of us, you might have never become my student, Spike might have been hatched by his dragon parents, you wouldn't have ever met your friends, and we would be living in a world ruled by chaos or all be in slaved by Sombra or Tirek. We all wish we could go back and change something from our past, but is it worth losing everything you have come to appreciate in life?" Asked Celestia.

Twilight wiped away her tears as she looked into the eyes of her teacher and slowly shook her head as she slowly started to smile. "Your right Princess, I should be happy that Spike was taken care of when he had nothing else, and even if things have changed between us as long as Spike is happy I wouldn't change it for the world."

Everyone was smiling at the heartfelt words coming out of the purple alicorns mouth as they all nodded in agreement, as everyone praised her for her words.

Twilight was fully composed now as she looked at her friends as she asked "Is everyone ready?"

they all nodded. Twilight then looked at Celestia and mouthed "Thank you." Celestia only smiled back as Twilight activated her horn and the group was enveloped in Twilights magic and teleported off to Zecoras hut.

During this time Spike was still running on all fours through the forest as he dodged around the trees and bushes that blocked his path. But as Spike was running he thought about what he could do during his week in Ponyville, 'So today is Tuesday, maybe after I finish showing the girls the castle, I could talk to Rarity about making me a new set of clothes, can't really show up to the crystal fair dressed like a bit less drifter now, can I. Maybe I can show her the picture of that old armor I drew, the one that ancient Steef guardians wore for the battle that the grubs showed me. I would like to honor my master's people in some way even though he would probably be against it.' Spike chuckled at his thought as he continued to think about ways to spend his time for the week. 'I have to get ready for this week's O&O game tomorrow, plus I need to get a copy of my nacho recipe ready for Discord, and I need to design a new character, Garbuckle the Wizard doesn't really fit me anymore. Maybe I should change to a rogue or bounty hunter, knowing Discord he will bring the game to life like last time and we can all play together. and if I ask the family if they want in, maybe Discord can pop them in as well.' Spike continued to dodge trees like it was nothing as he let his body run on autopilot as he continued to think.

'What about Thursday?' thought Spike. 'Maybe I can talk to big mac during the game night about lending a claw on the farm, I still want to see his better half and give her my congratulations, plus it would be great to see Granny Smith again, I just hope that I don't give her a heart attack when she sees me, maybe if I don't she will make me a genuine Apple Family Apple Pie', god I would kill to drink some apple family cider as well.' Spike jumped over an exposed tree root as he continued his pace. 'If Rarity could get my new outfit done by Friday that would be great because we are leaving first thing in the morning Saturday, and if I remember correctly it only takes the crystal express a few hours to get from Ponyville to the Crystal Empire, so I need to get all of the family ready to go the night before and when I get there I need to stay out of sight or I will ruin the surprise, I don't want that, so maybe I can spend some quality time with Flurry Heart during the afternoon and maybe teach Shining some moves.' Spike then slid underneath a fallen tree and quickly recovered back into his run.

'That still leaves Friday free, maybe I can take Mrs. Cake up on her offer and reconnect with them, yeah that sounds like a plan, and maybe I can use some of that time as training.' Spike retook control of his body as he finished his mental calendar for the week and noticed that the area he was in looked familiar. Spike stopped and noticed that he was only a minute's walk from Zecora's. So not to overshoot his target Spike continued to Zecoras at a normal walking speed.

Spike arrived at the witchdoctors hut and was surprised to see he was the only person there. "What the hell, where is everyone." 'Overreaction mode activated, Panic will begin in...3...2...1!' thought Spikes brain as he was slowly growing more concerned until it reached its breaking point. "OH GOD WHAT HAPPENED TO THEM, I SHOULD have WAITED FOR THEM TO TELEPORT BEFORE RUNNING OFF." Yelled Spike as he started to pace back and forth. Spike looked back in the direction of the campgrounds wondering what could have happened. "I SHOULD HURRY, THEY MIGHT NEED MY HELP, IF I BOOCK IT I CAN GET BACK IN FIVE MINUTES AND HELP." Spike continued to yell as he was about to punch it into high gear and get back to the campsite and help the girls. Spike was so lost in his panic that he was completely unaware that in the middle of his panic Twilight and the rest had appeared to the side of his pacing path.

Spike finished his panic as he quickly started to run back into the forest praying that he could stop whatever could be wrong with only the eight leaders. Spike willed his body to pass his limits in the hope of getting there before it was too late but for some known reason his body refused to move forward, but he continued to struggle in hopes he could finally get moving. Spike was still completely unaware of the fact that his body was being held in the magic aura of not only Twilight but both princesses and both Rarity and Starlight.

Spike was brought out of his panic-induced craze when he allowed for his ears to hear everyone yelling at him to stop.

"....SPIKE STOP, WE ARE RIGHT HERE!" Yelled everyone.

Spike blinked and fully returned to the real world as he stopped struggling and turned his head to see the worried looks on all the girl's faces.

Spike then gave the group a sheepish look. "Um, I can explain." Said Spike who noticed the mixture of worry and expecting a reason on everyone's faces. Spike was then released from the magical grip so they could hear the explanation. "So where to start?" asked Spike not expecting an answer. "I may have also forgotten to mention that during that time I was kidnapped and separated from the Family I may of letting my protective dragon instincts take over when I heard one of the guards tell me about using my friends for their target practice. I blacked out after hearing that and the next thing I remember was waking up with a bloody pipe in my hands and the guard was knocked out on the ground and the bars of my cell broken into pieces." Spike explained. then he looked at the group with the same look that they were giving him. "Now tell me how in the hell I was able to beat the literal embodiment of magic who was teleporting only a few miles while running in an unfamiliar part of the forest on foot." Asked Spike.

Upon hearing his question it dawned on them that it took twilight almost ten minutes to finally teleport them to the hut as they mirrored Spikes sheepish look. Celestia decided to step forward and answer his question in a subtle way as to not place guilt on either party. "Spike, Twilight was going through some inner conflicts that she didn't want to burden you with, so she confided in me and we were able to resolve it with a heart to heart talk, she will tell you what it was about in a time when she is ready but until then it would be best to not let it dampen the moment." Said, Celestia.

Spike nodded as he walked past his mother and the others to right in front of Twilight. Twilight was worried about how Spike took the explanation about the delay, but to her surprise, Spike pulled her into a tight hug as he tried to comfort her. "Twilight, I'm so sorry you had to go through whatever you did, but I want you to know that I am willing to help shoulder any burden you have, you don't need to tell me what happened and you never have to, just know I will always be there to help you whenever you need it." Said Spike as he continued to comfort his older sister.

Twilight returned the hug in kind and only responded with four simple words that carried two years of sadness far away. "I know you will." as Twilight thought 'what was I so worried about, truly the only thing that has changed was his size, no matter what he will always be the same kindhearted baby dragon on the inside.' Twilight then began to chuckle as tears of joy slowly ran down her face. "I love you, Spike." Said Twilight.

"Love you too Twi," responded Spike as he used one of his claws to wipe her tear-stained cheek.

Most 'awed' at the display, except for both Rainbow and Scootaloo who fake gagged at the moment of pure innocence in front of them. Which resulted in a head slap from both AJ and AB as they tried to save the pure moment. Spike noticed the interaction between the four and inwardly chuckled.

Twilight broke the hug as she looked at Spike with a wide smile feeling the last two years of guilt melt away. "I feel so much better now, but we are burning daylight." She then struck adventures pose and exclaimed "To the Castle of the Two Sisters!" as she had stars in her eyes.

This display completely killed the mood as everyone facepalmed at the eager bookworms' lack of tact as Spike muttered "Princess of emotional timing she is not."

Spike began to walk to the castle as he motioned for the rest of the group to follow along. "Come on, the longer she's like this the worse it's going to get." Said Spike.

Once the group arrived at the castle's bridge and the sight that greeted them was the sight of the still dilapidated castle. And to no one's surprise the moment Twilight took notice of the castle's poor condition she went into her own personal brand of freak-out. Her eye started to twitch rapidly, as some of her hair popped out of place, then her wings uncontrollably opened and closed, and to top it all off she grabbed her tail and pulled it in front of her as she went into the fetal position and began to stroke her tail and mutter some incoherent words.

Everyone looked worried at the mental breakdown of their friend, but Spike just gave her an unamused look as he walked over to her and whispered in her ear. "Discord turned all books in the castle library into extra cheesy quesadillas, and filled all the rooms with millions of ladybugs." Then he promptly ran as far as he could to avoid the inevitable 'Twibomb'.

Twilights mane began to smoke as her fur changed to a fiery white and her eyes changed to blood red until her mane was fully engulfed in fire. "WHEN I GET MY HANDS ON HIM, I WILL BANISH HIM FROM EQUESTRIA, NO I'LL THROW HIM INTO A DUNGEON, NO I'LL BANISH HIM THEN THROW HIM IN A DUNGEON IN THE PLACE I BANISH HIM!!" Ranted Twilight.

Discord was eating his lunch when he felt his tail tap his shoulder informing him that his presents are required. Discord sighed as he placed his half-eaten plate back on the sandwich and with a snap of his claws disappeared.

Everyone was looking at the now furious alicorn until their attention was pulled to the appearance of Discord.

"Oh Discord, now is probably not the best time for you to be here." Said Fluttershy as she showed him the second sun flying around looking for her target.

Discord just sighed and snapped his lion paw and instantly teleported in front of Spike as he began to stare at the dragon. "Did you summon me? Did you pull me from my lunch? Did you cause that?" asked Discord pointing to the ranting ball of heat.

"Yes. If I did I'm sorry. It's worse than last time." responded Spike to Discords questions.

Discord just facepalmed. "What did you tell her?"

"You turned all books in the castle library into extra cheesy quesadillas, and filled all the rooms with millions of ladybugs," responded Spike.

Discord chuckled at Spike's response because he had planned to do that very same thing to her a week from next Wednesday. "I'll fix this mess for you but on one condition."

"Name it?"

Discord then magicked on a kilt and hunched over while holding a shillelagh in his dragon claw and answered. "I want your firstborn child."

Spike smirked, much to Discord's horror. "You got yourself a deal." Said Spike offering out his hand to seal the deal.

Discord was shocked to hear that Spike was willing to give up an innocent child just for favor as he began to sweat. "Are you sure? You're not even going to try to bargain with me?" asked Discord hoping Spike will change his mind.

"Nope, now do we have a deal?" Asked Spike with an evil look in his eye.

Discord was hesitant to accept but not wanting to look week grabbed Spikes hand and agreed. Once the deal was struck Discord snapped a washtub full of water and poured it onto the still ranting Twilight, extinguishing her.

Spike then started to laugh evilly as he stared Discord in the eyes and added. "Oh, there might be a problem with the whole firstborn thing."

"and what pray tell is that?" asked discord worriedly.

"You will have to fight through one pissed off grandma, her sister, two no doubt doting aunts, and a very very very pissed off cousin, and that's just the first line of defense, then you have six angry surrogate aunts and a well-trained uncle, and if you actually manage to get passed all of that, you will have to get past both a dragon who is willing to kill if it means protecting his family and worst of all you will have to take away a newborn from its mother." Laughed Spike. " And let's not forget I have the support of not one, not two, not even three, but four fully equipped and pissed off armies ready to take you down the moment you dare place one finger on the child. So ask yourself, do you feel lucky, well do you?"

Discord's face fell in horror at the realization that what Spike had said was without a doubt going to kill him, then he realized something, he got played and his jaw dropped to the floor.

Pinky then does a Pinky and pulls down on Discord's goatee and makes his jaw roll up like a pulldown shade as Discord continued to look at the dragon who played him. Discord then dropped to his knees and began to pray to Spike. "I'm not worthy, I'm not worthy, I'm not wor-That's enough, how about this instead, since you already fixed Twilight, I not going to bring up the fact that you wanted to take away my kid and I take up the job you offered yesterday, but only on one condition."

"Name it."

Spikes shoulders then slumped. "Can you see if Big Mac can join us tomorrow, I haven't had the time to ask if he was up for it this week?"

Discord was shocked again as he stammered out "Th...That...al...all?"

"Yep." Said Spike mimicking Big Mac.

Discord then jumped to his feet and grabbed Spikes hand and started to kiss it repeatedly. "Thank you, Thank you, Thank you. You got yourself a deal, you start the first leap year of the next century, bring plenty of balloons, you get ten years off a millennium, plus we have great health and dental care, here's a key to your own personal dimension, sorry it's still under renovation and won't be ready for at least another fifty years, lazy contractors and all." Said Discord as he dropped a key into spikes hand. "Oh and most importantly here is your own personal brand of chaos magic." added Discord as plaid wisps of chaos magic transferred over to Spike. After the energy transfer was complete Spike had a confused look on his face expecting to feel different.

"Discord am I missing something here? I don't feel any different."

"Oh I knew I forgot to mention something, It will take the next hundred years or so for you to be able to use your new powers."

"That blows."

"You have no idea, I still remember when I agreed to become an assistant god of chaos all those years ago, my bastard of a boss only gave me a week off every two millennia and I couldn't use my powers for seven hundred sixty-two years and three months, thank god he was about to retire the next millennium, but I digress if you have any questions please refer to this small pamphlet, it will tell you everything you need to know about being a chaos god." Discord then pulled out a leather-bound book the size of Spike and dropped it on the ground. " I want you to have this whole book memorized by the time you start." Then Discord disappeared and reappeared dressed as a news host as he was sitting at a news desk floating in front of Spike. “And now for something completely different.” Spike became annoyed at all the references Discord was using.

"Discord, stop making all the references." Spike then realized something, he actually understood all of Discord's gags.

"One more thing," Said Discord like an old angry Asian man. "You now have access to multiple realities, I get my best material from them but be warned don't visit the reality where our lives are cartoons made for little girls and twenty-year-old men, it will mess you up." Said Discord shuttering in horror.

Spike was about to question Discord but was interrupted. "Have a nice day Spike, see you tomorrow and good luck carrying everyone back to town." said Discord as he slowly faded out of existence.

Spike threw up his arms and sighed, "Nope, this is future Spikes problem, not mine." Said Spike like the last five minutes never occurred as he walked over to the book and read the first page.

" Hello, and welcome to Discorp. You have been chosen to be the next god of chaos, good for you. But you need to make your way up the corporate ladder, so as of right now you are an assistant god of chaos, still, good for you. Your job is very simple, Help come up with fun and chaotic ways to disrupt life in your original dimension, reality, or plane of existence. And remember if the crazy mare with the baseball and screw cutie mark doesn't appear you not doing your job right, so kick it up another eleven notches. Thank you for choosing Discorp for all of your chaotic needs. Have a nice day. Written by Discorp founder, president, and CEO Discord Q Dreconaquis."

Spike then flipped the page expecting to see more information but to his horror, he was met with the sight of random photos of Discord in swimwear. Spike then screamed in horror and yelled to the high heavens "GOD GET THE BRAIN BLEACH, I CAN'T UNSEE WHAT I HAVE SEEN." As he ran in the opposite direction and running headfirst into a tree, as he tried to concuss himself in hopes of blacking out and forgetting the last few moments of his life. But being the badass dragon he is now his actions only caused the tree to snap in half. This also had the effect of bringing everyone's attention to the dragon after the fallout of the 'Twibomb' was finished.

The group was worried about the dragon's safety when they noticed him headbutting the tree and wondered what could have caused the chain of events. Then Fluttershy and RD decided to walk over to the still open book and hesitantly looked at the exposed page. Fluttershy passed out due to an excess of blood in the brain as she was redder than tomato and RD copied the actions of Spike as she screamed for brain bleach.

Spike was able to compose himself long enough to notice the effects the book from hell had on his friends as he slowly walked to the book and closed the cover, shielding everyone else from its horrible effects on the brain. And in an act of pure heroism and common logic Spike used his fire breath to ignite the book in an emerald fire as he stared into the flames.

Twilight then walked next to him in a mixture of both interest and horror at the sight of a burning book. "Spike, why did you do that?"

Spike looked Twilight in her eyes and with all the honesty of AJ responded "It was for the greater good." then he walked away not saying another word.

After the book was reduced to a smoldering pile of ash, RD and Fluttershy returned to reality and everyone gathered around the still silent dragon who was standing in front of the bridge leading to the castle. "So all in favor of forgetting the last five minutes of our lives raise your hand." motioned Spike as he raised his hand. Everyone followed as they all raised their hands.

"Good, and now that that is settled." Spike looked over his shoulder and looked at the castle then looked at the group of mares in front of him and added. "I know what your all thinking, yes this is the same castle of the two sisters, and you don't have to worry it is surprisingly still structurally sound and completely safe to enter." Addressed Spike as he began crossing the bridge.

"There is no way that the castle is safe, I have half a mind to get some ponies to declare it a safety hazard, having it demolished, and then getting a monument or museum constructed in its place." Said Twilight who was hesitant on entering the step up from a pile of rubble.

"We are inclined to agree with you Twilight, upon our return, our castle needed major repair, but seeing it now, we think it would be more in need of replacement. But I would like to see what has survived since our last departure." agreed Luna.

"Both of you need to stop jumping the gun, yesterday I was able to join Spike in the castle with the same apprehensions about entering it as you all." Said, Celestia. "But then he explained to me how his friends had improved the structure and I saw the old gardens, It was beautiful. So as of now let's stop thinking about demolishing the castle until we can agree with its current residents?" asked Celestia.

"Thanks, mom." Said Spike as the group reached the front gates. Spike then looked at the group. "Can you all stay outside for a few minutes?" They all nodded at the request. "Thanks, and if you see a large group of creatures flying around, just know that they are friendly and will not harm you unless you harm them first." Added Spike as he closed the door and pulled off his bag and looked inside.

"It's time for the main reveal everyone, go get your family and get back here in the next five minutes," ordered Spike as he opened the cover on his bag and all the heads flew and hopped away to retrieve the rest of their groups.

outside of the castle Twilight and the others were discussing the events of the last two days. "So, in the last two days, Spike has accepted a job from Discord, stopped me and Celestia from going on a rampage, located his friends, reconnected with them, and stopped a pack of timberwolves from attacking him and Celestia yesterday." Said Twilight as she just looked exhausted at how much has happened in the last two days.

"Not to mention creating panic in the streets of both Ponyville and Canterlot, starting the process of getting his death revoked and explaining his time on Modus to us, plus getting reconnected with the citizens of Ponyville and Zecora." Added Pinky.

"Yeah, that too." thanked Twilight.

During this discussion, the sound of thousands of wings buzzing was heard overhead drawing everyone's attention. When they looked up they saw a swarm of Stingbees flying around the castle and as soon as they appeared they flew inside, leaving a group of wide-eyed, jaw-dropped mares in its wake. Celestia was the only one of the group who was able to keep her composure at the sight as she giggled at the reaction of everyone around her as she then whispered to her student. "Tip of the ice burg."

Inside of the castle, Spike was sitting in the stone chair his mother had made the day prior, as he was waiting for everyone to gather in the main hall. He didn't have to wait long, a few moments of waiting Queen and her hive flew in from one of the holes in the roof, then Fangs cete hopped in to view, followed by Banger and his cloud, Belch with his surfeit, Char and her swarm, Wallop with his swarm in tow, Alvin and his regiment, and Sparks with his cluster. Spike looked over at his friends and gave a wide smile as all the leaders took their position on Spike's body. Queen landed on Spikes head spines, Banger perched on Spikes tail, both Belch and Alvin wrapped their tails around Spikes legs, Fang and Sparks took their positions on Spikes left shoulder, as Char and Wallop took position on his right. Spike gave a smile to everyone as he began to address the 'Family'. "Last night I informed you all that I and your leaders were to attend a meeting, long story short, the meeting went well. And because of that, I have brought with me the rest of the attendants, they are waiting outside. They are my pony family, and they are not as durable as everyone here, with that being said, I need all of you to be on your best behavior." ordered Spike. He looked at the Boombats. "Bats, no exploding." then to the Bolamites "Mites, no biting." Then to the Thudslugs. "Slugs, this is a no-fly zone." then to the Stingbees. "Bees, Queen trust them, don't piss her off." Then he looked at the Stunkz. "Stunkz, do your best to hold it in." Over to the Zappflys. "Flys, no zapping them." Spike then addressed the chipunkz. "Men, you will show our guest the highest respect you can, any sign of disrespect will result in a demotion and a three-week suspension, is that understood?"

"SIR,YES,SIR!!!" Resonded the chipunkz.

Spike then looked at the group of furry death machines and growled. "Fang has given them his approval, so no one is to attack them, Is that understood?" Said Spike angrily as he growled to show dominance.

All around Spike were the sounds of his ammo agreeing to follow his orders. hearing this caused Spike to smile at them all. Spike then walked to the front gate and opened it to allow the girls to enter. "Girls, everyone is ready and waiting to finally meet you all." Said Spike in a happy tone.

One by one everyone entered the castle. Once everyone was inside Spike walked in between the two groups and began the introductions.

"Girls, I would like to introduce you to the Family." Said Spike motioning to the group of creatures. "And, guys this is my pony family."

Spike was ready for multiple reactions he thought the group of mares would do after meeting the whole family. But as if the universe was giving him a middle finger, the one reaction he was not prepared for was all of the mares passing out from shock. Spike sighed and looked to the only other conscious person in the room, his mother, and gave her a look hoping for some help carrying them back to town as he muttered under his breath 'Fuck you Discord'. "Let's get them back to Twilights. You grab Aunt Luna, the CMC, and Zecora, I'll grab the girls and Starlight." Said Spike as he took off his crossbow and strap. Spike then looked at the room full of concerned creatures. "I know you are all worried about them, so we will continue this back in town, everyone gets inside," ordered Spike. The room was devoid of all non-dragon and non-pony creatures in less than a minute.

Once everyone was inside of the ammo tubes Spike walked over to the passed-out mares and using his tail picked up Starlight, AJ, RD, Fluttershy, and Pinky pie, as he picked up both Twilight and Rarity in his arms. Celestia did the same using her magic and the two made their way back to town.

Twilight woke up from her previous pass out expecting to still be in the old castle, but to her amazement, she was in her bed surrounded by all her friends who were still passed out. She decided it would be very rude to try and wake them up so she used her wings to fly over to the door and inquire on how they were back in her castle when she knows for a fact that they were all at the old castle. She walked out of her room and walked down to the map room hoping to find out what had happened.

Twilight arrived at the map room and opened the door, only to discover that it was filled to the brim with thousands of creatures all sitting there talking to each other. She quickly ducked out of the room and shut the door, as she began to hyperventilate, hoping that this was a dream. She then opened the door and stuck her head into the room hoping that it was all a figment of her imagination, but when she looked inside every creature was still there but now they were all looking at her. Feeling nervous Twilight did the first thing that popped into her head. "Um...Hi?" asked Twilight hoping for some reaction.

Then one of the Chipunkz responded. "Good afternoon ma'am, the commander is in the kitchen waiting for you and your friends to wake up."

Twilight smiled nervously as she responded. "Thank you." As she closed the door to the map room and walked over to the castle kitchen, looking for Spike.

When she arrived at the kitchen, she was greeted with the sight of Spike and Celestia sitting down at the counter drinking some coffee. "...And that's when I told him moles asses, since then every time I went into the shop he would give me crap about the proper pronunciation on the word 'molasses'." Said Spike.

Celestia laughed at Spike's story.

This exchange was completely lost on the now awake princess as she just levitated over a mug and poured a cup full of the bitter drink for herself as she walked over to the two and took a seat next to Spike, waiting for a time she could inquire on why the whole map room was filled with the creatures.

Spike looked over at her and smiled at her, "How did you sleep?"

"Well enough, but I have a few questions."

"Shoot."

"What happened to us?"

"You all passed out when I introduced you all to the whole family."

"How did we get back to the castle?"

"We carried all of you."

"Why is the map room filled with all the creatures?"

"They were concerned for your well beings so I brought them with us hoping to properly introduce you all to them, anything else?"

"Nope, I'm all caught up."

"Good, I can hear the others starting to move around meaning they're. I'll go greet them and bring them to the kitchen." Said Spike as he finished off his coffee and left the room.

After all the girls met up in the kitchen they were all informed of the events of the last two hours. Spike then looked at the group, "Are you ready to meet the Family again?" Asked Spike.

They all nodded. They then made their way to the map room.

Spike pushed open the doors and the room fell silent, as all eyes were focused on the group of mares walking behind Spike.

"Everyone, I know the last time we tried this it didn't go so great. But I want to properly introduce everyone, so everyone, this is my pony family, first, we have Twilight, Rarity, AppleJack, Rainbow Dash, Pinky Pie, Fluttershy, Starlight, Apple Bloom, Scootaloo, Sweetie bell, Zecora, and my Aunt Luna." Said Spike as he pointed to each mare. Spike then looked at the group of mares. "And girls this is the whole Family."

Everypony gave a smile as they waved at the group, as Twilight stepped forward and bowed her head. "Thank you all for helping Spike, without you, I don't what to even think about what could have happened to him." Said Twilight as the rest of the girls followed the princess's actions.

The room then became filled with the sounds of responses as everypony looked to see every creature greeting them in their own unique ways.

It took a while but over time the girls became used to the large mass of creatures in the map room. Fluttershy was talking with the Boombats and the Fuzzles. Twilight and Starlight were trying to decipher the Zappfly code with Pinky Pie acting as an interpreter, Applejack was holding Rainbow Dash back from attacking Alvin who said she looked 'super girly with her rainbow mane' as the CMC watched the commotion in a fit of laughter, Zecora was sitting down with Belch and his surfeit, as Celestia and Luna sat on the ground watching every group as Wallop and his cluster sat around the two princesses, and Rarity had taken Char up on her offer about providing high-quality spider silk for her use.

Spike decided to ask Rarity the question he wanted to ask her when he was running in the forest, seeing no better opportunity to do so. "Hey Rare's, can I talk to you for a moment?"

Rarity looked at Spike giving the dragon her full attention, "Of course darling, what do you need?"

"I wanted to talk to you about designing a set of clothing for me before we leave for the Crystal Fair, I don't want to show up looking like a bit less drifter, I may have been stranded for ten years, but I still know when I need to properly present myself."

Rarity's eyes lit up with stars at the thought of finally getting Spike out of that monstrosity of fashion that has plagued her nightmares for days, and with maybe a little too much enthusiasm Rarity got to her hooves and with a surprising amount of strength wrapped her arms around Spikes, dragging him off to her shop. Spike was surprised, to say the least, and by the time he had realized where he was, Spike noticed that he was standing at the front door of Rarity's shop.

Rarity opened the door to the shop and using her magic levitated Spike behind a screen as she levitated over a measuring tape from one of her drawers. "I need to take your measurements, Spike, so strip down." Said Rarity as she waited on the other side of the screen to take her measurements.

Spike didn't need to be asked twice, it wasn't like she was going to see anything, aside from his scars, as certain 'parts' of a dragon's anatomy stayed inside unless he wanted it out. Spike removed his hat and placed it on one of the knobs on the screen, Then he removed his backpack and placed it on the ground, Spike then removed his boots and placed them on the other side of the screen next to his bag for when he was finished, lastly Spike lifted off his poncho and draped it over the top of the screen. Spike looked at the three mirrors in front of him as he looked at his scars and how much they actually covered his body.

Spike looked at each scar and the memory of what happened brought a mixed array of emotions, some were from his time training with Stranger which always started sadly, but ended with the two laughing around their campfire. Others just brought back nothing but anger, like the time he was shot in the wrist. Then there were the scars he got when he first saved Queen and Fang, it may have resulted in a few scars on his back and him losing one of his spikes, but he wouldn't change anything about it.

Spike then looked at the big scar on his chest and sighed in remembrance as he muttered "I thought I was going to die, I had so many regrets, not getting home, not seeing Twi's face one last time, not getting one last hug from mom, not being able to say goodbye." Spike was starting to cry at the memory but was brought back to reality by Rarity.

"Spike, I heard you talking but I couldn't quite make it out, are you alright?" Asked Rarity clear worry in her voice.

Spike wiped away the tears in the corners of his eyes as he calmed his breathing. "Yeah, sorry about worrying you Rares, I just lost myself in my own thoughts. I'm ready by the way." Responded Spike.

Rarity was calmed by Spikes reassurance and walked around the side of the screen, and was about to take the dragon's measurements, but the moment Rarity saw the scars on Spikes body she became very rigid in her movements.

Spike noticed her change, and it was clear what caused it. "Yeah, you never really get used to them, but they are a part of me, parts that bring back both happy and painful memories, and as weird as it is to say, this is the first time I actually noticed how much of my body has changed." Laughed Spike in a sad but accepting tone.

Rarity was very hesitant about talking about the scars and wanted desperately to change the subject, but Spike was able to read the room and decided to take the initiative. "So Rares, did you and Char agree?" Asked Spike.

Rarity was snapped out of her inner thoughts by the question and responded. "Yes we did, it wasn't easy but I agreed to put any request of yours at the top of the list in exchange for the use of their silk," responded Rarity as she unconsciously began to take Spikes measurements.

Spike and Rarity continued to talk like old times as the time flew by. Rarity finished writing down all of Spike's measurements on her notepad as she began to think about every single outfit Spike could need as he got dressed. "So now that is out of the way let's start thinking about what colors would complement your stature." Rarity then started to levitate rolls of fabrics. "Hum, Red...no it would clash with your purple scales, yellow... absolutely not, gray... very sophisticated, versatile and just screams for accent colors. what do you think Spike?"

Spike looked at the gray fabric and smiled. "I agree, besides I never liked the idea of bright colors on clothes, give me a snazzy black and white tux any day."

Rarity nodded in agreement, "Yes, I do remember you asking for a plain black suit, and I must agree darker colors best suit your color scheme. So do you have an idea of what you would like it to look like?"

Spike smirked. "I have a good idea for the design, but I need to know if you could enchant the fabric to be like armor?"

Rarity Smile and responded, "That is a simple request dear, by now Twilight has probably informed you about the army of dragons who stayed in Ponyville during the search for you."

Spike nodded.

"Well a large portion of them were tasked to protect the search parties that went into the Everfree forest, and most of the time the dragon's armor would be damaged or straight out useless, so I started to take requests from the dragons who needed a new set of armor. One thing led to another and I was very proficient in enchanting plain old silk and cotton with both fireproof and hardening spells while keeping the weight down."

Spike smiled at hearing this news. "Then I would like to commission the creation of a set of armor based on the ceremonial armor of the steef guardians in honor of both my master and his people." Stated Spike as he pulled out his journal and showed Rarity the drawing of the armor.

Rarity looked a the detailed drawing and quickly sketched out a design that would match Spikes bipedal nature and replaced the curled horns on the helmet with synthetic horns similar to dragon horns, she then added slits on the back of the design for Spikes spines. She then lightly shaded the areas where the gray would be used and would determine the accenting colors for later. Rarity hummed at her work and smiled. "I think that should do it." Said Rarity as she showed her design to Spike.

Spike looked at the fashionista's design and wasn't surprised at the level of detail Rarity added on her preliminary design as he smiled. "It looks perfect Rares, I know you will put your all into this, how much do you need to get it done before we leave on Saturday?" Asked Spike hoping that she would let him pay for the job.

Rarity may be the element of generosity, and without a doubt would insist on doing this job for free, but Spike knew that second to her friends, her businesses were her life, and he would feel like he was stealing from her if he did not compensate her for her effort. Rarity smiled at the dragon, "Don't worry about payment Spike, I would be glad to do it free of charge."

"No, I insist on compensating you for your time and effort." Said Spike.

"But I want to make it as a gift for you returning to us safely." Retorted Rarity.

"But I am asking you to design, sew, and fit, a full set of armor."

"I don't mind, it will be fillies play compared to some of the massive orders I have done in the past."

" All the more reason I want to pay for something, I know how bad those types of orders messed with you."

"Fine, but let me ask you one simple question, how exactly do you plan on paying for it?"

"I...I...I..." Spikes response died in his throat as he remembered the only form of money he had was Moolah and it was probably worthless, and the money he used for himself to buy comics, was only about nine bits, and he refused to go to Twilight or his mother for the money due to his dragon pride. Spike's facepalmed and sighed. "Fine. But, when I have time, we are going on a gem hunt so I can repay you."

Rarity Smirked at her victory. "That will be adequate compensation. Be back Friday afternoon for the final fitting." Rarity then began to shoo Spike out of her store so she could begin working.

Spike was now on the streets of Ponyville and it was only late afternoon, he had been with Rarity for the last hour and a half. Spike shrugged and decided to walk around the town that he missed for years.

As Spike walked through town there was a mixture of reactions to the fact that just a random dragon was walking around. Spike heard whispering from the townspeople. " Did the princesses finally allow dragons to visit pony towns?" Asked a random pony. "Doesn't he remind you of some dragon?" asked another. "I heard that that dragon was seen yesterday walking with both princess Twilight and Celestia. And that a lot of ponies were walking away from town hall yesterday smiling. Who do you think he is?"

Spike continued to walk in the streets completely unaware that he had made his way to the outer edge of the town. Spike stopped walking to survey his surroundings and noticed that he was almost at the schoolhouse.

Spike shrugged and decided to see how much the old school had changed. Spike walked up to the schoolhouse doors and knocked. He waited for a few moments and was about to leave figuring that the school was empty, but as he was turning around the door opened and a sweet voice was heard. "Hello, how can I help you?" Asked Ms. Cheerilee

Spike turned around and gave the teacher a sheepish smile. "Um, hey Cheerilee, how have you been?" Asked Spike.

Cheerilee was confused at the sudden appearance of a dragon at the school. "Um sir, do I know you?" asked the mare unaware of the identity of the dragon in front of her.

"Well, you used to. But I have been recently told that I resemble very little of what most ponies remember me as. It has caused a lot of confusion and I have only been back for a few days, but in all honesty, it is hilarious to see the reactions I get when ponies finally figure it out." Said Spike shrugging.

"Sir, I am in the middle of a lesson right now, I have three fillies absent and I have to make a makeup lesson for them. I do not know why you are here, but if you have finished your business with me, I would recommend leaving the premises, if you do not I will have to inform the royal guard." Said Cheerilee a little bitterly.

"whoa, whoa, whoa, let's not get the guards involved, I just thought I would visit an old friend since I was on this side of town. As for your absent students, I'm partly to blame for that, but rest assured they are safe and sound with the princesses." Said Spike as he raised his hands in a sign of peace.

The students in the class noticed the exchange and decided to peek in at the conversation between the pony and dragon. "I will give you one more chance to leave the premises or I will be filing a report to the guards informing them about a suspicious stranger outside of the school." Said Cheerilee almost at her limit, just then Spike burped out a scroll and snatched it out of the air, and began to read it.

Spike then looked at the scroll then to the teacher and back to the scroll. Spike then handed it to the teacher. "It's for you." Said Spike simply.

Cheerilee took the scroll and opened it.

"To Cheerilee.

If you haven't figured it out by now, I fear for the education of the children in your care, so here are a few hints, if you called the guards, you will be arrested for treason, if you take a good look at the dragon in front of you, you will notice a very specific color scheme, and if you think about it, how many dragons do you know that can receive messages.

Yours Truly. Discord.

PS. Don't tell Twilight I intercepted the letter she's worried enough as it is.

PPS. Tell Spike that Twilight is looking for him."

Cheerilee looked up from the scroll in shock and tears. "SPIKE?"

Spike gave her his signature goofy smile, "told you it was hilarious to see ponies reaction." Said Spike trying to lighten the mood and the tension between the two.

Spike was then enveloped in a bone-crushing hug. Cheerilee may not look it but she is still an earth pony so she has monster strength. "Spike, what happened to you? Where did you go? When did you get back?" Asked Cheerilee through her sobs and tears.

"Well the day I went missing Twilight and me were working on a new spell, it didn't work right and it opened a portal to a place called Mudos where I was trained by a bounty hunter called Stranger for eight years and when I was ready to start my journey home we went our separate ways. I then traveled across Mudos for the next two years biding my time until a scientist I called 'Doc' finished building a device that could teleport me home. Which was about three days ago. And before you gasp and say 'WHAT DO YOU MEAN TEN YEARS, YOU WERE ONLY GONE FOR TWO' we think that due to some time dilation or some weird magic and science thing I aged faster, If I stayed I would be about 14, but right now I'm about 22. Time is a pain in the ass when you're dealing with magic and science." Responded Spike, still with the goofy smile. "So how have you been?"

"Stressed, overworked, tired, take your pick.".

"Still worth it?" asked Spike referring to being a teacher.

Cheerilee looked back at the students who were all shocked at the revelation that the dragon at the door was the dragon that went missing years ago and giggled. "Yeah, still worth it."

"Good to hear, well I thought about asking if you and your class would like to join the rest of the town for a personal Q&A Twilight will be announcing when we get back to town next week, I think it would be easier to explain what happened to me in one go instead of telling my story multiple times. Plus it would get the kids a chance to interact with multiple races at once and possibly foster some friendships."

"That sounds like a wonderful idea, have twilight send me the information when she finishes hammering out the details and I will make up some permission slip forms."

Spike smiled at the response, "Hey do you mind if I just pop in and say hi to my old friends?"

Cheerilee shook her head. "Not at all, go right ahead but try and keep it brief, we were in the middle of a lesson." Then Cheerilee began to think and then she smirked. "Actually take all the time you need, if you don't finish before dismissal, I don't have to make the makeup lesson. Besides class will be over in like thirty minutes."

Cheerilee walked back into the classroom and noticed that the children were still shocked by Spike's return, then she had a devilish idea. "Everyone who was eavesdropping on the private conversation I was having, will now have to write an essay about why eavesdropping on other people's conversations is bad."

The class groaned in response as they were shocked back to reality by the teacher's newest assignment. This made Cheerilee giggle, "Or, if everyone behaves and is polite to our guest, I might just forget to write myself a note about the essay, how does that sound?"

Cheerilee looked at every one of her students nodding their heads rapidly.

Cheerilee smiled and looked at the still-open door where Spike was waiting. "You may come in now."

Spike walked into the class and took a seat on a chair as he looked at the students. "So, yeah I'm not dead, I'm very much alive, and it's good to see you guys again."

All the students dropped their jaws at Spike. And Pinky does a pinky and appears out of nowhere and one by one closes the jaws of all the students. "Thanks, Pinky, Tell Twilight that I am at the schoolhouse and tell the 'Family' I'm safe." Said Spike.

"Not a problem, also..." Pinkys mane then flashed green, blue, green, bright yellow, as she then walked out of the schoolhouse and disappeared.

"I will." Spike then smiled at the confused look he was getting from the class and explained, "She is learning to talk like one of my friends, she either said for me to 'have an exciting and nice day, or she said ' me and Rainbow Dash are calm about something white', so I think its probably the first one."

All the colts and fillies nodded slowly in agreement. "So where to begin?" asked Spike, "How about the fact that I'm not the same age as all of you anymore. right now you guys are like 13 or 14 years old right?"

They all nodded. "Well I'm like 22 years old at the least, about to be 23, and I know what your thinking, I was stuck in a place for ten years and it was only two years for everyone else." Everyone raised their hands hoping to get Spike to answer their questions.

"I have also asked Ms. Cheerilee about setting up a field trip for you all next week so I can tell my story in one go. So anyone interested in hearing the full story is welcome to join in. But for today, I don't mind answering your questions about my change in appearance."

Spike looked at the students and picked one. "Featherweight let's hear it."

"Why do you look so different? The last time I saw you, you were like two feet tall and were in all honesty a little pudgy."

"Ow, that hurt dude." Said Spike joking at the jab. "But, yeah I was a lot smaller and fatter back then. But after I disappeared, I was all alone until I was taken in by a bounty hunter from another world and he trained me to protect myself. And all of that training honed my body and in the first year I was three feet tall and all of my fat was changed into the first instances of muscles."

Spike looked at Silver Spoon and chose her. "Silver Spoon your up next."

"Did you get hurt?"

Spike took a sharp breath and was hesitant to answer so he looked at the teacher hoping for her intervention. "It's fine Spike when you first disappeared there was an army of dragons who were not shy about telling us about their past exploits, many of which resulted in very detailed stories about their collection of scars."

Hearing this calmed Spikes nerves and answered the fillies' question. "Yeah, a bunch of times." Spike removed his crossbow mounting and showed the students his sniper wound. "This one was pretty bad, I was on a job and some outlaw decided to try and take me out, he missed my heart and head, but he shot me through the wrist." Spike then turned around and showed his back to the students. "The round wounds were from me taking multiple hits in the same spot and it broke through my scales, I also lost one of my back spikes in that fight." Spike then turned back to the students and revealed his chest wound. "This one was the worst and the closest I was to dying while not on a job. I was shot with a high caliber round and it messed up one of my lungs and I was bleeding a lot, but thanks to my teacher, I was able to pull through. But I rather not talk much more about it so let's move on to the next question."

Spike looked to the two numbskulls in the class. "Snips, then snails."

"Why do you dress like that?"

"Well, in the part of Mudos I was transported to, it was mostly dry arid valleys where it was common for sand storms to hit towns for days on end, so I tried to wear the most comfortable clothes I could find. My master made me this poncho before I left, and after he was tracked back to our camp one time, he got me a pair of boots so I didn't leave tracks that my enemies could follow back to me. As for the hat, it was very sunny and when I first started on my own, the sun was always in my eyes and that threw off my aim, plus I think it looks cool."

"What is that thing on your arm?"

"This is my double crossbow, it can fire creatures called 'living ammunition' at high speeds and depending on the ammo type, in quick secession."

Diamond Tiara was the next to ask. "What do you mean by 'living ammunition'?"

"There are eight types of creatures that were used as a form of attack and defense for years. But on Mudos they developed this thing called gunpowder, which when lit, causes a small explosion, and when it is placed in a small confined space, can cause a lot of pressure to push out a projectile at very high speed. So the use of living ammo died out quickly and they rapidly spread across the area. But my master was from a race of noble and honorable creatures, who trained him in the use of living ammo, and when he started to train me, he taught me how to collect and utilize their abilities in combat to give me the edge, especially when I was up against outlaws who relied heavily on the use of guns."

Rumble was the next to ask. "Do you have any of these' living ammunition' with you?"

"I do to a degree, when I was about to return, I was prepared for the possibility of being stuck on Mudos and after years of training, I learned to never leave the safety of a town unprepared, so when I was teleported back to Equestria I had in my possession a large amount of each type, but there was a problem, the device that teleported me back home had problems with its calibrations and I was teleported back about one hundred feet above the Everfree forest. I fell hard, my backpack was snagged on a tree and ripped open, with my ammo disoriented from the trip, they wandered off. But just yesterday, I found out that they made their new home in the old castle of the two sisters after they drove out a pack of Timberwolves. But I don't think it would be for the best for everyone if I just came out and addressed the fact that I have an arsenal of destructive creatures that follow my command right now. So when I get back to Ponyville I will have Twilight and Celestia organize the Q&A in the middle of town for all interested parties to hear my stories."

There were still a few questions in the air but before Spike could hear them Cheerilee interrupted. "I'm sorry class, but it looks like the school day is finished and it would be rude to ask Spike to take any more time out of his day to answer your no doubt hundreds of questions. But before we dismiss for the day, what do you all have to say to Spike?"

"Thanks, Spike, and welcome back to Ponyville!" Responded to the whole class in unison.

Spike smiled at the students as he took his leave from the schoolhouse.

By the time Spike arrived back at the castle it was almost five in the evening and when he walked into the map room he noticed that the only ponies left were Twilight and his mother, plus the massive pile of ammo in the corner asleep, and in usual Twilight fashion, she was in a nervous panic pacing around the map.

Spike walked up to his mother who was just watching the younger alicorns panic as it was running its course. "Hey mom, sorry about earlier, Rarity kinda dragged me off with her when I told her I wanted to get a proper outfit for the crystal fair." Spike then looked at his frantic sister. "Do I want to know?" Asked Spike.

"I had a feeling that was the reason for your abrupt departure and as for the display in front of us." Said Celestia motioning to the lavender pony, "She sent you a letter almost three hours ago and she never got your response."

"That's weird, I told Pinky to tell her I was at the schoolhouse talking to Cheerilee and the kids. Didn't she tell Twilight?" Asked Spike in confusion.

"She did but by the time Pinky got back, Twilight was already in this state and she wouldn't listen to reason." Spike shrugged and walked over to the pile of ammo asleep.

"Guys it's time to wake up." Said Spike as the pile started to rustle.

The mass of ammo slowly woke up and they all looked exhausted as Spike gave them all an innocent smile. "Sorry about the wake-up, just wanted to tell you all that I was home, why don't you all head into your tubes and get more sleep, we might have a fun-filled day tomorrow." Said Spike as his ammo retreated to their ammo tubes.

Spike returned to his mother's side who was still watching Twilight. "So do you want to stop her, or should I?" Asked Spike.

"I'll do it, it stopped being funny about an hour ago, I just wanted to see how long she could keep it up," responded Celestia. She then used her magic and levitated Twilight so she would face Spike.

It took only a moment for Twilight to recognize the form of Spike and the next moment was filled with a rainbow of emotion. First, she was angry, then calm, next came worry, then was confusion, and it ended with annoyance. "And where have you been?" Asked Twilight in a very overprotective sister voice.

"Well, I was dragged to Raritys when I told her I wanted to get a new outfit for the crystal fair, that lasted about two hours. Then I walked around Ponyville for a while until I reached the schoolhouse, where I talked to Cheerilee and talked to my friends who asked me a few questions. Then I got home and found you trying to pace a ring in the floor. Also, I talked to Cheerilee about getting her class to come to the Q&A about me next week so when we figure out when to hold it tell her."

"But I sent you a message, why didn't you send a reply?"

"The only message I got today was from Discord and then Pinky showed up out of nowhere, I told her to inform you about my whereabouts."

"This is the first I have heard about this."

"Mom told me that when Pinky showed up to tell you, you were already in the middle of this." Said Spike motioning with his arms at the room.

Twilight sighed at the dragon and alicorn in the room. "I'm going to bed, wake me up for breakfast." Said Twilight as she walked out of the room and proceeded to her room.

Spike looked at his mother. "So you up for dinner?" Asked Spike.

Celestia shrugged. "I could eat."

Spike and Celestia enjoyed a nice dinner and they decided to head to bed.

Stabbed Through The Heart And You're To Blame, You Give Chaos A Good Name.

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Spike was sitting at his writing desk in his old room, Twilight had kept it clean for him, hoping that one day he would return, the only difference was that his bed was replaced with a king-sized bed thanks to his mother.

Spike groaned as he stared at a piece of paper on the desk, debating between fulfilling his promise and stabbing himself in the heart to preserve his secret. Spike looked over at his clock and sighed. "I only have ten minutes until Discord shows up." Spike then leans back on his chair and groans in defeat. "Why did I agree to give him my nacho recipe!" Asked Spike in anger.

Spike then sighed again and copied down one of his most treasured secrets.

Discord popped outside of Twilights castle out of nowhere and knocked on the giant crystal doors waiting to be granted entry.

Twilight opened the door and greeted Discord. "Good evening Discord, Spike is in his room getting your copy of the nacho recipe ready, he should be down in a few moments." Twilight then grabbed Discord's goatee and pulled him to her face. " And if you ever interfere with one of my letters again I will show you the full wrath of a worried alicorn." Threatened Twilight.

Discord was unfazed by the princess's threat, but he was unable to get free of her grasp. So Discord snapped his lion paw and next to him appeared a pair of oversized scissors that magickly moved on their own. The scissors then cut the chaos gods goatee, separating the two. "Fine, fine, princess, I was just getting a message across to Cheerilee, and by pure coincidence, you just happened to be sending a letter to him, so I just thought I would send mine along with it, its not my fault it got lost in the system." Said Discord as his goatee had magickly grown back to its normal length.

Twilight and Discord then began to argue about small things ranging from common courtesy to matters of national security. At that time Spike decided to walk down to greet one of his few guy friends and noticed the exchange. "...And what would have happened if it a letter warning us about a meteor hurtling towards the planet?" Asked Twilight who was trying to make her point.

"I would think that Tia or Lulu would have been able to handle it. And if they couldn't I would have gotten rid of it." Retorted Discord.

Spike was completely lost and had no interest in getting in the middle of a god of chaos and the more frightening of the two, a ranting Twilights argument, So Spike walked away from the two magical beings who could rip a hole in the space-time continuum with a single thought and headed for the map room to get the game all set up.

Early that same day, Spike was walking back to the old castle to start his training in earnest. Spike was again accompanied by his mother, Celestia, but this time they were joined by his aunt Luna.

Spike then walked over to a group of trees and used his claws to cut two of them down and proceeded to make twenty wooden targets out of them. Then he did the same using three large boulders easily weighing in at the fifteen-ton mark and out of the three boulders, Spike made eighteen stone targets.

Spike looked at his mother and aunt. "Mom, Aunt Luna, can you randomly place these targets around a two-mile radius from our location?" Asked Spike.

They both nodded and in an instant, all the targets were gone. "Thanks, now can you two use the same tracking spell to keep track of them?"

They both nodded again as a massive array of 39 screens appeared in front of them, 38 on the targets and one on Spike. "There you go, nephew, I am most excited to see what you consider to be training after hearing about it from our sister."

"Well technically this is more of a warm-up just so I don't lose my edge, I consider it really training when I am getting attacked by something or someone, but I'm still trying to get used to the area so I think it works out to be the same." Spike then began the process of preparing.

Spike pulled out the Zappfly and Bolamite tubes and releasing the entirety of the two swarms, as both Sparks and Char took their positions. "Ok guys hear the deal, we have 38 targets, 20 wood, eighteen stone. Same instructions as before, but we have a range of two miles so I want double squads this time, you have twenty minutes to report back." Informed Spike. Both Char and Sparks nodded, as both mobilized their respected groups.

Spike then equipped Queen and Fang and gave them the low down. "We have 20 targets today, range two miles, ten for each of you, report to the rest." Said Spike in a commanding tone. Spike then equipped Wallop and Banger and gave them their orders, "You two, we have 18 targets for you, nine for each, and were in a two-mile range, report back and get ready." They both nodded and Spike pulled out Belch and Alvin.

"AWWW, we've been captured by a giant piece of purple shit, whatever are we going to do?" commented Alvin.

"Well if you don't want to be a Timberwolves new chew toy, I would listen up." Said Spike as he laughed. "Same as last time but we have two miles and a lot more of the family out there, so today I'm going to place you as sentries as I go around, Alvin your job is to gather and guide everyone, Belch I want each of you to be paired up with a Punkz and protect the spent. There is a real possibility of danger so I need you two to give it your all."

Belch nodded rapidly showing he was ready to give it his all to protect his family. "Don't worry sir, I won't let anything happen to them, and if it does I don't even deserve to be a chew toy for some stick puppy."

Spike smiled and unequipped the two. Spike then looked at the screens his mother and aunt had projected and noticed that twenty-seven of the 38 targets were marked.

In the next few minutes, all of the targets were marked. Then after a few more minutes all of the Bolamites and Zappflys returned.

Spike then looked at his mother and aunt. "Mom, just for reference my best time with 35 plus targets in two miles is about 34 minutes and 57 seconds, but I placed the targets, so let's aim for around 50 minutes."

Celestia nodded. "That sounds like a fair comparison, do you want the count down?" asked Celestia.

Spike nodded as he got in a ready position. "3....2....1....0" counted Celestia, and when she reached 0, Spike started to run, and when he reached his top speed, he dropped to all fours and continued to speed up.

Spike returned to his mother and aunt, the latter of which was shocked to see Spike during his training. "So how did I do?" Asked Spike who was not even out of breath.

"You took out all of the targets in 42 minutes and 33 seconds, and that's including the fight you had with that pride of manticores after you hit the 15th target."

"Not bad, but I could have ended that fight a lot quicker, but I was just having too much fun." Commented Spike who was chuckling.

Celestia just sighed and closed her sister's mouth. "If I ever meet this 'Stranger' character, I am going to give him a piece of my mind," muttered Celestia. She then noticed that Spike was about to unleash another whistle, but she quickly gave her reckless dragon of a son a swift slap to the back of the head as she glared at him.

"WHAT!!?"

"You were about to whistle again weren't you?"

"I still haven't had time to think of a good way on calling them, but I think I have a solution for that, I still need to inform everyone, but for now this is all I got."

Celestia sighed and used her magic to retrieve two scrolls, an ink well, and a quill. She then wrote down two notes and used her magic to send one of them to the royal guards in Cantorlot, and tossed the other one to Spike. "This one is Twilights, send it to her." Ordered Celestia.

Spike grabbed the scroll and used his fire breath to send it to Twilight. It was a few minutes later when Spike burped up a reply. Spike grabbed the scroll and read it.

"Celestia dammit Spike, this is your last freebie, find out a better way or I swear you will get the lecture to end all lectures."

Spike sighed and looked at his mother and aunt. "You might want to cover your ears."

After Spikes whistle, he gathered all of the 'spent', the family walked back to the castle and had lunch at the base camp. After lunch was finished Spike began his other set of training exercises.

The family was standing outside of the castle when Spike equipped Queen. "Queen it's time for some Sniper training, get the wasps ready to go." Said Spike. Queen buzzed a few times and nodded.

Spike repeated his process of making wooden targets. once he was finished making his seven targets, Spike looked at his mother. "Mom it's time for my other set of training, so can you teleport the targets somewhere I have a direct line of sight?" Asked Spike.

Celestia nodded and did what was asked of her, but when she finished she gave spike a questioning look. "So what kind of training are you doing now?"

"Sniper training," Spike said Simply but decided to elaborate when he saw the confused expression on his mother and aunt's face. "It works like this, You have the Stingbee queen, then are her personal soldiers, then you have the common worker bee." Spike made his point as he pulled out Queen, then one of her workers, and showed them to his mother and aunt. " The queen has a powerful sting in her own right, and the workers are many in numbers but are far weaker than her, but it's the Queen's soldiers who are the most deadly. They are called Sniper Wasps, but it's just a name, they are in fact a still a Stingbee." Said Spike as he reached under his crossbow strap and pulled out a small dark green and dark yellow insect with a large pair of red eyes and a massive long red stinger. The Sniper Wasp was very unhappy at the sight of Spike as it was buzzing very rapidly.

Spike sighed. "It's good to see you to Blink."

Blink continued to buzz angrily at Spike, but he just ignored the buzzing and continued to explain to his mother and aunt. "As you can see, Sniper Wasp are smaller in almost every way when compared to the workers, aside from their massive red stinger. Their size is to allow them to reach very high speed and their stinger can pierce even the thickest armor. This makes them ideal for long-range attacks." Spike then grabbed Blink by his body and inserted him into the area between the two chambers on his crossbow. Spike then reached over his shoulder and opened his backpack, pulled out a pair of binoculars, and located the first of the targets. "Blink, 260 meters, the angle is 60 degrees, wind speed is less than one mile per hour WNW, the target is wood, probability of passing through is 70%, you ready?" Asked Spike.

Blink buzzed a little.

"Yeah, fuck you too." Said Spike as he launched Blink and in an instant, Blink was embedded in the wooden target. Spike smirked. "Target down." he then pulled out another Wasp and located the next target. "Range 140 meters, the angle is 48 degrees, the target is partially obscured." The wind then picked up. "Wind is now, 5 miles per hour WNW." Spike adjusted his positioning to compensate for the wind change and when he was ready fired the wasp. Again Spike smirked. "Target down."

This process continued for the next seven minutes and Spike was nailing each target with pinpoint accuracy. Celestia and Luna were both shocked at the display, Celestia was shocked that Spike was able to read the environment and compensated for every condition. But Luna was shocked at the deadliness of both her nephew and his arsenal and how well they work together.

Spike then reequipped Queen. "All targets down, get the retrieval squad and bring them home," ordered Spike as he pulled out the Stingbee ammo tube and pressed the button on the tube. The whole hive was released, they quickly scattered around and collected the Sniper Wasps, then returned to the ammo tube. Queen and Blink landed on Spike. Queen buzzed first. "Thanks, Queen, the wasps are as good as ever." Blink then started to buzz angrily. "Yeah, yeah, yeah." Said Spike waving his hand dismissively. "You are still an ass, but you did great, were done training for the day so you can either fly back to the castle on your own, or you can wait for me to get back." Said Spike, Queen buzzed and stayed with Spike, but Blink buzzed and flew off at high speeds for the castle.

Spike sighed and looked at his mother and aunt. "Well, I'm done training for the day, so let's head back to the castle then I will release the Family for the day and then we can head back to Twi's, I need to prepare for tonight." Said Spike, but then he became saddened.

Celestia and Luna noticed the change in Spike's mood. "Spike, what is wrong?" Asked Luna.

"Nothing much, just wondering how much it would hurt to drive a knife into my heart, not literally, of course, just trying to prepare myself for when I have to give Discord my nacho recipe."

Both rulers just sighed.

Game Night pt.1

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Spike walked into the map room, the location where Spike, Discord, and Big Mac would always play O&O. When he looked around the large room he noticed that there were now in total 12 full-size thrones around the map. Spike walked over to a single throne that was next to Twilights, he looked at the once pint-sized throne that was once his and was amazed to see that it was now the same size as the rest of the girls. Spike would never admit it, but the fact that the castle was kind enough to give him a seat in the first place was great but when he found out that it was not even half the size of the rest of them, it kinda irked him on the inside, but seeing it now, the same size of the rest assuaged this old feeling.

Spike's musings were forgotten when he heard the sound of the massive crystal doors opening to the map room and eight female voices were talking with each other. Spike looked over and saw that Rarity, Applejack, Fluttershy, Starlight, Celestia, Luna, Pinky Pie, and Rainbow Dash were the ones who entered, and behind them was a very large and muscular red stallion.

Spike smiled at the sight of his old friend. "Mac good to see you could make it. I was worried about the whole married thing you wouldn't be able to come."

"Nope. Told Sugar that this was something we used to do before you disappeared and before we got married. But now that your back we were going to start it back up again. Also when I told Granny that you were back she said and I quote 'If that no good dragon doesn't come down to the farm and see me, I will march down to the castle and bend him over my leg and show him what's for, I may be in my golden years but I'm still young enough to get my point across.' and I don't doubt she means every word." Said Mac, Spike chuckled. "So could you come over tomorrow? Maybe help around the farm and show off some of those fancy critters you brought home with you, Bloom hasn't stopped talking about this thing she calls a Zappfly all day." Asked Mac.

Spike smiled as he nodded. "I was going to ask if I could help around the farm tonight after we finished, but you beat me to the punch. I would be happy to, but I need to ask for two things."

"What are ya needing?"

"I haven't had an apple pie in ten years, so if you can get me a pie I will be there the moment it comes out of the oven. The second thing I need is a good drink of apple cider, again for the same reason, I know it won't be as strong as what I'm used to, but the stuff back on Modus tasted like swamp water from Froggy Bottom Bog and I have been dying to have a decent tasting drink again."

"No problem, I'll get Granny to have a pie ready for ya in the morning and I'll haul up a barrel from the cellar as well, but I still want to see them critters as well." Said Mac.

"Do you want to see the whole 'Family' or just the eight leaders?" Asked Spike.

"Well, we Apples are big into the idea of Family so bring the whole lot of them."

Spike shrugged. "Well, it's your funeral, and maybe Granny Smiths too." Spike then looked at AJ and added. "Please make sure they don't pass out and or have a heart attack. I don't want to have your grandma haunting me for the rest of my life, dragons live for a hell of a long time." Spike joked.

Everyone laughed. "I will make sure, plus I don't think she will go without seeing her great-grandkids first." Added AJ.

Just then Discord and Twilight walked into the room and they were not looking at each other.

Spike walked over to Discord. "Hey discord, how have you been?"

Discord looked over at Spike and smiled. "I have been good, that was until I arrived at the castle, then I get into an argument with the so-called princess of Friendship which was not fun, but I fought through the pain, and I'm ready for the best game night we will ever have." Said Discord. Spike nodded as he reached out his hand, revealing a rolled-up scroll. Discord gasped, "Is that?" Spike nodded. Discord smiled a wide smile as his eyes became star's, he grabbed the scroll and magically teleported it to his home. Discord then snapped his fingers and everyone was teleported into a seat around the map table.

Discord then appeared in front of them dressed as Fonzie as he elbowed the top of the map table making a panel pop up. "AYYY." Said Discord giving everyone a double thumbs up.

His act was not well received, going off of all the deadpan looks he was getting.

Spike sighed. "That joke is so played out." Said Spike, as Pinky nodded.

Discord just huffed in annoyance and changed into an electrician as he started to mess with wires in the map table. "So we have Skyrim." Said Discord as the map changed to show the world map of Skyrim. "No, how about this." Said Discord as he pulled a blue wire. "Now we have the island of Medici, wrong again." Said Discord as on the map there was a group of large explosions popping up. Then the map changed to the intro of the My Little Pony show. Discord saw this and quickly changed the signal, "Nope, nope, nope, no way in hell, I may be the god of chaos but I'm not evil. How about this?" Said Discord as he pulled out a large ball of wires. The map then changed into a fantasy world, with dark forests, barren deserts, deep oceans, active volcanos, and high mountains. "There we go, I knew I would get it sooner or later. Welcome to the world of the Forgotten Continent." Said Discord with some enthusiasm.

Everyone was in awe of the display in front of them. "This will be the world we must traverse to defeat Sekto, who has imprisoned the one true ruler of the lands." Discord then looked at everyone and added. "We will be transported into this world of my design, and the game will not end until we finish." Said Discord as he smirked.

"I have a question- No questions, Great." Said Twilight before she was interrupted by Discord. Discord then used his magic and the group was teleported into the game.

Spike was awoken by the feeling of a finger poking him on the forehead. "I'm up, I'm up." Said Spike looking around at his surroundings. Spike was laying down on a mat next to a smoldering campfire. Spike looked up to see Discord looking at him with a slightly annoyed look on his face. Spike pulled himself off of his mat and looked at his companion, Discord was dressed in a light green tunic with a pair of light armor leather boots, and a dark yellow cape held tied together with a gold leaf pendant. He has a bow in his hand, a quiver on his back, and ahead of long wavy blond hair. "Discord why do you look like Captain Wuzz?" Asked Spike.

"Because Spike, I have teleported us into the game. I am now Captain Wuzz the archer, and if you would look over there you will see the other member of our merry band of adventurers." Said Wuzz as he pointed to a large mass of a stallion dressed in head to hoof in black heavy armor, with a helmet adorned in two curved horns and a large red horn pointing forwards, and on his back sat a massive great sword.

"McBiggun?"

"Yep. Now that your awake Sentinel Flame, we can continue on our way, We are almost out of the Nattered Forest and the next town is only a half a day's walk from here." Said McBiggun.

"Sentinel Flame?" Questioned Spike. He then looked down and noticed that he was still a dragon, but he was dressed in a pair of cloth light armor with his normal boots, and on his chest was a heavy armor chest plate, underneath the chest plate was a green shirt. On Spike's arm was his normal crossbow, and on his back was his backpack. Spike then looked into the bag and was greeted by his ammo with his hat on top of his head.

Spike then looked at his companions and gave them a questioning look, "What happened to Garbunkel?"

Wuzz and Biggun looked saddened at the mention of their old friend. " During our last adventure, Garbunkel sacrificed himself to the Squizzard to give us a clear shot to save the princess, but after his death, the two of us traveled across the seas and landed here on the Forgotten Continent, where we caught word of a tyrannical ruler imprisoning the rightful ruler of the lands, the High elf Queen Solariea. And on our way to the give our support to the rebellion we crossed paths with a group of dragons, who refused to join in the rebellion, that was aside from the legendary dragon bounty hunter Sentinel Flame and his hoard of creatures he uses." Said Wuzz as he Informed Spike.

"So we are on our way to join the rebellion and save the Queen, and as last night was drawing in we decided to make camp in the forest." assumed Flame.

Wuzz smiled at seeing Flame get into character. "That's right, we should be able to reach the town of Ravengrove by midday, there we can stock up on supplies and possibly find information on the rebellions HQ." Added Wuzz. "Now get packed up we need to leave soon."

Flame quickly packed his supplies into his bag and the group started on their way out of the forest.

Flame, Wuzz, and McBiggun walked out of the Nattered Forest and found a path surrounded by open fields that would lead them to Ravengrove.

After walking down the path to Ravengrove, the group of adventures arrived at the southern gate of the town but were stopped when they heard someone yelling at them. "Halt, state your business!" ordered the guard who moved his spear to in front of the group, blocking their path.

"We are humble adventurers, we ask for entrances to Ravengrove, for supplies and a place to rest." Responded Wuzz.

"Very well." said the guard, moving his spear out of the way. "Please refrain from causing trouble."

The trio walked past the guard and stopped right by the inside of the gate to devise a plan for their time in the town. "So now that we have reached Ravengrove, I think it would be best to split up and gather everything we need." Said Flame as he looked at McBiggun. "McBiggun, you are the strongest of all of us, so you head to the shops and procure some supplies, we need to get Wuzz some more arrows, some potions would be great, and let's get some food, we don't know how long it will take to get to the next town." McBiggun nodded, as Wuzz reached for a small bag filled with the currency of this world, dark coins called River Marks tied to his belt, and handed it to McBiggun. Flame then looked at the archer of the group, "Wuzz you walk around town and gather as much information as you can, we're in an unknown place, so information is vital." Wuzz nodded. "I will head to the town's inn, get us a room for the night, and once I finish there I will head to the town's adventurers guild hall to see if I can recruit some adventurers who are willing to join us."

With the plan devised the trio separated and went on to complete their task.

Flame was walking down the main streets of Ravengrove looking for the town's inn, that was until he spotted a sign hanging off a building. Flame walked closer and looked at the sign, it was designed to look like a tree blowing in the wind as the name of the inn was below. "The Wandering Tree Inn?" Questioned Flame. Shrugging Flame walked into the inn and was immediately greeted by the innkeeper. The innkeeper was an older pony with a head of silver hair and a well-groomed mustache the same color, he was dressed in a white shirt and an apron, as he was standing behind the counter of the inn. "Well hello stranger, my name is Burnt Oak, what brings you to Ravengrove?"

"Hello, my name is Sentinel Flame, and I'm looking for a place for me and my two companions to stay for the night. Do you have any rooms left?"

"You're in luck sir, we have one room left, the rest of the inn was bought out by a group of seven 'colorful' adventurers. The room is yours for twenty marks and meals will be another two marks each."

"I'll take it, plus we will need six meals, three for dinner and three for breakfast." Said Flame as he pulled out a smaller sack of the currency and hands them to the innkeeper.

Burnt Oak handed Flame the key. "Your room is on the second floor last door on the right."

"Thanks." Said Flame as he walked up the stairs and headed to the room. But as Flame was walking to his room he walked past a room where he could hear a small portion of a conversation the other occupants of the inn were having.

"...Keep reading the book Twi, we need to know all we can about this world." Said a voice.

"Twi?" Questioned Flame.

"I know Rainbow, I'm trying but this doesn't tell me what we need to do?"

"Does it say anything about what we are?"

"Sorry Rarity, but I have no idea, it doesn't help that we all lost our wings and horns."

Flame was now sure that this was where the girls have been, so he decided to knock. The knocking abruptly interrupted the conversation and the room fell silent. "Who is it?" Asked a voice that sounded very quiet.

"Depends, is that you Fluttershy?" Responded Flame.

"SPIKE?" Yelled Fluttershy in surprise, as she scrambled to the door. Fluttershy opened the door and was shocked to see Sentinel Flame standing there. "Spike it is you. Thank goodness we were so worried about you, Discord, and Big Mac."Said Fluttershy as she hugged Flame.

For the first time Flame was able to see Fluttershy since they were transported to this world. She was changed into a Faun as she was a bipedal creature that has goat legs instead of pony legs, she was dressed in a dress made out of leaves. Flame then looked past Fluttershy and looked at the rest of the girls in the room.

Rarity was missing her horn but she was now sporting a pair of fangs, her ears were pointed and she has a pair of demon-like wings, plus she had a thin tail with a heart shaped spade at the end, and to top it all off she was wearing a pair of dark leggings and a pair of shoulder-length gloves. She was a succubus.

Flame then looked at Pinky Pie who was laying on the bed, nothing new there, but what was odd was she was coiled up, again nothing out of the ordinary for Pinky, but then Flame looked at the lower half of Pinkies body and noticed that instead of her normal legs, she had a snake-like body the same pink color as her hair, and instead of her normally blue eyes, her eyes were slits now. Altogether, it was obvious that she was a Naga.

Next to Pinky was a dark-colored pony, with her hair being short and shaggy with the colors of a rainbow that had its colors darkened a little, her eyes were glowing a yellowish glow, and she was dressed in all light armor, with a hood and mask the same dark color as her fur, but her ears were the same pointed shape. Rainbow was a Dark elf.

Applejack was standing by Rainbow, but she was dressed in a long flowing gown made of vines, her hair was taken out of its normal ponytail, it was now braided, and her limbs looked like bark, but she still had her hat on her head.

And at the table of the room were two figures. One was dressed in very ornate robes, the color of her fur, with stars embroidered on the robe, her hair was still the same style, but her eyes were now longer and more pointed, next to her was a wooden staff with a blue glowing jewel at its apex. She was holding a book. Flame figured it was Twilight.

Next to Twilight, was another figure with purple hair with an aquamarine stripe, her ears were less pointed and she was wearing a simple blue robe, and in her hands was a wand. This was Starlight.

"Hi girls, so how have you been?" Said Flame.

"Aside from getting transported into a world we know nothing about, having new bodies, and not knowing where to find you, Discord, or Big Mac, we have been well." Responded Starlight. "But we have some questions that we are hoping you can answer."

"Let me guess, your wondering where you are, what you are, and what is going on?"

"Yes."

"Well, let's start with what everyone is." Flame began. "Fluttershy is what is known as a Faun, they are very connected with nature and animals. You are a Half-Elf, you have the ability to cast magic and have some magical resistance, and going off of what your wearing, you have some training in the magical arts. Pinky is a Naga, Snake like creatures with the lower parts of a snake and the upper portion of a pony, they are very resistant to poisons and other effects but not much in the way of magic. Twilight looks to be a high elf, They have a strong affinity to everything magical, plus that staff looks pretty powerful. AJ is called a Dryad, they are considered to have the strongest connection with trees, and can control plants with some training, some can make an entire forest appear, or they can bring trees to life to defend them. Rainbow Dash is most likely a dark elf, they are super stealthy in the dark and are unmatched in speed and agility, but they are not the strongest when it comes to damage, plus the way she's dressed tells me that she is either an assassin or a rogue. Rarity is without a doubt a Succubus. A class of demons, that can seduce stallions and mares with ease, they can fly, very resistant to most forms of magic, light, and fire, being the exceptions, but they can cast some magic, but mostly charm spells and illusion magic. I am still a dragon, but my subclass is bounty hunter, so in addition to natural immunity to fire, I can use my surroundings to my advantage, Mac is a unicorn knight, and Discord is an elf archer."

"As for where we are. We are in a town called Ravengrove, more specifically we are in the town's inn a place called 'The Wandering Tree', where it looks like Discord has pre-payed for your group to stay. The currency of this world appears to be these small coins called River Marks." Added Flame, "Our goal is to join the rebellion and rescue the imprisoned Queen Solariea from the tyrannical ruler Sekto. Aside from all of that I have no clue. So what do you all know?"

"Well when we woke up this morning, we all felt like we had some ability's but we have no idea what to do to use them." Said Starlight. "Take me for example, when I woke up I felt like I could still do magic but I didn't have a horn, and when I thought about it the words Inceneom popped into my head. Plus when we all woke up we found that we all had a bag next to us on the ground, that's where I found this robe and wand."

"I found this set of armor and a small knife." Said Dash showing Flame her knife and armor.

"I found my hat and a few seeds." Added AJ who took off her hat and pulled out a small pouch of seeds.

"I got these gloves and leggings." Said Rarity showing her items

"I got this cute hat, and a lute." Said Pinky who pulled a lute and a bards hat out of her mane

"I found this book, staff, and robe." Said Twilight showing her robe, staff, and book.

"But when I looked in my bag, all that was inside was this dress." Said Fluttershy showing her dress. "I'm not in trouble am I?"

"No, you're fine Shy, Fauns are meant to deal with animals so it would be weird if you woke up with a sword in your bag wouldn't it?"

Shy nodded.

"Anything else?"

"Yeah, every time we say our names we get a weird feeling in the back of our heads saying that isn't our names. Any ideas?"

"Yeah, this is a game, where you take on the identity of someone else so when you use your real name it will feel weird. What is the name your mind is telling you?"

"Mine said Magic Circles" Said Twilight.

"Confetti" Responded Pinkie.

"Serrata," Said AJ.

"Silent Shadow" Answered Rainbow.

"Celestial Gem" Replied Rarity.

"Ivy Breeze" Spoke Fluttershy.

"Incantation" Added Starlight.

"And Discord called me Sentinel Flame, while he is Captain Wuzz and Mac is Sir McBiggin."

"Speaking of those two, where are they?" Asked Magic.

"They are out in the town gathering supplies and information, I was in charge of finding the inn, and then I was going to the local guildhall to see if I could find anyone willing to join us in our goal of joining the rebellion. I wasn't expecting to find you all in the same inn, but still, we should go into town and head to the guildhall and see if anyone else will be willing to join our party."

"Agreed, the faster we can defeat this Sekto fella the faster we can get home." Said AJ.

"Agreed."

Spike and the girls were walking down the stairs of the inn when they heard the sounds of Burnt Oak talking with someone else. "...I'm looking for a dragon named Sentinel Flame, you see him?"

"Sorry sir, I'm not at liberty to disclose the identity of my patrons, now if you can't prove to me that you have some relation with this alleged dragon, I will ask you to leave." Said Burnt Oak.

"But I'm in his party and this is the only inn on this side of town. Look I will step outside and let you get along doing whatever you were doing, but if Sentinel Flame is here, tell him Wuzz is waiting outside for him." Said Wuzz as he walked to the door to the inn.

"Mr. Oak, he tells the truth, Captain Wuzz is in my party, please forgive my forgetfulness in informing you of the identity of my fellow companions." Said Flame interrupting the annoyed and miffed elf archer from walking out the door.

"It is fine Master Flame, it is partially on me as well, I should have asked for the identity of your companions when you reserved the room. But let's not get bogged down in apologizing, I have been very unwary for the past fortnight due to the oppressive rule of Sekto. When Queen Solariea was in power, the land was peaceful, with traders, adventurers, and nobles traveling the lands, back then marks were plentiful, drink flowed at all hours of the night, and my inn would be full. But now that Sekto is in power, trade has been ground to a halt, bandits are prowling the roads, and now I'm lucky if someone comes into my inn. We're just lucky that we have our local regimen of guards protecting the town from Sekto's sphere of power and corruption, but I fear that even they would have failed long ago if it wasn't for the never-ending efforts of the lord of the land, Lord Fancy Pants, but don't let his name dissuade you, he is a kind and caring stallion who will die with his troops. In fact, in addition to being the lord of this town, he is also the leader of the local guards." Said Burnt Oak.

"That's good to know." Said a voice belonging to McBiggin, as the red unicorn knight walked into the inn and greeted his companions. "Good to see you Wuzz, Flame. I have both good and bad news. What would you rather hear first?"

"Life tends to screw with me so let's go with the bad news first." Said Flame sighing.

"A large force of armor-clad soldiers have appeared on the horizon, they look like they are preparing for an attack on Ravengrove."

"Well, that fucking sucks."

"Spike, language!" Yelled Twilight, who was breaking character.

"Stuff it, I am the ruff and gruff, Sentinel Flame, it is in my character to curse a lot. "Retorted Flame, who was still in character.

"Fine, But if I hear you use that kind of language again I will ground your ass so long, you won't see the sun for the next decade."

"Sure, whatever." Flame then returned his attention to McBiggin. "What's the good news?"

"Well, I was able to get all of the supplies we needed for the trip, I have fifty arrows for Wuzz." Said McBiggin handing the quiver to the archer in the group, "... I found a half a dozen healing potions and eight defense potions" McBiggin pulled them out to show, "...And on a whim, I decided to buy you a set of binoculars." Said McBiggin, pulling out a pair of binoculars and handing them to Flame. "And lastly I was able to buy us a week's worth of food, so we should be able to make it to the next town."

"Ok, so we need to first deal with this army near the town and then we can get a move on. Also, I have some news that could be helpful to us."

"Does it have to deal with the seven mares behind you?"

"It does. Guys, I found the girls, but they have changed a lot, Twilight is now a high elf called Magic Circle, Rarity is a succubus named Celestial Gem, Flutters is a faun called Ivy Breeze, AJ is now a Dryad called Serrata, RD is a dark elf named Silent Shadow, Pinky is a naga called Confetti, and Starlight is now a half-elf called Incantation."

"Hi." greeted the girls.

"But like I said, life has a way of fucking with me, the girls have no idea how to use any of their skills..." Flame was interrupted in his rant by the sound of a war horn blaring through the town. The sound startled everyone in the inn and had the added effect of scaring Burnt Oak.

Flame looked at Burnt Oak shaking and sighed. "Do I want to know?"

"That is the sound of Sektos hoard preparing to attack."

Flame sighed. "Fuck you fate, you whore." Flame then looked at his party and started to give orders. " Magic, Incantation, and Wuzz head to the town gates and join the guards on the walls, your our long-range forces, pick off as many as you can. McBiggin, Shadow, you 2 will be the vanguard, you all will join the defense effort and protect the town from the attacking army. Shadow you need to use your natural abilities to slash and run, you may be strong, but you're not going to be able to stop a sword or a group of enemies if you're stuck in one place. McBiggin, you will be our tank, with your armor and natural strength you can fight off at least a group of four. That leaves Confetti, Ivy, Gem, and Serrata. You four will protect the town's civilians. Serrata you're inexperienced with growing trees on your own so use the trees in the town to your advantage, block paths, trip them with roots, and if you can, summon a tree golem to attack them. Ivy, your job is to rally all the animals in the town, dogs can attack, cats can scout, cows and bulls can stampede, you get the basic idea. Gem, you will be in charge of distracting the enemies that are looking for stragglers in the town, if you concentrate you should be able to hypnotize and get past them, or if you can, use some magic attacks, and if you're in real trouble use your wings and retreat. And Confetti, your most likely a bard, so your job is keeping morale high, so you will join the civilians, sing songs, keep smiling, do what you do best."

"What are you going to do?" Asked Magic.

"'We' are going to do what 'we' do best," said Flame, confusing the others, but slowly all eight of the leaders popped out of Flames's bag showing that they were here to help as well. "Now move out."

Magic, Incantation, Wuzz, Shadow, and McBiggin walked to the town's main gates. The guards were ready for the attack as their commander was trying his best to calm his men. "You were trained for this, we must protect this town, our family's, our friends, our lovers, and our children are depending on us to keep them safe. We were trained to be the best, we are the best, and we will show Sekto and his men that we are planning on keeping that title." Yelled the guard commander Fancy Pants.

The group walked over to the commander and introduced themselves. "Hello, you must be Fancy Pants."

"Yes, and how may I help you?" Fancy Pants was a taller pony with an azure mane, white fur, and a small but sophisticated mustache, he was dressed in a full set of golden armor with an emblem of three crowns on the chest plate, and on his hip was an ornate rapier in its sheath.

"No, we have come to help you, and your men. My name is Magic Circle, this is Incantation, Captain Wuzz, Silent Shadow, and Sir McBiggin, we have come to aid you and your men in this fight. Myself, Incantation, and Wuzz can bolster your long-range attack with our magic and Wuzz's skills with a bow. As for Shadow, she is the fastest fighter you will ever see, so she can quickly attack their forces and cause panic among their ranks. And McBiggin is just as strong as the walls around the town, so he can join your guards holding the line."

"That would be a great help to me and my town, but five more souls can not stop an army of thousands."

"I never said that we were only five, we also have a group of four in the town acting as our last line, we have a Naga named Confetti, a Dryad named Serrata, a Succubus names Celestial Gem, and a Faun named Ivy Breeze, who will use the town its self as a weapon. Serrata will use the trees in town, Gem will use her abilities and the town's alleyways to take down search parties, Ivy can communicate with the animals in town to attack, scout, and stampede, and Confetti will stay with the civilians in the town and keep their morale up."

"But still, we only have a force of 400 or so, and from our scouting reports, they have a legion of 1500 souls. All we have are some spears, some swords, and only about 50 archers. They have armor, supplies, and god forbid support. We are going to be in for the fight of our lives."

"We shouldn't have to worry about most of them. Our leader should be able to cut that number down to half before the first body reaches the gates." Said Wuzz.

"That's impossible. Just who is your leader?" Asked Fancy Pants, flabbergasted at the impossibility of the group's leader.

"A loveable knucklehead with a crossbow and a heart of gold. He is a legend among his people, and his legend has even spread across the land, he is feared by many, and revered by more. His name is Sentinel Flame." Said Magic, who was confused about why she said that.

"Sentinel...Flame." Stammered Fancy Pants in shock. "The dragon, Sentinel Flame, is here? Where? I need to thank him."

"Thank him for what?" Asked Incantation.

"A few years ago, my wife Fleur de Lis and her village were attacked by a large group of bandits, I was sent to the village by order of the Queen to reclaim it for the villagers, but when we arrived we found the bandits all tied up unconscious. When we started to ask who saved the town, they all talked about a dragon who was staying in the village for the week gathering information. And during the attack, my wife was captured by the bandits, and I do not want to think about what they were planning on doing to her, but before they could do anything to her, she was saved by Sentinel Flame. But by the time I and my squad arrived he was gone. I have been forever grateful to him since that day, and I would like to thank him personally."

"We can discuss a meeting later, but first we need to deal with the army outside the gates." Said Magic.

"Agreed, please take your positions, and get ready for their attack."

"...Please head to the center of town, we will protect you from there." Yelled Serrata, directing the town's ponies to the center of town. "Their army could attack at any moment, you need to hurry." Serrata continued to yell.

Serrata was about to yell again but she was interrupted by the sound of the war horn blaring again.

Sentinel Flame was hidden in a tree near the enemy camp, as he equipped his Fuzzles and Zappflys and began to shoot the fuzzles in groups of three on the ground to act as traps for the soldiers. When he was finished he was able to lay down twenty traps. Flame then replaced his Fuzzles with his Boombats.

The sound of the war horn sounded, the army began to get into formation and were about to mobilize. Flame looked at Sparks ready and waiting on his wrist. "Ok, it looks like they are wearing some strong metal armor, so we need some big shocks, can you do that?" Sparks nodded, Flame then looked at Banger who was awake and ready to blast. "And Banger we need you guys to bring the boom, so don't hold back." Banger squeaked.

The sound of the war horn sounded again and the army began to move towards the town. The army began to move closer to the traps Flame had laid, but unlike Fang who was very overprotective and normal wild Fuzzles, Flames Fuzzles have been trained to suppress their instincts for a time, but even they have their limits, as the sounds of screaming were heard in multiple locations in the army's ranks, followed by the sound of metal armor breaking along with bones snapping. Fuzzles have only so much stamina so after 60 of the enemy were dead.

Sparks was fully charged and Flame could see the small arks of electricity surrounding the Zappfly. Flame aimed down the bow, straight for a company of troops, and launched Sparks. Flame's aim was dead on, Sparks flew through the air and made contact with one of the soldiers. The moment Sparks made contact with the soldier's armor, the soldier began to scream as his nerves were fried. In less then a second the soldier fell dead, but this was what Flame was planning as the moment the soldier made contact with his other soldiers, the power of the Zappflys shock traveled to the next body, then to the next, and then another, until over 100 of the soldiers were lying face down on the ground dead, as their bodies were smoking.

Flame had to wait for the next Zappfly to charge fully, but that was why he got out Banger. Flame aimed for the middle of another company and launched the elderly Boombat.

The explosion that Banger released was so powerful that it produced a small mushroom cloud killing more than half of the company with just the force of the explosion and the resulting shock wave. The other half were killed by the shrapnel created by the blast.

The next Zappfly was now charged and copied Spark's attack, killing another company. Flame continued this pattern of attack two more times but was stopped when he was spotted and had to retreat from his perch.

To cover his escape Flame changed out his Zappflys for Belch and the rest of the Stunkz. Flame launched a volley of five Stunks into the middle of the army. Once the Stunkz and Belch landed they released their gas knocking out almost two whole companies of the soldiers, but the problem was that they weren't going to stay down, so Flame utilized his dragon fire and ignited the gas, this caused a massive explosion, killing the two knocked out companies and killing another from the intensity of the heat.

The confusion of the fire allowed for Flame to make it back to the town's walls, and using his claws, Flame climbed the wooden structure.

Once Flame was over the wall he made his way to regroup with the first line of the guard.

Fancy Pants was watching the attack Flame was conducting on the enemy forces from the rampart in awe.

Flame was running through the town, as he was running he saw a group of civilians making their way to the center of the town and being lead by Ivy. Flame stopped to get a status report. "Ivy, how is it going?" Asked Flame.

Ivy squeaked in fear but when she saw who it was that interrupted her she calmed down. "Flame it's just you, thank goodness. We have gathered around 80% of the town's ponies and we are still finding more, what were those explosions I heard earlier?"

"That was Banger and some of his cloud. Plus I used Sparks and the Zappflys to fry some also, from what I saw they had around 1500 soldiers in total, and I know I took down at least six companies of troops so we should only have 600 troops to deal with. I'm going to head to the main gate and meet up with the commander of the guards, take care of your self and be safe."

"I will don't worry."

"Coming from you, that's a laugh, Ivy, I will always worry about my friends." Said Flame very seriously.

Ivy looked into Flame's eyes and smiled at him. "I know. But I want you to be safe, we only just got you back Spike, we don't want to lose you again." Said Shy breaking character.

"I will, I'm not going anywhere anytime soon Shy." Responded Spike breaking character.

"Then you better hurry and help the rest of the party, Flame." Said Ivy chuckling.

"Will do Ivy." Said Flame as he ran off to the main gate.

Flame dropped to run on all fours and speed up. Flame soon arrived at the main gate and looked around at the guards. Flame walked up to the ramparts to offer his assistance in the fight. When Flame arrived at the top of the battlement he was instantly greeted by Fancy Pants. "That was amazing, you truly live up to the legends. My name is Fancy Pants, I am the lord of this land and I am forever in your debt."

"Debt? All I did was take out a couple of soldiers, it wasn't that impressive."

"Humble, a good quality of a hero, but I'm not talking about your efforts this day, I am talking about your efforts saving a village, and my wife from bandits years ago."

"Are you talking about the village of Millborn?" Asked Flame, Fancy nodded. "There was a large group of bandits terrorizing the village and they were part of a local gang whose leader was my target. When I arrived I started to gather some info from the villagers, but they didn't know much about the whole organization so I just stayed in the village for a while and waited for the next attack. I only had to wait about a week in total for them to arrive, and when they did, they fucked up real bad. Instead of just doing their normal 'Loot and Extort' plan on the village, they upped their game and started to capture mares for god knows what. I didn't care, it pissed me off. I stopped a small group from kidnapping a young filly, but I caught wind that they already captured a tall mare with a pink mane and they said 'she would be good to have around' and that was the last straw. I found their main party and after some creative methods of persuasion to make them spill the location on their boss, I freed the mare they captured, then I tied them up and left them for the royal guards to take care of." Said Flame, slightly confused on how he knew about all of that.

"Yes, I was part of the royal guard detachment sent to deal with the bandits, and when I was gathering information on the dragon who saved the town and its ponies, I met my wife for the first time, Fleur de Lis, she was the mare that you saved. Without you, I would have never found my one true love, so I swore to myself if I ever met you, I would pledge my loyalty to you." Said Fancy kneeling to Flame.

"Fancy Pants." Said Flame, Fancy looked up and noticed Flame holding out his hand. "Stand up, we are in the middle of a battle."

Fancy grabbed Flame's forearm and pulled himself up. "We are going to fight together, I don't want your loyalty, the idea of loyalty is not enough..." Fancy looked crestfallen at hearing this declaration, and Flame noticed this and chuckled. "All I want is your friendship, loyalty is an obligation you must honor and is most of the time one-sided, friendship is a promise to support each other, I protect you, and you do the same for me. We dragons have a word for this kind of bond, 'shield brother'. We protect each other from damage on and off the battlefield. This bond also requires those bound together to face all challenges like it was their last day of life. I live like that every day, will you show your honor as a stallion, and as my shield brother and join me in this fight?"

"God, Magic circle was right, you are a loveable idiot with a heart of gold. It would be an honor to join my brother in the field of battle." Said Fancy who started to shake Flame's hand.

"Well then brother, this is your town, these are your men, this place is your home, you are in charge, do you have a plan?"

"I do, since you easily decimated over half of their forces, we have a better chance at victory, but now they will be expecting our archers to attack from long range." Fancy then looked at the enemy forces. "They have their remaining unicorns projecting shields to protect from both magic and arrows, so our best hope is to fend them off out in the fields outside of the town. But we are only going to lure them into the town's streets, where I have stationed the majority of our forces, and once they reach the gates, I will call for a retreat leaving the main gate open and funneling them. Once they reach a certain point we will ambush them and finish off their forces."

"That sounds like a plan."

The sound of the war horn again blared and the remaining forces of the army began their approach on the town. "Archers prepare to fire." Ordered Fancy.

"Ready...Fire" yelled Fancy.

The archers on the battlements fired their arrows and as Fancy knew they did nothing but bounce off the magical shields. "Again!" Yelled Fancy. And the same thing happened. The army was near the gate. "Get ready to attack!" Yelled Fancy to his men.

When the army reached the gate, the guards retaliated in kind, but their forces were too strong, Sektos army killed five guards in a moment and more were getting injured. Fancy knew that there were going to be casualties and his men reassured him that they were going to fight until their last breaths, but it still doesn't lessen the guilt. But it wasn't time to cry over their sacrifice, it was time to honor their lives and make sure their loss was not in vain. "Retreat!" Ordered Fancy Pants.

All of the guards left their formations and made their way to the town's center to act as the final line of defense for the civilians. And As Fancy predicted the army entered the town and marched on the main street. But some of the troops diverted from the main forces and began to scout the town.

Flame and his party were retreating with Fancy and his men. Flame looked at Wuzz and Shadow. "Wuzz, Shadow, you two take care of the scouting parties."

"On it." Said Shadow as she separated from the group and climbed up a building, so she could ambush her targets.

"My arrows will win my battle." Said Wuzz as he left and headed to his targets.

"Magic, Incantation, you two will give support to me, McBiggin, Fancy, and his troops protect us from getting surrounded."

"Not a problem." Said the two magic users.

"McBiggin, you and I are joining Fancy and his men on the front lines, Fancy will give the signal to attack."

"Yep." McBiggin nodded.

The group continued to retreat from Sektos army as they ran down the town's main street. But before Fancy and his troops reached the center of town, Sektos army was in position for the attack. Fancy stopped and drew his sword and yelled, "NOW!".

Flame and McBiggin turned on a dime and both readied their weapons. Flame equipped Wallop and the thudslugs in the right chamber, and in the left was Queen and her hive. McBiggin hefted his greatsword and stood ready to fight. Out of the many alleyways that lead to the main street popped out multiple squads of guards ready for the fight.

Flame launched Wallop and he impacted the skull of one of Sekto's troops, killing him, Flame then fired a hundred Stingbees, the Stingbees penetrated the metal armor and stung their targets, killing twenty. Mcbiggin rushed the closest group of enemies and with all of his strength swung his sword and bisected five soldiers. Fancy was just as elegant as his choice of weapon and made quick work of three soldiers. The Guards used the element of surprise and killed the majority of the remaining soldiers.

The battle on the main street was won, but now there was another problem. A small group of soldiers separated from the main force during the retreat. They were heading for the town center.

Confetti was singing a song to the scared fillies and colts to distract them from the fighting. Ivy had found a flock of birds and talked them into singing for the elderly, and Serrata was talking to the local farmers and merchants about the trees, the land, and honesty (Because, Applejack).

Gem was using her illusion magic to infiltrate a small group of soldiers that had passed her hiding spot. "Sir." Asked Gem using her illusion magic to change her voice and appearance to one of the guards. "What are your orders?" Asked Gem, giving a salute.

"We are heading to the center of town, and when we reach it we will slaughter everyone we find. Even if we lose this battle, we will show this poor excuse of a town to not hinder lord Sektos rule."

Gem Saluted. "Understood." Responded Gem as she thought 'that is barbaric, I need to tell Ivy and Serrata'. Gem separated from the squad, ducked into an alley, and dropped her spell. Gem then used her wings and flew to the center of town to inform the girls.

Gem arrived at the town center and noticed that it was not a good location for an ambush with all of the civilians around the central stone water fountain, when Gem landed she caught the attention of all the girls. "Girls we have a problem, a squad of fifteen soldiers is heading this way right now to slaughter everyone here."

"That's horrible."

"Those meanies."

"Those no-good varmints."

"They're getting close and I don't think that Flame and the others will be able to make it in time, it's up to us, we need to hurry." Said Gem.

The girls nodded.

Ten minutes later. The squad of troops arrived at the town center, the commander gave an evil smirk as he made his way to the seemingly unprotected civilians. "Hello, ponies of Ravengrove, I am the commander of this small portion of lord Sekto's army, we have come to set an example for the other settlements now under the rule of Sekto, that retaliation will not be tolerated." Said the commander as he drew his sword, and was about to start the slaughter. But before he was able to swing his sword something made contact with his helmet. The commander looked back and his eyes widened in fear.

Before he stood a massive tree golem, its eyes glowed green with power and it did not look happy.

The commander then saw a figure standing next to the golem's leg. It looked like a pony with a hat, but her arms and legs were like tree trunks. The Commander then looked at his troops. "Kill them all, leave no civilian alive!" Ordered the commander.

"Sorry to rain on your parade varmint, but there are no ponies aside from you and your troops." Said Serrata sounding smug.

The Commander turned his head to look at the civilians, but when he looked all he saw was a very exhausting Gem panting as her hands glowed blue. "Sorry Sir, it looks like they have a powerful illusion spell caster in the group." Said Gem using her magic to change her voice back to the one she used when she talked to the commander before.

"But...But... But where are the civilians?"

"Our friendly neighborhood faun was able to keep track of your squad from the air with some help from her bird friends, as for where they are, they have scattered around in the buildings taking cover from you." Informed Serrata.

Confetti then popped up behind the commander and whispered into his ear, " I made a Confetti promise to all of the colts and fillies that we wouldn't let you and your troops even see a single hair on their manes. AND. I. DON'T. BREAK. A. CONFETTI. PROMIS." Said Confetti in a slow and ominous tone, scaring the commander to his core. Confetti then pulled out her party cannon from her mane (it's Pinky Pie don't question it) and aimed it right at the commander. "Now, let's see a smile," added Confetti in an innocent tone.

The commander smiled in fear, then he felt a massive force hit him and his armor, the force was strong enough to fling him away from his troops and when he landed he was knocked out. Confetti looked at the rest of the troops and smiled as she pointed to the still angry-looking golem, "Bye~" Said Confetti in a sing-song, as she dashed away.

Serrata chuckled at the looks of fear she was receiving from the soldiers, she then looked at her golem. "Go get them, Bloomberg."

The Golem rushed at the troops and began to swing its arm.

The rest of the battle was quick and very painful.

Flame and Fancy arrived at the town center after they heard the sound of screaming. They assumed that the screams were from the civilians and they feared the worst. But when they arrived, they saw a strange sight, Serrata was patting the back of a giant creature with green eyes, Ivy and Confetti were gathering the civilians and Gem were pacing around a group of bloody but groaning ponies and she was getting angry.

Flame and Fancy walked to the miffed Succubus. "Gem, what happened here, we heard screaming, are you all ok?" asked Flame.

Gem looked at Flame and Fancy approaching her. "Flame dear, we are fine, no one was hurt, well aside from these brutes." Said Gem showing the near unconscious soldiers. "But, we were able to capture them alive, and right now I am trying to use a charm spell to convince them to share their information, but it's not working." wined Gem.

Flame walked past Gem and looked at the commander. "Hello my name is Sentinel Flame, I am going to give you one more chance to talk to us, what do you say?" Asked Flame in a kind tone.

The commander laughed. "First you send that whore to get us to divulge our secrets, now their leader. It's sad to think that you think so little of us, we will gladly lay down our lives for lord Sekto." Said The commander, he then spat some blood into Flames face.

Flame sighed and wiped the blood off his face. "I'm sorry we couldn't agree." Said Flame who was looking pitifully at the commander. "Confetti can you come here?" Asked Flame.

Confetti popped up behind Flame. "You rang boss man?" asked Confetti.

Flame nodded. "Confetti, will you make me a promise?"

"What do you need?"

"I need you to get these ponies talking." Said Flame pointing to the tied up ponies.

"Not a problem boss man, cross my heart, hope to fly, stick a cupcake in my eye." Said Confetti doing the motions.

Confetti then looked at the group of tied up soldiers and grinned evilly at them. "Come on boys we are going to have a small chat." Said Confetti whose mane lost its natural puffiness and became straight.

The troops were now visibly scared as they began to beg for their lives. "Please I'll talk, Dear God doesn't let her near us, I want to live." was all they said as Streamer used her tail to drag them away.

Flame then looked at the gathering civilians, and then he looked at Fancy Pants. "Say something you're the hero of the day. Without you, we would have surely lost this fight." Said Fancy Pants.

Flame nodded and stepped up on to the fountain. "Ponies of Ravengrove, today will be a day that none of us will forget, many of our loved ones have given their lives for this town, there will be many days of sadness ahead, but let us not only grieve for the dead but also let us celebrate their memories and honor their lives. Live your lives every day as free ponies, it is normal to cry and mourn our losses but it is truly disrespectful to the fallen if you don't move on from this hardship, keep their memories alive, don't squander the life's they saved in pity, honor them by living long, happy, joyous life's, for today we showed Sekto that we will not stand still and let him control our lives, for today we are victorious." Said Flame.

The next few moments were dead silent, but slowly one by one the ponies clapped at the speech.

"Ponies of Ravengrove upon my honor as a dragon, I swear to you all that I will defeat Sekto and restore peace for this land, I give you all the name Sentinel Flame to use as you see fit. If I am unable to fulfill my promise, you can drag it through the mud, curse it till the day you die, swear vengeance upon it."

As Flame was speaking a tall mare was running through the crowd and approached the dragon on the fountain and the stallion next to him with tears in her eyes. When she made it to the front of the crowd she gasped. "Fancy! Thank goodness your safe." cried Fleur.

"Fleur?" yelled Fancy as he was tackled to the ground by his wife. "Fleur, Thank the gods your safe, I was so worried about you." Cried Fancy as he was holding his wife In his arms.

Flame stepped down from the fountain and walked past the loving couple having a moment. He walked to his gathered party members who were also crying at the speech their dragon gave to give hope to this town.

Flame met up with his party and noticed their crying faces. "Was it really that bad?" joked Flame.

"No you dummy, it was beautifully spoken. Spike, you have really grown up." Said Twilight crying.

Flame gave a sheepish chuckle and smiled. "I only said what felt natural."

Flame looked at the rest of his companions and noticed that Wuzz and Shadow had returned from their missions. "Wuzz, Shadow, how did it go?"

"Not too bad, my count was only seven."

"I had 12."

"Good job everyone, once the town is back in order let's head back to the inn and get some rest, we are heading to the next town in the morning."

The sound of someone clearing their throat was heard behind Flame. He turned around and saw Fancy looking at him with a disappointed look, next to him was his wife Fleur who was holding his arm in hers. "That will just not do." Said Fancy shaking his head. "I will not allow my shield brother and his companions to just up and leave without showing them a well earned thank you for risking their lives to save my town and my ponies that I swore to protect."

Fleur nodded in agreement, left her husband's side, and walked in front of the dragon. "Sentinel Flame?" asked the mare.

"Yes. And you must be Fleur, Fancy's wife. I'm glad to see that you are doing well after the events of Millborn. I have talked with Fancy Pants, and he has informed me it was you I saved during the bandit attack all those years ago. I'm happy to see that you were able to find happiness."

"Thank you Sir Flame, I owed you my life after that day and now my debt just keeps growing, If there is anything I can do to show my appreciation all you have to do is ask." Said Fleur bowing to the dragon.

Flame chuckled, much to the confusion and slight annoyance of the mare. "Sir Flame it is very rude to so easily dismiss the words of a mare."

Flame continued to chuckle but was able to respond. "Fleur, I'm sorry but I don't care, I know you feel like you owe me something, but I just did what was right that day and I didn't expect to get anything in return, and today is no different, I and my companions happened to arrive at Ravengrove just hours ago. During the battle, your husband and I forged a strong bond, and after the last foe was defeated that bond was hardened in their blood. Fancy is now my brother, and I am his. Dragons by nature are noble, heritage driven, and see familial ties as the foundation of our honor, and my dragon honor is driven by three rules, I will never steal, I will only kill when I need to, and I do not take advantage of others especially family, either by blood or by battle, and as of today I see you as my kin."

"But that doesn't change the debt I owe you for saving me at Millborn." Objected the mare.

"One other thing dragons are known for, not backing down, so I repeat I don't care about your so-called debt."

"And I don't care about your uncouth idea of dismissing a mare's heart filled words."

Flame sighed, but then he got an idea. "You know what, fine I have only one request."

Fleur smirked at her victory. "And what do you ask of me, I will do anything in my power."

Flame smirked back. "Fleur, I want you to drop this idea of owing me a debt."

"Of Course...Wait, what? No, I will not do that!"

"So you going back on your word? that is very un-ladylike." Flame looked to Gem. "Gem am I wrong or isn't a lady supposed to keep her word?"

Gem nodded.

Fleur sighed in defeat. " Fine, your wish is my command." Said Fleur.

"Good." Said Flame. "Now I know your husband disapproves of my decision on leaving in the morning, but our time is limited and Sekto's power grows by the day, today there were only about 1500 of his soldiers, but what about tomorrow, or next week, do you think that your town can withstand a force of 5000 or what about 10000, will you be ready to face them when they come again?"

Both Fleur and Fancy knew that the threat was all too real and as the town was now, it couldn't withstand another attack. "You are right, if this is your decision we have no right to argue with it. But at the very least let us accompany you to your place of rest for your time in Ravengrove." Said, Fancy.

"Thank you, brother." Said Flame.

Flame, Fleur, Fancy, and all the others walked back to the Wandering Tree, hoping to rest for the rest of the day and recuperate after the battle, but when they arrived at the inn that hope died. The inn was destroyed.

Flame walked up to the destroyed inn and found Burnt Oak sitting on the front steps of the building. Oak saw his patrons and he looked like he didn't have good news to tell them. "Master Flame, I have terrible news, as you can see, the inn was destroyed in the battle for the town, apparently one of Sekto's troops levitated a massive rock and tossed it at the building, then they used some sort of magic blast to put small holes in the framework." Both Flame and Serrata looked pale for a moment, the rock was from Bloomberg attacking the soldiers, and the holes were from Flames Stingbee attack, but not to worsen the situation they kept their mouths shut. "And due to the extent of the damage, I can not provide lodging for you and your party. I am truly sorry." Said Burnt Oak bowing his head.

"It is fine Oak, this was an unfortunate accident. I hope you will be able to repair your livelihood and find a suitable temporary home until that time." Said Magic.

Fancy stepped forward and gave the older stallion a salute. "Captain Oak, permission to speak?"

Oak sighed and looked at Fancy. "Lord Fancy Pants, I retired from the royal guards years ago, I may have been your commander when you first joined the guard, but now you outrank me and you are the lord of the land I call home, so please stop it with this whole show."

"Yes sir, Burnt Oak, as your lord I take full responsibility for what has occurred to your home and business, and I will pay for the repairs, and as your friend, I am offering you a place to call home for the time being."

Oak looked like he was on the verge of tears at the kindness of his lord and smiled at Fancy. "Thank you, lord Fancy, I will never forget this kindness you have shown me."

"It is no problem, old friend." Fancy then looked at his shield brother and his companions. "That goes for all of you as well, we have plenty of rooms for you all, and I would be happy if you would agree to join us for the night."

Flame looked at his party members. "What do you all say?"

"We would be happy to join you for the night." Responded to the group.

Flame looked at Fancy and smiled. "Lead the way."

Flame and the group arrived at a massive mansion at the back of the town. The home was a beautiful design, the walls were made of light tan bricks, the roof was covered in lavender shingles, and on one side was a tower at least one story taller than the rest of the home. The front garden was nicely trimmed and the front of the manor had a well-crafted pair of solid oak doors.

Fancy walked to the doors and pushed them open to lead his guest inside. Fancy walked into his home and was immediately greeted by his manors staff of maids, butlers, and chefs. "Welcome home Master Fancy, Lady Fleur." Announced all of the staff.

"Thank you all, its good to see you all safe, I was worried about you all during the battle."

"Thank you for your concern, Master." Added Randolph the head butler of the Pants manor. Randolph was an older stallion with nearly white hair and big eyebrows the same color, and he was dressed in a very formal butlers uniform

"I see you all as family Randolph, it is only natural to worry. But I want to introduce you all to our esteemed guests for the night." Said Fancy moving out of the way to give the staff a good view of the guest. "First we have, Sentinel Flame, without his efforts we might not be able to return."

When the staff heard the name of the dragon they all became shocked, ever since their master got married, they all have heard stories of their lady's past, mostly dealing with the heroics of the noble dragon bounty hunter who risked his life to protect the lady's village. Randolph walked up to the dragon with tears in his eyes and he looked him in the eyes. Randolph grabbed Flame's hands in his own and started to visibly cry in happiness. "Master Flame, we are all in your debt, for years we have heard legends of your heroics from lady Fleur." Said Randolph as he bowed to Flame.

"Um... your welcome... sir?" Asked Flame a little uncomfortable seeing an elderly stallion cry.

"Oh... my apologies, master Flame, I am the head butler of the Pants Manor, Randolph, next to me is the head chef saffron masala..." Said Randolph introducing the chef. "... and the head maid, Coco Pommel." Added Randolph.

"Greetings." Said both of the mares, Saffron was a tall mare with dark purple hair tied back with a yellow headband, both of her ears were pierced and on each ear was a golden hoop earring, her uniform was a pale yellow shirt and a dark orange skirt, around her neck was a tied bandana with golden accents, and her eyes were a lighter purple then her mane. Coco was much younger than Saffron, she is a cream colored mare, her hair was a light aqua, with an even lighter shade of aqua strip, her eyes were the same color as her hair. Coco was dressed in a very formal and professional maid's uniform.

Flame smiled and nodded. "Thank you."

Fancy continued introductions. "Sentinel Flame is accompanied by his traveling companions, Captain Wuzz, Sir McBiggin, Magic Circle, Ivy Breeze, Celestial Gem, Serrata, Silent Shadow, and incantation. There are another one of Sentinel's companions, but she is currently detained with another task."

"Master Fancy, If you are referring to Lady Confetti, she arrived just before you arrived, she is currently washing up in one of the guest bathrooms, the poor dear was covered head to tail in a dark liquid, but oddly she didn't track any of it on the floors. And more peculiar was the rather large group of creatures that followed her, there were nearly 200 in all, they are currently resting in the back gardens."

Fancy looked flabbergasted at the news, he then looked at Flame who just shrugged, "I have known her for a while, and I still don't understand her, its easier to just let her do her own thing, as for the group of creatures, they are mine, I hope they have not caused any trouble."

Fancy looked at the rest of the party looking for an explanation, but all he saw was them nodding at Flame's words. Fancy sighed. "Very well, we also have an old friend of mine who will be staying with us for the foreseeable future." Fancy introduced the innkeeper. "This is Burnt Oak, my old commander and the current owner and operator of the local inn the Wandering Tree."

"Thank you for having me." Said Burnt Oak bowing his head.

Randolph bowed and he was followed by the rest of the manor staff. "It is our pleasure to serve you all, masters, and ladies." Said all the staff.

"Please allow us to show you all to your rooms, you must be tired after everything you have done today." Said Coco.

Flame smiled at the maid. "Thank you, Coco."

Coco smiled and gave her group of maids the order to show the adventurers to their rooms. Flame looked at Fancy. "Fancy, I must apologize for being so rude to our host and not joining him, but to be honest this is the first time in a week I have had the chance to sleep in a bed."

"Think nothing of it Flame, we all have our limits and you are no different, I will have Saffron prepare dinner for you all when you awaken so please rest with a clear conscience." Said Fancy smiling at Flame.

"Thank you." Said Flame as he was shown to his room by Coco.

Flame was shown to his room by Coco and when they arrived at the room Flame was shocked at the grandness of the room. The room was twice the size of his room in the tree castle, it had a king-sized four-post bed on the far wall, next to the bed was a set of side tables, on the wall to the left of the bed was a wardrobe that Rarity would be proud of, next to the door was a marble fireplace probably used to keep the room warm in the winter. In front of the fireplace was a large rug and a full set of furniture that could easily accommodate his whole party, Flame looked at the door on the other side of the room and opened it. It was a grand bathroom, the floor was tiled, the tub was massive and the sink was large as well, and to top it all off everything was marble. Flame closed the door to the bathroom and looked at the room. The room was well lit, as the wall with the bed had two large glass windows that looked out onto the back gardens. Flame looked out of the window, saw all of the spent members resting in the sun and hanging around in the bushes. Flame opened the window and yelled. "Good job today, you all did great.".

All of the creatures looked up to see who was yelling and they saw Flame, the whole group became excited. The Stingbees grabbed all of the Fuzzles or Stunks, they all flew up to Flame and greeted him. "Hey guys, you all did great today, you all earned some rest so for the rest of the day we're going to take it easy." Said Flame. This was received rather well going off of the sounds of happiness everyone was making. Flame smiled and detached his crossbow mounting, all the creatures in the room returned to their tubes to rest in the company of their families. Flame placed the crossbow on one of the side tables, then he removed his clothes and tossed them onto one of the single chairs next to the fireplace. Once Flame was naked he walked over to the bed and flopped onto the soft surface and the moment his head hit the pillow he was asleep.

Author's Notes:

I have never played a single minute of D&D so I will pretty much BS this whole chapter, so no dice rolling, no stats, and no Squizzard.

Spike is no longer going to be Garbunkel the wizard, he is a Bounty Hunter going by Sentinel Flame. [dragon]

Discord and Mac are still going to be Captain Wuzz[elf archer] and McBiggun[unicorn knight].
Celestia and the rest of the girls are going to join in as well.
Celestia: Solariea the imprisoned Queen [High elf]
Twilight: the Arch mage Magic Circle [High elf]
Applejack: Serrata the Dryad [Dryad]
Pinky Pie: Confetti the Bard [Naga] & Streamer is Pinkamena
Rainbow Dash: Silent Shadow the rogue [Dark elf]
Rarity: Celestial Gem the Succubus [Succubus]
Fluttershy: Ivy Breeze the Beast Tamer [Faun]
Starlight: Magic Circles apprentice Incantation [Half elf]
Luna: Lunar Glare the dream walker [Valkyrie]

Game Night pt.2

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As Flame was asleep, he was dreaming of a normal and quiet day back in Ponyville while spending time with his friends. Starlight had prepared a picnic for everyone to enjoy as they watched the sunset, she was not as good a cook when compared to Spike but she was stars above Twilight's culinary ability. Spike and the girls were resting on a blanket, under a tree on a hill as they were just enjoying the end of the day that Celestia had given them.

"Hey Twi, I'm glad we can finally let our manes and scales down for a while, no world-ending villain bent on taking over the world, no monster attacks, and no friendship problems. For the first time in a while, we can just relax and spend some time as friends." Said Spike with a content sigh.

"Yeah, this is nice, life has been so calm around here. So much so I don't think I will need you around anymore, I survived for two whole years without you." Said Twilight completely calm. "So after today I'm going to send you back to Mudos and this time I don't ever want to see you again, and don't forget to take those horrible abominations you call friends with you when you go." Said Dream Twilight with a neutral but sinister smile on her face.

"WHAT?" Yelled Spike in fear.

"You heard what I said Spike, I don't need you anymore. You're not the same little dragon I knew and I don't care what you think, but after today I never want to see you again. And the rest of the girls agree with me." Said Dream Twi pointing to the rest of the girls who were now looking at them.

"That's right Spike, my animal friends are scared of you, and they don't care for your monsters, so I would rather you never return if you don't mind." Said Fluttershy.

"I had hoped for you to grow wings but seeing you now, it's kinda obvious that you will never have them, so might as well just forget about you. It's not like you will be able to keep up with me." Said RD.

"That's right, I don't want the possibility of you burning down my farm, so I think it would be best for me to tie you up and toss you in that portal." Added AJ.

"Besides if we make you go missing again, I can throw a 'yay Spike is gone party' and I'll invite everyone to celebrate." Cheered Pinkie.

"Yeah, now that I have a lot of pony friends I don't need a dragon one." Said Starlight.

"And Spikey, I don't think I can trust you around my large collection of gems now that you're all grown up, so I would prefer if you never talk to me again." Said Rarity.

Spike crawled back from his seat as he was on the verge of tears, then he felt someone touch his shoulder, Spike looked behind him and saw his mother who was smiling at him. "Thank god mom, something is wrong with the girls, I need your help to save them." Pleaded Spike.

Celestia just chuckled as she looked at Spike, "I'm sorry Spike, but I don't think I can do that. Why would I help my no good dragon of a son who would just up and leave him mother to grieve, but then it occurred to me, I will just get Twilight to hatch another dragon for me. Then I will make it known to the whole kingdom that I have a son, I won't have to hide it from anyone."

"MOM NO!" Yelled Spike as he was crying his eyes out. The girls and Celestia closed in on Spike as they continued to tell him why he should leave. The world around Spike was going dark.

"STOP THIS NOW!!!!" Yelled a voice from the darkness. Spike opened his eyes and looked around to see that he was alone, the girls and his mother were missing. Spike looked up and looked upon his savior. Above Spike was Luna hovering in the darkness. Her wings were outstretched keeping her afloat, her hair was braided but still held her natural designs, she was wearing a long navy blue flowing gown that reached just before her ankles, but on her shoulders were armor, and around her waist was a belt and a sword, and in her hands was a helmet with a set of wings on the side of it.

"Aunt Luna is that you?"

"It is dear nephew." Said Luna as she landed on the nonexistent ground. She then walked to Spike and gave him a slap to the face, then she pulled him into a hug and began to cry. "Spike, you are an idiot, why would you think anyone would ever say those things about you, we missed you so much. Our lives were forever changed after we learned of your absence, you were one of the few creatures who would greet me with a smile instead of a terrified scream when you saw me, after my return, you welcomed me with open arms and insisted I be called your aunt. At first, I was very opposed to letting you treat me so kindly, after the horrible things I did, but after a while, I couldn't resist letting you into my heart. You are special in so many ways, everyone who meets you can't help but smile at the kindness in your heart and that has shaped this world we call home, so why would you ever think that the ponies closest to you would ever say those horrible lies?"

Spike sighed "I don't know, so many things have changed, I have grown up so much in the last two years, and all of the girls have as well, I feel like I don't deserve to just jump back into the swing of things and expect to just fit right back into my normal routine. I get that when I left there was a piece of the puzzle missing in everyone's lives, but over time that piece that was missing was slowly filled in with everyone's help, and now that I'm back I can't help but feel like a piece that doesn't have a place and even if it did it wouldn't fit anymore."

"That is ridiculous Spike, you are still the same dragon as when you were younger, and there is still a place for you in everyone's heart."

Spike sighed. "I would love to believe I was still that same baby dragon, but Aunt Luna, I have changed in so many ways, I have almost died so many times, a few of those times I did for a few moments, I have ended lives, saved lives, ruined lives, and protected them. When I was younger I couldn't think about ending another life without throwing up and then crying myself to sleep, I always dreamed about being a knight in shimmering scales." Said Spike as he looked into the eyes of Luna. "I didn't mention a horrible incident that happened soon after I reached New Yoke when I talked about my time on Mudos, but after what happened that day I couldn't help but think 'I am not the same dragon anymore.'" Said Spike who used his memory to show Luna what happened that day.

"It was a few weeks into my time in New Yoke, I was walking back to the bounty store to collect my reward from capturing a real nasty outlaw named Boilz Booty..."

"I thought that he was just another one of those, 'capture, turn in, and forget' outlaws, but then a few weeks went by. His brother, Blisterz, and his gang attacked New Yoke, they stormed the city, they killed dozens and injured hundreds, And I wasn't even there to stop them, I was on another job at the time. It was my fault, I brought Boilz in, I didn't know he had a brother, I just forgot about him and in the process, I let so many innocent people die, and do you know how that made me feel?" Luna shook her head. "I didn't care much about it, don't get me wrong I was horrified at the fact that I was responsible for those lives that Blisterz killed, but I just couldn't find it in my heart to truly care. All I wanted to do was figure out if I could get home and leave Mudos behind. But that night I just lied awake on my bed in the hotel and thought about what my life would actually be like if I was able to get home."

Spike ended the memory and the two returned to his dreamscape. "What you saw earlier wasn't the first time I had that nightmare, I don't know how many times I saw that look on everyone's faces, hearing their hurtful words, and I would just wake up before they got too close, then I would convince myself that it was only a dream and it was never going to happen, but over time my fears became doubts in my head. I try to force the doubts to the back of my thoughts and I can go along with my day, but sometimes they creep up on me and I have that nightmare." Spike sighed on the verge of tears. "I know it in my heart that Mom, Twi, and all the girls would never say those things to me, but sometimes the brain is more powerful and it just doesn't stop me from feeling the harshness of their words."

Luna was still crying. "Spike, why didn't you tell us about what you were feeling? You know we would do everything in our power to banish those thoughts." Luna then placed her hand on Spike's cheek and looked him deep in the eyes. "Spike you are so many things, to me, you are a kindhearted dragon, who was obsessed with comic books, gems, Rarity for some reason, and the two most important, a great friend and a wonderful nephew." Luna chuckled for a moment to try and lighten the mood. "I still remember when Tia told me stories about what you were like in your younger years, but there is one story that I will always hold close to my heart. If I remember correctly, it was when you first heard about the mare in the moon legend, you found out that I was your aunt, so that night you tricked Tia by pretending to fall asleep and when the coast was clear, you somehow opened the door to your balcony and just spent the whole night talking to the moon, thinking it was me. You were so young back then, I didn't think you knew what I actually did as nightmare moon, but to you, it didn't matter, I was just Auntie Woona." Luna giggled. "I think you were only three years old at the time, but it was a cute way to say my name. You talked about your dreams, your fears, your doubts, hopes, and everything in between, but you were just a little whelp back then, and after about three hours of you talking, you just fell asleep right there on the balcony. But you didn't know that Tia was listening in on your conversation, when she came to check on you, she heard the caring tone in your voice and how excitedly you talked, so she decided to just let you continue your conversation, bedtimes be damned, but once you fell asleep she picked you up and placed you back into your bed, but when she was about to leave the room she heard you start talking in your sleep, as you just muttered 'I love you auntie Woona, I can't wait to meet you'. Tia started to cry at hearing your kind words. She then left your room and let you dream about the day you would get to meet your auntie." Luna sighed in happiness knowing even before he learned about who Nightmare Moon truly was, the first thing that came to mind was just Auntie Woona.

"To Tia, you are so many things, you were her little ball of fire, the son she could never have, a reason to continue protecting the kingdom, and you were the reason she could put up with all of the nobles, knowing that you were waiting for her to spend time together helped her power through the day and just knowing that you were happy gave her the energy to smile. And to young Twilight and her friends, you were a pillar of the community, playful, considerate, patient, wise, loyal, generous, kind, and not to mention Twilights first friend, little brother, support when times were tough, you were a constant reminder that friendship is the strongest magic the world has ever known."

Spike wiped away his tears and smiled at the heartfelt words of his aunt. Spike grabbed Luna and pulled her into a hug. "Thanks, Auntie Woona." Smiled Spike, "Sometimes all we need is a slap to the head and a person to spill our hearts out to."

"No words have ever been so true at this moment." Luna pulled back from the hug and looked Spike in the eyes again. "Spike, I love you, Tia loves you, Twilight and the others love you. You never have to fear living that dream in the real world." Luna then scowled at Spike. "And if I find out that you ever have that nightmare again, I will make you dream about kissing Garble for the rest of your natural-born life, and when you take over as the new god of chaos and become immortal, I will change Garble to Dragon Lord Torch, AM. I. UNDERSTOOD?" threatened Luna.

Spike nodded his head so much and so quick Luna became worried about him breaking his neck, but she got her point across, so she smiled. "Good." Then the sound of someone knocking was heard outside of the dream realm. Luna sighed. "It looks like our time together has come to an end." Luna looked Spike in the eyes. "If you ever need me, all you have to do is say my name. In this world, I will go by Lunar Glare, just say that name in your dreams and I will appear." Said Luna as she slowly started to fade out and the sound of knocking grew louder.

Spike smiled. "Thank you for the words of wisdom, Lunar, I love you."

Lunar smiled in return. "As do I Sentinel Flame, I hope next we meet will be under more pleasant circumstances." Said Lunar as she completely vanished.

The flame was brought out of the dream world by the knocking coming from the door to his room, still, groggy Flame peeled himself from his bed and walked to the door to see who was knocking. "I'm coming, I'm coming." Said Flame as he approached the door.

Flame walked to the door and opened it, completely ignoring the fact that he was naked. The person on the other side of the door began to greet the dragon. "Master Flame, it's me, Coco, I have come to retrieve you for dinner..." Coco started and finally looked away from the dragon's face and down his body. Coco's face started to blush at the masculine features Flame was sporting but she tried to stay professional. "The other muscles... I mean Masters and ladies have awoken and are currently hunky... I mean having dinner, and lord No Pants... I mean Fancy Pants wanted me to retrieve you." Said Coco whose face was as red as a tomato. Coco then looked at all the scars on Flame's body and somehow her blush intensified to rival the sun that was dropping past the horizon.

Flame was still half asleep so he didn't notice the second sun in front of him. Flame yawned and cracked his neck as he slowly became aware of the world around him. Flame looked at the blushing mare and became confused. "Oh hey Coco, I didn't know it was you, do you need something. Also are you ok? you look like you have a fever, are you not feeling well?" Asked Flame.

"Lord Fancy Pants asked me to retrieve you for dinner, all of your companions have already joined him and lady Fleur in the main dining hall." Responded Coco who was still blushing at the naked and very muscular dragon.

"That still doesn't answer my question, here let me check." Said Flame who placed his claw on Coco's forehead to check her temperature. "Dragons are very sensitive to heat, our scales can sense our surroundings and we can change our body temperature to best accommodate for the environment." Flame waited for a moment and then pulled his hand back and sighed at the maid. "You're burning up." Flame then used his tail and wrapped it around Coco's waist eliciting a surprised squeak out of the mare as she passed out from an overflow of blood in her head. "I will inform Fancy of your condition, you need to rest." Said Flame who was carrying Coco to the bed. When they got to the bed Flame lowered Coco onto the bed and tucked her in. "Get some rest and get better." Said Flame as he walked over to the chair and retrieved his clothes.

A few moments later Flame walked out of his room with a still blushing Coco in his bed. Flame closed the door as quietly as possible as to not wake up Coco. Once the door was closed Flame made his way to the main dining hall of the manor. As Flame was walking he happened to run into a very upset Randolph.

Randolph noticed the dragon and tried to calm down and act professional, but it was too late, Flame noticed the butler's anger. "Good evening Master Flame, did you have a good rest?" Asked the butler.

"In a way, why were you upset?" Asked Flame.

Randolph went pale, it was one of the most basic rules of any butler who has been trained, 'don't show any unprofessional emotions in front of your charge.' and he just broke it. "Please forgive me master Flame, it was unprofessional of me to expose you to that side of me, but I am angry to learn that the head maid Coco Pommel has yet to return to the lord with you in tow, the fact that you are awake means that she did arrive at your room but she is nowhere to be seen." Randolph looked at Flame. "Master Flame, might you know where she is right now?"

Flame nodded. "Yes she is currently laying down in my room, when she arrived to retrieve me for dinner, she was running a high fever and her face was flushed, and I swear when she greeted me at my door she was stammering. So please don't be mad at her she was doing her job, it was my personal opinion to let her rest. I understand you all have obligations to complete for Fancy and Fleur, but is it not better to hinder the progression of an illness for a day, or let it fester and leave her bedridden for a week?" Asked Flame.

Randolph nodded in agreement. "Wise words, from one so young, please forgive me Master Flame, you are whole heartily correct, her well being comes first, I will arrange for her to be helped to her room and let her rest for a while, but you still need to escort to the main dining hall, so please follow me."

Flame nodded and followed the butler.

Randolph and Flame arrived at the doors to the main dining hall and Randolph pushed open the doors. "Greetings lord Fancy Pants, I have some sad news, It appears that Coco has fallen ill. She is currently resting in the room of Master Flame, who insisted that she rest. So I instead have brought Master Flame to dinner." Informed Randolph.

Fancy and Fleur gasped at hearing about the state of Coco. "The poor dear, I hope she is feeling better, she seemed so normal earlier, but she has always been one to put the needs of others before her own." Said Fleur in a sad tone.

"That is no excuse!" Yelled Fancy in disappointment. "She is a valued member of this household, I have repeatedly informed her that I see her as a part of my family, and the fact that she continues to neglect her health and not inform any of her fellow staff members or I only sadden me greatly." Fancy then looked to Flame. "Flame, I am in your debt once again, Coco has always been a pony with a weak constitution, but it is in her nature to give her attention to everyone else besides herself, and here you are helping take care of somepony I consider family, I should have been more aware of her condition and if I had to I would have ordered her to take a few days rest. I am so disappointed in myself for not seeing it sooner, can you please forgive me?" Asked Fancy bowing his head in regret.

Flame sighed in disappointment as well. "Fancy for the last time, I. AM. YOUR. BROTHER. You are my family, meaning she is part of my family and I take care of my family. you may not know this but I am not like other dragons, I am wingless and I'm in my twenties, I hadn't eaten meat up until a few years ago, I was bullied by teenage dragons for being small, but I had a family to hold me up and show me that even with my faults I was just as great as the dragon lords, from them I learned that in this world there will always be something that will try to hurt you, but if you stand strong and have your family with you, that something becomes nothing. In a family there is no such thing as debt, nor is there forgiveness, there is only acceptance and moving on together. What happens, happens, it is unavoidable. So I am going to only say this one more time. I don't care about any debts you think you or anyone owes me, and if you say that word again I will show you how two dragons settle an argument." Said Flame in annoyance.

Fancy chuckled and then sighed. "Very well, your words speak of true wisdom and love for family, plus I don't think I would survive the alternative option." Said Fancy in a humored tone.

Flame chuckled as well. "No, you probably wouldn't." Joked Flame.

"Oh is that a challenge I hear?"

"Depends? Can you do a belly flop into the lava," stated Flame in a matter of fact tone.

Fancy threw up his hands in defeat. "You win Flame. Now I believe the purpose of all of us gathering in here was to enjoy a nice dinner, not to get into a silly sibling argument, so what would you like?"

Flame smiled. "Do you have any gems?" Asked Flame licking his lips.

"Depends, how much can you eat?"

"You know if I didn't know any better, I would think that was a challenge, and I plan on winning. I hope you own a mine, if not my poor sister in law will be losing some of her fine jewelry tonight." Smirked Flame.

"Well that's good to hear, my lovely wife's jewelry will be saved this day. I may have been part of the royal guard, but I only joined to give my support to the crown, but in all actuality, I own this land not for my services, but by the fact that I own a very productive mine on the mountain behind the town, hell half of the towns stallions are miners in my employ, they get a place to call home and they are taken care of fully, and they show their thanks by helping in the mines. In fact, I do believe that at least two of the many unused rooms in the manor are filled to the brim with gems that I was planning on selling to the merchants when they arrive at the end of the year, isn't that right Randolph?"

"It is sir, but you are also forgetting about the vault in the basement that we filled in the first month of the year, we filled that room to overcapacity and it was a sad sight to see that massive 3-inch steel door pop off its hinges from the pressure, I do believe we are still trying to dig it out from under those gems." Said Randolph playing along.

"Of course, how silly of me to forget that." Fancy then looked at Flame and smirked, "So is my wife's jewelry safe?"

"Hum... Sorry I kinda lost track of what you were saying when the words room full of gems came up, I don't want to eat you out of your lively hood so I think I will have an order of twelve dozen gems, that shouldn't bite into your bank too much. should it?"

"Not at all." smiled Fancy," Randolph could you go down to the basement and gather up the gems, and while your down there brings me the best wine we have, this is the perfect reason to celebrate, we have fought for our lives, I got to finally meet the dragon that saved my wife, and I have gained a brother." Said Fancy in a joyous tone.

Randolph nodded and gave a smile. "Of course, I will only be a minute." Said Randolph as he left to get the meal.

Once Randolph left there was a subtle shift in the mood of the room. Fancy looked hard at Flame. "Flame, I wish to join you in your quest and stop Sekto." Said Fancy in a serious tone.

Flame shrugged. "Ok."

This threw Fancy for a loop, "Really, it's that easy, no 'you should stay with your wife, protect your town'. no nothing?"

"Nope." Said Flame. "Fancy you are a full-grown stallion, you have trained your troops right, it will probably take Sektos army a while to mount another attack. You are a well trained capable fighter, I can not force you to change your mind because I will not argue with your desire to fight, if you chose to join us, great if you chose to stay and protect your town and its ponies, great. I trust in your ability to make a rational decision."

"I really hate you right now, especially all that hot air in your head, I swear one day your head will become a balloon." Joked Fancy.

"Well I'm a dragon, hot air is half of our shtick, the other half is our appetite." joked Flame.

During this exchange, Magic Circle leaned over to Fleur. "Hey Fleur, is Fancy always like this?"

"Sadly he is, I love him with all my heart, but he can be so childish when he is having fun, I'm guessing Flame is the same when he's not on a job?"

Magic giggled and shook her head. "No, he's always like this, don't get me wrong he will go full dragon if he is pissed off, but from the time I first met Flame he has always been this goofy, childish, free soul that can't help but to make others laugh. I guess this is the price we pay for meeting them."

"Wouldn't have it any other way." Said Fleur.

"here." chuckled Magic.

The two giggled.

Flame looked at the occupants of the room and the room regained its serious tone. Flame looked to the now bubbly Naga. "Confetti, it good to see you, how did the conversation with those stallions go?"

"Well, they were big meanies at first then I brought out Streamers and that quickly got them talking. I got a lot of juicy information."

"Please enlighten us," asked Flame.

"Well in total Sekto has a total army of fifty thousand, he is in the royal palace, where he is keeping Queen Solariea imprisoned in the dungeons. I also heard that there were rumors of a rebel movement that was stationed in Thorngarde, the next town over in the east. Aside from that, all they said was 'Oh god' and 'I don't want to die', then the meanies just stopped talking altogether."

"Did you....you know?" Asked Flame.

"If you mean to kill them, no I didn't..."

"Oh thank god, I was worried that you were like some of the others." Sighed Flame as he referred to other Pinkaminas in the multiverse.

"I didn't finish, what I was going to say. I didn't, Gummy did."

"Wait, Gummy is here too?" Said Flame in shock.

"Of course not." waved off Confetti, "I sent him back and he is in the bath right now getting cleaned up."

"But how, isn't Gummy, you know, gummy?"

"He is, but for some strange reason, if you look into his eyes for too long, you start to hear voices in your head, then you start to ramble on the meaning of life and all that, then you just stop."

"Ok, remind me to stay far, far, far away from him from now on."

"Okie Dokie Loki." giggled Confetti.

"Ok, you all heard her, tomorrow we head for Thorngarde."

Everyone nodded.

The rest of the dinner was more humorous after the food arrived. As promised Randolph had gathered a miniature mountain of gems for Flame to enjoy, and Saffron had prepared delicious meals for everyone else. But as the saying goes 'Time flies when having fun' and tonight was no exception. Tomorrow was going to mark the next leg of Flame's journey to defeat Sekto.

Flame walked into his room and noticed that Coco was still passed out and she was laying down in his bed. "Best not to wake her, I hope that the couch is just as comfy." Flame got undressed, got comfy on the couch, and fell asleep.

This time Flame was able to dream a peaceful dream. It was as if a guardian was watching over his dreams.

Lunar smiled at the happy dreams of Flame and after a while of just looking, she decided to move on to another's dream, more specifically she moved to the closest dreaming pony.

Lunar popped into the mare's dreams and instantly regretted it. Coco was having a nice dream, a very nice dream about Flame. Lunar immediately exited the mares dream and glared at Flames sleeping body. "What the hell did you do to her Spike?" asked Luna who was shocked.

A few hours later Randolph had arrived at the room of Flame but being mindful of the time, Randolph opted to just let himself in and retrieve Coco who was still in the comatose state.

"Coco, Coco, wake up, I know you're not feeling well but I don't think it is appropriate for the head maid of the household to occupy one of the beds of the Lord's guest." Said Randolph trying to shake the mare awake.

Coco slowly opened her eyes and noticed the old stallion. "Umm... Randolph where am I?"

"Coco you are in the bed of Master Flame, he said that when you came to retrieve him for dinner you were running a fever and he laid you in his bed so you could rest. Master Flame is currently sleeping on the couch." Said Randolph.

Coco looked in the direction of the dragon and looked upon his sleeping form. The sight of the dragon naked, and the memories of her dreams was too much for the mare, her face blushed and she was giggling like an idiot, completely ignoring the concerned look she was getting from the butler. "Oh dear, it's worst then I thought, you are still not feeling well, I fear that if I move you it will only worsen your condition." Said Randolph as he pushed the giggling mare back down on the bed and returned the covers over her.

Randolph looked at what he assumed to be a delirious mare and sighed as he walked out of the room to let the mare get more rest.

Flame was awoken by a ray of sunlight hitting him in the face but his determination to stay asleep was too strong. "Stop it, mom, I had a long night and I don't want to wake up." Said Flame as he waved his arms trying to block the sunlight. But instead of sleeping in a large bed that would easily accommodate for a lot of rolling and movement, Flame was on a couch. A loud thud was heard as Flame was now lying face down on the cold stone floor and muttering some profanity at all the world.

The thud woke up Flame's roommate who was startled by the sound. "What happened?" Yelled Coco.

Flame lifted his head and looked at the scared maid in the bed. "Coco, are you all right, you had me worried for a while." Said Flame as he peeled himself off the cold floor. After Flame was on his feet, Coco got an unobstructed view of Flame's form. She saw all of his scars and muscles, and then the second son of this world started to rise.

Flame sighed as he walked over to the maid on the bed who was giggling and smiling at the sight of the dragon. When Flame arrived at the bed he walked past the mare, reached for the bedside table, grabbed his crossbow, and reattached it to his wrist. After the crossbow was back on, Flame looked to the blushing mare and decided to check her temperature again, but instead of using his hand, he used his lips. Flame placed his lips on the forehead of the mare. This action received a shocked gasp from Coco and a puff of steam popping out of her head. "Tsk, Coco, your still too hot, let me get dressed and I'll take you to your room to get some more rest." Said Flame as he walked away from the mare in the bed and walked over to his clothes to get dressed.

After Flame got dressed, he was carrying a now passed out Coco in his arms through the halls of the manor. Flame and the passed out Coco were stopped by Randolph who was walking to Flame's room to get the dragon up for breakfast, and to check on the maid. But when he was walking to the room he was met with Flame with Coco in his arms. "Master Flame, please forgive me for not getting Coco out of your room. I arrived in the night to fulfill my promise but when I checked on her condition, she was delirious from her fever, and I decided to let her stay in the bed, in hopes of not worsening her condition."

Flame nodded. "It's fine Randolph, she is still not ready to work but her fever has improved, so I decided to carry her to her room and let her rest there. Can you show me where it is?" Asked Flame.

"Of course." Said Randolph as he turned around and started to walk back down the hall.

As the two walked down the halls Flame wanted to start up a conversation with the butler. "Hey Randolph, may I ask you a question?"

"Of course, Master Flame, I will answer to the best of my abilities."

"Ok, so how did you come into Fancy's employ?"

"Aw, that is a simple story, but first technically I'm not in the employ of lord Fancy, I am lady Fleur's butler. Years ago I was on my own after my family home was burned down in an accident, I lost my wife and daughter in the fire."

"Oh, I'm sorry for your loss, you don't have to talk about it if you don't want to."

"Thank you Master Flame, but I have come to accept it, though it still hurts to remember them, I use their memories as a motivation to continue but let's not get sidetracked. After the fire, I was homeless and wandered from town to town in search of a job and a roof over my head. Then I arrived in Millborn. I was on the streets for a few days, until a kind-hearted stallion walked past me and I don't know if it was out of pity or kindness, but he stopped, sat on the ground with me as we talked to each other and when we finished he offered me a job at his townhome. At first, I was against the handout but he was very persistent. It turns out that he was the lord of Millborn and he and his wife just had a daughter of their own. Three guesses who that little filly was."

"It's not that hard to guess."

Randolph laughed. "No it's not, is it? but in hindsight, it was a real shock to find out that the lord of Millborn was talking to a poor drifter. Lord Jacques de Lis was a kind stallion, but in all honesty, he was a heartless stallion when compared to his wife Mary de Lis, the moment that she met me she cried her heart out, and when she heard of my past she demanded that I live in their home for as long as I needed and when I suggested I offer my services as a form of compensation she nearly tore my head off in opposition. But I was still a stallion and my honor would not allow it, so I offered to become the new ladies butler to show my thanks. Lady Mary was against it, not because she did not trust me, but it would mean that I would be taking care of Fleur for the rest of my life, and she wanted me to live the life I wanted. But the life I wanted was gone, and I refused to let the kindness of the lord and lady be squandered. That day I took up the mantel of Lady Fleur's butler." Randolph sighed at the memories. " Over the years, I watched Fleur grow up from a helpless baby to an adventurous and kind filly who would rather go out in the garden and play in the mud than stay inside and play with dolls. But twelve years after I arrived in Millborn, I had to comfort Fleur through the worst day of her life, It was no secret that Lord Jacques and Lady Mary were unwell, but they did their best to keep Fleur from finding out. But it was obvious that they were not long for this world, and the day of their passing was not only devastating to Fleur but me as well. They never saw me as only a butler, they saw me as both a friend and a godfather to Fleur. Fleur was only thirteen when her parents died and the land and estate were transferred into her name. But she was just as kindhearted as her mother, she asked me if I would like to leave and find happiness somewhere else, but after so many years staying by her side, I refused to leave. Again I swore my life to her as her butler, and when she found love, I watched her grow up into a beautiful mare, and at her request, I walked her down the aisle and gave her away to her true love, Fancy. Of course, only after I threatened to rip off his head and mount it on the main fireplace, then I warned him that after that, he would have to meet lord Jacques in heaven, where he probably would find some way of bringing him back to life, and then I would kill him again if he ever hurt her."

The two were stopped in their walk and conversation by the sound of someone laughing at the story. They turned around and sighted the pony laughing, it was Fleur. "I still remember laughing my flanks off when Fancy told me about what you said." Said Fleur as she walked over to the group. "Randolph, without you I don't want to imagine what my life would have been like. You have been by my side for years, you have seen me at my lowest and my highest. You have played with me and yelled at me when I was bad, you stayed up all night with me when I couldn't sleep. You opened your heart to me, showed me how to cook, sew, dance, and read. You held me close when mommy and daddy died, and I held you close when you found out I was getting married as you cried 'Oh, my little Fleur has grown up into a beautiful mare' so many times. You walked me down the aisle, gave me away, and acted as the perfect father to me for so many years. I don't know what Mommy and Daddy were thinking when you became my butler, but I know that they made a perfect choice." Said Fleur.

"Lady Fleur..." Said Randolph crying. He walked away from Flame and Coco towards Fleur and when he reached her, he pulled her into a loving hug. "You are so much like your mother. You even got her skill of saying overly sappy speeches."

Fleur wrapped her arms around the butler and giggled. "You forgot about her horrible taste of marrying childish stallions, and her sense of humor."

"I prefer saying her fondness for stallions with a lively soul, and as for her sense of humor, let's say it was more about her charm."

"You know if she heard you say that, your ass would be out on the streets until you apologized. She constantly said she was very funny."

"Yeah, I know." Said Randolph as he pulled away from the hug and looked Fleur in the eyes. "If your eyes were just a few shades darker than what they are now, I could swear I was talking with Lady Mary. Fleur, I have been by your side for years, I saw you as a second daughter, I love you, my sweet little Fleur." Said Randolph as he kissed Fleur's forehead.

Fleur giggled. "I love you too, Uncle Dolph." Said Fleur as she returned to the hug.

Flame was watching this tender moment as he was still carrying a passed out Coco in his arms.

After the moment was over Fleur walked over to Flame and looked at the unconscious mare in his arms and smirked. "Isn't it rather cliché for a dragon to kidnap a helpless maiden? or is it more cliché for a member of the family to find a romance with a maid?" joked Fleur.

"Honestly I think they're about the same, but right now neither apply to this situation." Said Flame. "I'm just carrying Coco back to her room so she can get some more rest. We are planning on leaving today, and I don't want her to be forgotten in my room."

"How is she feeling?"

"No idea really, but when I checked her temperature it was at least lower."

Fleur nodded. "Good to hear, I am on my way to my bedroom to get Fancy's gear ready to leave." Fleur looked Flame in the eye and became serious. "Please, make sure to bring him back to me, I can't lose him." Said Fleur who was starting to cry.

Flamed used his tail and wrapped it around Fleur's body and pulled her close to him in the best version of a hug he could do with a mare in his arms. "I can't promise he will return, that is something that only fate can decide. But I promise you I will give fate a good run for her money. I will do everything I can to ensure his safety, he is my brother and I protect my family." Said Flame as he released the mare.

"Oh god, not another sappy speech giver in this family." sighed Randolph.

The two looked at the butler and erupted in a fit of laughter.

After the laughter died down Fleur smiled at Flame. "I'm sorry for interrupting your task, I will be going." Said Fleur as she walked away.

Flame looked at the butler. "Shall we continue?"

"Of course." Responded Randolph.

Flame was standing outside of the Fancy manor along with the rest of his party as Fancy was saying his goodbyes to his staff.

"... And I promise you all that I will return with word of Sektos defeat, but until then, my lovely wife, Fleur will be in charge of the manor." Said Fancy as he finished his goodbye.

Flame looked at his friends who were ready to leave as Fancy looked at his brother. Fancy walked over to his brother smiling. "Flame, I am ready to depart. Are you already as well?"

"I am, I have retrieved all my friends from yesterday, plus I asked Randolph to prepare us enough food to get us to Thorngarde, and about six dozen gems for an after-dinner snack."

"Good to hear." Fancy then looked at the others. "How about you all?"

"I have everything." Said Magic

"Me to." responded Incantation

"As do I." smiled Gem

"All ready." meeked Ivy

"All I'm missing is the sight of the road." Said, Serrata

"Yep," responded McBiggin

"All stocked up and my bow is tight." Said Wuzz

"I could get there in ten seconds flat, but I get bored without someone to talk to." boosted Shadow

"Me..." Said Confetti as she counted her fingers. "ten."

Fancy smiled as well. "Good now I have a little surprise to show you all."

Fancy then walked over to the side of the manor and pulled out a wagon filled to the brim with supplies. The wagon was large enough to accommodate all eleven of them. " I may have informed Randolph that it would take us all week to get to Thorngarde by foot. With this, it will only take us two days at most to reach the town."

Flame smiled at Fancy. "This is perfect, but only one problem, what is going to pull us?"

"Aw yes, power is a problem, but luckily for you, I am well trained in magic. It's a simple spell that will use magic to pull the wagon along as it continually draws from the caster, I can teach both Magic and Incantation the spell in a matter of minutes. So let's load up and get a move on." Said, Fancy.

Flame looked at the rest of the party and yelled. "You heard the stallion, load up!"

Moments later Flame was sitting at the front of the wagon as Fancy was sitting beside him. Everyone else was sitting in the back. Flame looked at Fancy. "Last chance to change your mind."

"What and miss out on the operativity to bitch slap Sekto, not going to happen, I still owe him for attacking my town and killing my troops." Said Fancy as he activated his horn and the wagon started to move on its own.

"Fine, but I get to go first."

"Deal."

The wagon left the manor grounds and soon after left Ravengrove. As the adventure continues.

Game Night pt.3

View Online

It's been 2 days since we last saw our hero's start their journey to Thorngarde, and in that time, they have been attacked by bandits, it did not go well for the bandits. Magic Circle and Incantation learned to channel their spells through their magic items. Ivy had become friends with a pack of wolves that tried to attack the wagon, and Serrata learned that she was able to control five golems at once and she was able to instantly grow three dozen trees from nothing.

But their time on the road was coming to an end as the sight of a large stone wall came into view. Fancy announced to the group of their arrival. "Everyone we have arrived at Thorngarde, the center of trade in the region, home of many hot springs, and sister city of the capital city, Dawnhollow." Said, Fancy.

Flame looked at a large green banner with an insignia of a red rose hanging off the side of the wall. "This place looks impressive." Said Flame.

"It is, when I was still in the guard, I often visited Thorngarde to rest my tired muscles in one of the town's natural hot springs. It didn't hurt that this place was known for its inns with hot spring-centered spa's and their well-trained masseuse." Sighed Fancy Pants.

"Fancy do I have to fulfill Randolph's promise? I don't want to have to turn around and give your head to him for the fireplace so soon after we arrived." Asked Flame.

Fancy laughed. "No of course not. Before I met Fleur, I never indulged in what your thinking. I did enjoy a nice massage every once in a while, but I am still faithful".

"Good." Flame then turned to the bubbly Naga, "Confetti, I need to talk to you."

In an instant Confetti popped up hanging above Flame from the top of the wagon, "Reporting for duty sir." Saluted Confetti as she laughed.

"Confetti, we are nearing Thorngarde, but there is a problem, we don't know where to find the rebellion or who is in charge, so when we get into town, I need you to go around and gather information, head to the bars and inn's in the town and do what you do best. I want a Confetti party caves worth of info by tonight. Can you do that?"

Confetti laughed. "Flame, I had your entire file updated in the first three minutes of seeing you when you landed. A whole network of secretive rebels, who don't want their identities to be known by anyone, not in the fold, should only take me a few hours at most." Smiled Confetti as she disappeared.

Fancy watched the conversation and became nervous as he looked at Flame. "Is she serious? There is no way she can gather all that information in such a short time." Questioned Fancy.

Flame cocked an eyebrow. "Confetti can I see Fancy's file."

"Do you want the real world or this world?"

"This world."

Confetti pulled the file from her mane and handed it to Flame. "Here you go, but I need it back for the 'Yay we won party' I'm going to throw."

Flame opened the file and started to read it out loud.

"Full name: Lord Fancy Crown Pants of Ravengrove.
Likes: his wife, chocolate cake with strawberry frosting, fine wine, bubble baths, streamers.
Dislikes: balloons, mainly yellow, the color black, dancing because he can't, pompous nobles.
At his bachelor party, his at the time fiancé popped out of the cake and proceeded to give him a lap dance.
He fantasized about the Queen when he was in the guard.
Hates his older brother, loves his little sister.
When he was younger he saw his parents making said, little sister."

Said Flame. "Need I go on?" Asked Flame who was internally laughing at the sight of Fancy's shocked and embarrassed face.

"NO!" Yelled Fancy as he looked embarrassed. Fancy calmed down and looked at the naga sitting in the back of the wagon and shivered. "She scares me, is that normal?"

"It wouldn't be if you weren't, but you get used to it rather quickly." shrugged Flame. Flame looked at the city wall and smiled as he slowed the wagon and approached the city gate. Flame completely stopped the wagon as he pulled up to one of the city guards, who looked confused at the group of 'colorful' adventurers.

"Halt, welcome to Thorngarde. State your business." ordered the guard.

"My name is Sentinel Flame, this is Lord Fancy Pants of Ravengrove. He is here to discuss business with an old friend of his, I am his bodyguard along with my group of mercenaries in the back of the wagon. We will not be more than two days. So if you wouldn't mind letting us pass."

The guard cocked an eyebrow and began to search the wagon. Once the wagon was deemed safe, the guard moved to the side and allowed the group to pass.

Once the wagon was inside of the wall Fancy looked to Flame. "Flame why did you lie to the guard?"

"Simple, I didn't want to just state 'Hey we're looking for the rebel group bent on overthrowing Sekto.', two things would have happened, we would scare off the rebels if they thought we were looking for them to end the rebellion, or we would be public enemy number one with Sekto's troops breathing down our necks."

Fancy thought about what Flame said and nodded in agreement. "Your right, it would be best for us to find the rebels, instead of them finding us."

"Exactly." Flame nodded, then looked at Confetti who was hopping in excitement, he nodded to the Naga telling her it went time. Confetti then slithered off in a cloud of dust, Flame looked at the group of confused adventurers. "I asked her to gather information on the rebel group we are looking for, and who better than the mare with a party cave full of our darkest secrets." The all Ohed at hearing the logic of the plan. Even though using the words logic and Confetti in the same sentence goes against everything logical.

"Gather round," ordered Flame. The group of adventurers minus the Naga gathered around Flame to discuss the plan. "Ok here's what I got, since Confetti is doing her thing, and we are stocked up on supplies, we should head to an inn and wait for her to get back, tomorrow we find the rebels HQ and join up any objections?" Asked Flame.

Everyone shook their heads.

"Good." Said Flame as the group broke the huddle.

Flame and the group were walking down one of the many roads of Thorngarde, they arrived at an inn called 'The Boneless Inn' that had a sign designed to look like a chicken, and they decided to make this the meeting point. The group walked into the inn and were greeted by the huge smile of a brown curly mane yellow stallion. "Greetings and welcome to The Boneless Inn, named after my good friend Boneless." Said the innkeeper moving to the side to reveal a framed picture of a rubber chicken. "He was a great guy, sadly he was lost to the wind after I lost him years ago." Said the innkeeper who wiped away a tear in remembrance of his friend. "But anywho, my name is Cheese Sandwich, I am the owner and operator of the Boneless inn along with side my wife, Cherry Jubilee." Just then a mare walked into the room and smiled at her husband.

Cherry Jubilee, a cream-colored mare with pistachio eyes and a beauty mark on her cheek. Her mane is two tones of cherry red that have been done up into a puff, she had a pink ascot tied in the front of her chest and in her mane had a hairband with cherries on it. She smiled at the stallion, walked over to him, and kissed him on the cheek. "Hey dear, do we got some customers?"

"That we do my little cherry pie, I was just introducing my self to this lovely group of adventurers."

"Oh." Said Cherry who looked sheepish for interrupting the group. "Sorry, but if you need me I will be in the kitchen getting the dinners ready for our guest." Said Cherry as she walked away from the group.

Flame smiled and leaned to Cheese. "She seems nice."

Cheese smiled back. "She is my life." Cheese then blushed at his comment and started to cough in embarrassment. "So are you and your party looking for a place to stay?"

"We are, we need a few rooms, do you have any available, we will need them for two nights."

"We do, we have three rooms available, each room has four beds, so you will need all three rooms, two for the mares and one for the stallions. Three rooms for two nights will be 64 marks, will you need any meals?" Asked the innkeeper.

"No we're good, we have plenty of food for us to eat." Said Flame as he handed the stallion a small bag full of marks.

"Very well, Is there going to be anyone else joining you later on?"

"There is a Naga named Confetti, she is pink with a pink mane. She will be joining us later on."

"Very good, the room for the stallions is the first door on the right on the second floor, and the two rooms for the mares are the two doors on the left wall on the second floor." Said Cheese Sandwich as he handed Flame the key for the stallions room, and handing Serrata and Magic circle the two keys for their rooms.

"Thank you." Said Flame as the group walked up to their rooms and waited for Confetti to return.

Unbeknownst to the group Cherry Jubilee returned to the main room and looked to cheese. "God never says that to me again, I almost gagged and if you ever call me your cherry pie again I will break your leg." Said Cheery annoyed.

"Yeah, I almost lost my shit when you kissed my cheek, I'm surprised it didn't burn a hole in my face." Commented Cheese.

Cherry sighed. "Why did commander Spitfire task us to play a happily married couple that runs an inn?"

"She wants us to keep an eye on any newcomers to town, and see if they are good candidates for the cause, or if we should eliminate them before they become a problem." Stated Cheese.

"It was a rhetorical question, Cheese. But didn't that dragon say his name was Sentinel Flame?"

"Yeah he did, you think it is the same Sentinel Flame who just saved the town of Ravengrove a few days ago, and didn't that stallion next to him look an awful lot like Lord Fancy Pants?"

"Yeah, it did, but why would he come to Thorngarde?"

"No idea, but let's inform Spitfire of this development." Said Cheese

Cherry nodded as Cheese lifted a hidden trap door that was hidden behind the counter, when he opened the door there was a stairwell that led into a dark cave, the two walked down the stairs, closing the door behind them.

A few hours later Confetti slithered into the Boneless Inn and was greeted by the back in character Cheese and Cherry. "Hello and welcome to the Boneless Inn, my name is Cheese Sandwich, and this lovely mare next to me is my wife Cherry Jubilee, by any chance are you Miss Confetti?"

Confetti giggled. "That's me, so I'm guessing that my friends are here."

"That they are, the rest of the mares are in the two rooms on the left and the stallions are in the first room on the right. They have been expecting you."

"Thank you." Said Confetti as she slithered up the stairs to report back to Flame.

Confetti opened the door to Flames's room and noticed that everyone was in the room talking to each other.

The room fell silent as the giggly Naga entered the room. Flame looked at the Naga. "Confetti let's hear what you found." Said Flame.

Confetti giggled. "Well, I'm positive that the rebellion is here in Thorngarde, their leader is named Spitfire and her location is unknown. The rebels are teamed in pairs and they normally consist of one mare and one stallion, who use the cover of a business to find potential candidates to join the cause or potential threats to eliminate them. I have a few locations of their operations but I was unable to get a hoof in the door, but one phrase kept popping up, 'Red, Bread, Chicken', which I believe to be the code names for a local part of the rebel teams. Do those words mean anything to you guys?" Asked Confetti.

Flame sighed and got up from his seat, confusing the rest of the group in the room. "Follow me, we need to have a word with our cheesy innkeeper and his cherry red wife, in front of their picture of the chicken." Said Flame as he figured out the true identity of their host. Half of the group figured it out and followed Flame out the door, but the less intelligent members stayed in the room still trying to figure out the answer. But they were lifted by Magic and Incantations magic and pulled along with the group.

Flame and company walked down the stairs and were greeted by the 'Loving couple' in a kind manner. "Greeting Master Flame, and company, what can we do for you?" Asked the 'loving wife' of the two.

Flame and company walked in silence until they were all in front of the two. Flame was the first to speak. "Cheese, Cherry, I have some sad news to tell you."

Faking shock Cheese and Cherry looked at each other. "Whatever is the problem?" asked Cheese.

"Red, Bread, Chicken." Said Flame as he pointed to Cherry, Cheese, and the photo of Boneless in order. "We want to see Spitfire."

The jig was up and they knew it, but Cherry and cheese were still unsure of whether the dragon in front of them was a spy for Sekto, but not taking the chance, Cherry pulled a dagger from the inside of her hair and Cheese pressed a button hidden behind the clerk counter, once it was pushed a hidden compartment opened up on the counter and out popped a small version of a party cannon.

Flame seeing the weapons sighed. "I'm guessing that's a no then?"

"No offense but, Sekto has tried to get spies into our group and that was a mistake that only happened once. If it's any consolation, Commander Spitfire was interested in meeting you and your friends, but it's our policy to kill anyone who finds out our identities." Said Cherry.

Flame sighed again covering up the fact that he equipped Char and her swarm into his crossbow. "Well sorry to break company policy, but I'm not taking no for an answer. We know she is in the town, we know a few other shops the rebellion is using as a front, and we know how to make an entrance. I'm telling you two this from the bottom of my heart, it would be safer to just show us where your HQ is, or the rebels will be down two agents." Said Flame pointing his crossbow at the couple and launched two bolamites at the pair, tying them up.

After the less than civil conversation was over Flame was looking at the two tied-up ponies and bent down to their level. "Listen, if your thinking were going to kill you, your wrong. If your thinking we are spies for Sekto, your wrong. And if you think I'm slightly pissed off, then your right. All we want to do is join the rebels and beat Sekto. So I'm going to give you two options, you two could either show us to Spitfire, nice and peaceful like, or I give Confetti free rein to get the information out of you, and I don't want to piss off Gummy, he terrifies me." Said Flame shivering in fear. "So what's it going to be?"

"DO YOUR WORST, WE WILL NEVER TELL." Yelled the two tied up ponies.

Flame sighed. "I warned you." Said Flame as he looked at Confetti, "Don't kill them, I don't want to start a new relationship on a bad note."

"On it, it shouldn't take me too long." Said Streamers as she looked evilly at the two.

The fear of what was to come was too strong for the cheesy stallion to bear, "Behind the counter is a trap door, there is a tunnel that will lead you to the HQ." Cried Cheese.

Cherry was shocked as she looked at the rat. "ARE YOU SERIOUS?" Yelled the mare in anger.

Flame sighed and ignored the two ponies arguing with each other, he walked to the back of the counter and opened the trap door.

Flame returned to the two arguing ponies and wrapped them up in his tail and started to carry them. Flame looked at his companions and pointed to the hole in the ground. "Come on let's get this over with."

They all nodded and walked down the stairs.

As Flame and company were walking through the tunnel, the only sound coming from the group were the two ponies wrapped up in Flame's tail arguing about how one spilled the beans. But the party just tuned them out as the tunnel started to widen and the sound of mare shouting orders started to overpower the sound of the two captives.

Flame and company walked into a large cavern, when they did Flame noticed that there were a couple of dozen ponies running around, some were carrying crates marked 'supplies', others were writing reports, and a few were sharpening their weapons, as a mare with yellow and orange colored mane was shouting orders. "... And make sure to bring them to me by tonight, having not only Sentinel Flame and his companions, but Lord Fancy Pants of Ravengrove would be a great asset to the cause. I want Agent Red, and Agent bread, to spike their food and bring them to me," yelled Spitfire.

Flame and Fancy cleared their throats to get the fiery mare's attention. It worked. "I hear you're looking for us." Said Flame as he moved the tied up ponies in front of his group. "Also I think these two belong to you." Said Flame as he dropped the two ponies on the ground.

The mare was shocked, to say the least as she looked at the captured ponies in the possession of the dragon and his companions. Spitfire sighed in annoyance and looked at the two captives. "Why are you two tied up, why are they here, and how did they find out?" Asked the mare.

"Allow me to answer, first off I was the one who tied them up, second, Confetti was able to get them to spill on the location of this place, and third, from what Confetti told us, your rebels are very chatty when they think nobody is listening." Said Flame.

Spitfire groaned as she looked at Flame. "Well, since you here, and apparently know what we are doing, are you interested in joining us?"

"That was the plan from the start." shrugged Flame.

"But first would you be so kind as to release my two agents?"

"Can I get my marks back now that we're part of the rebellion?"

"Sure." Shrugged Spitfire as Flame cut the two ponies free. Cheese then reached into his mane and pulled out the same bag of marks, handing it back to Flame who smiled.

"Thank you." Thanked Flame. He then looked at the head mare and gave her a questioning look. "What's the plan?"

Game Night pt.4

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Flame and his party were standing in the rebellion's HQ, a cavern under the city of Thorngarde, gathered around a map of the Forgotten Continent, as they finished listening to the rebellions leader Spitfire tell them about what information the rebels had on hand. "So here's what we know, Sekto is located in the royal palace, it's the perfect place to command his troops. He also has Queen Solariea in the dungeons, with his forces numbering 30000 in the royal capital and another 20000 or so stationed in other cities in the kingdom..." Said, Spitfire.

Flame nodded. "That tracks with the info we got from one of his commanders when they attacked Ravengrove." Said Flame but then his look became serious and concerned. "But that was only 1500 troops, and we had about 420 in total." Flame looked at Spitfire. "How many troops do we have on our sides?"

Spitfire sighed. "As of right now, we only have around 2000. But most of them are former Royal guards, a few are powerful spellcasters, and others like myself are quick fliers, some are just really out there but their good ponies, but in terms of raw might, we are completely outclassed."

Flame sighed. "That's not what I wanted to hear. Do you have any spies in Sekto's army?"

"We do, but we haven't heard from him in a few days and I fear the worst."

"Crap," grumbled Flame. "So we don't have any current information about their troop movements, we're underpowered, and if we take too long to beat Sekto we're going to be overrun by reinforcements." Flame then looked at the map of the Forgotten Continent, he looked at the area of the royal capital of Dawnhallow and noticed the area was surrounded by a large forest, Flame grinned at the idea he was forming, he then looked at Serrata as he pointed to the map, more specifically the forest around the capital.

Serrata nodded. "It'll take some doing, but depending on how big you need them, I could probably make around twenty of the ones like Bloomberg, but if you want something bigger, it's going to take a lot out of me, at that point I think I'll start to lose control after the first big one, so they might go on a rampage."

"How big are we talking?"

"The same size as your greedy dragon size, maybe a bit smaller." Said Serrata as she shrugged. "From what I can guess it takes about 4 Bloomberg's to equal one Mighty Oak."

"Do you think you can make three of the big ones and, ten of the small ones? We can use the big ones as our main siege, and once we get into the city, we can use the small ones to handle some of their troops."

"Probably."

Flame then looked at Spitfire. " Spitfire, what kinds of animals live in the forest near Dawnhallow?"

She rubbed her chin in thought. "If I remember correctly, there were some deer, bears, and wolfs, plus in the southeast most point of the forest is a Hydra that made its home in a small bog near there, along with a few feelings of pride of Manticores and a couple of small packs of Timberwolves scattered around the area."

"The deer would be useless, but the bears and wolfs might be helpful, but the big ones are the Hydra, manticores, and Timberwolves." Said Flame as he looked at Ivy and McBiggin. "Ivy, I need you to convince them to join in on the fight, And Mcbiggin I want you to go with her for protection."

"I'll do my best."

"Yep"

"Good." Said Flame. "Do you have a map of Dawnhallow?"

"We do, give me a moment." Said Spitfire as she turned around holding out her hand. A light brown earth pony with a blond mane with blue tips that was pulled back in a ponytail walked over to Spitfire and handed her a map, Spitfire nodded at the stallion. "Thanks, Mars." Said Spitfire as she placed the map on the table.

Flame examined the map, the city was surrounded by high walls and many guard post, past the wall, the city was a maze of streets. "Ok, we should avoid using the streets at first, with all of those buildings, it's an ideal trap to take us out with archers. So once we take the city wall, we station all of the archers along the walls as they release volleys through the city. We let Serrata's golems run through the streets, as Shadow and the more agile of us make our way to the castle by rooftop. No doubt there will be many civilians hiding in their homes so we use the spellcasters to teleport them to safety. Do we have a rough idea of how many civilians are in the city?" Asked Flame looking at Spitfire.

"We do, last I heard there were only around 500 ponies still living in the city, the rest of the homes are being occupied by Sekto and his troops." Said, Spitfire.

"Good to know. How many of our spellcasters can teleport with multiple ponies, and how many can use a detect life spell?" Asked Flame.

"Most of them can teleport around 10 ponies a few miles, any more will be too much of a strain, as for the life spell, they all can."

"I can take around twenty in a single go, and with the help of Incantation we probably get around 35." Said Magic.

"Good, then I want groups of three to make trips in and out of the city before we get to the wall. Two spellcasters, one for each spell, and one fighter for protection. If we're quick enough we can save everyone before Sekto gets the idea to use the civilians as hostages."

Spitfire slowly grinned as she listened to the rest of the plan. The plan that she had thought up before was very crude and very unlikely to succeed, but with the aid of Flame and the others and as long as nothing goes wrong they could actually win.

Once Flame had finished, Spitfire looked at him and nodded. "It will take us about a week to get everything ready for the battle. Head back to the inn and get some rest." Said, Spitfire.

Flame and everyone nodded.

Flame was laying down on his bed thinking about the plan, but sleep was quickly taking hold of his mind, and soon he fell asleep. But before he was fully embraced by his pillow he mumbled, "Lunar Glare."

Flame dreamed of different scenarios while running various versions of a mock battle. Currently Flame was dreaming of the possibility of Sekto using small adorable cats to distract the rebels. He groaned at the absurd possibility of that actually happening. "No, and why cats? Dogs can be trained very easily, but cats can't, the phrase 'trying to herd cats' is a thing for a reason." Said Flame.

"I don't know, Discord did weirder back when he was still evil." Said a voice from behind Flame.

Flame turned around and noticed his aunt IRL walking over to him and watching the imaginary battle. "Good to see you Lunar, and what possibly would Discord of done that would make an army of cats seem practical?" Asked Flame.

"Goldfish. Not magic goldfish, just normal goldfish in small fishbowls." Said Lunar.

Flames dream changed to one similar to one that Lunar described. She saw the change in the dream and cocked an eyebrow. "Why did you change the cats to goldfish?"

"You have to remember Lunar, this world was created by Discord, I know he's changed but it's still Discord, nothing is out of the question when it comes to him."

Lunar nodded her head in agreement, as she noticed that the battlefield changed to one where an army of small tree golems rampaged through the city. "And what of this one Flame?"

"Serrata is going to unleash an army of tree golems after our initial siege, they will ram through any battlements Sektos troops will put up in the streets to slow the attack from reaching the palace. We have archers firing volleys of arrows as well." The dream then moved to focus on Flame and Shadow along with a flock of pegasi running and flying across the many rooftops of the city as they approach the palace. But before Lunar could see where this was going the dream paused mid-leap. Flame groaned. "This is the part I can't figure out, Spitfire didn't have a detailed map of the palace's interior, and from what I could gather from Fancy's knowledge of its interior was very limited." Said Flame as a not very detailed three dimensional model of the palace appeared. "From what Fancy told me, The main throne room is in the center of the palace, but in between the front gate and the throne room there are rooms and hidden passages, many of which he never saw." Said Flame as a large red dot popped into the throne room followed by a line starting from the front gate to the dot creating a visible path. "For all we know, those rooms could be filled with weapons or just some cleaning supplies. This is the most direct option and probably the riskiest, granted I could probably make it there alone relatively unhurt, but then I would have to face who knows how many troops that are protecting Sekto, and that's assuming that Sekto is even on the throne room, what if he is in the study or the war room?" Asked Flame as new lines appeared on the model going around the palace.

Lunar sighed as she placed her hand on Flame's shoulder. "Flame you must remember that even now, we have an ally in the palace." Said Lunar as she used her magic to pull up an image of Queen Solariea chained to the wall of her cell.

The image was more than a little rage-inducing for Flame, Queen Solariea was Celestia, and seeing the image of his mother imprisoned set something out from the depths of Spikes subconscious. Suddenly Lunar noticed a dark wisp slowly surround Spike, as the sound of a dark, sinister voice echoed in the dreamscape. "Look at her, our mother, we should kill the one who did this to her." Said the voice.

"No, I don't need you, I let you out before and that was real, this is a game created by Discord." Responded Spike slightly annoyed at the voice.

"But think about how easily we could save her, let me take control again, we rush into the palace, turn all of those who try to stop us into ash. Once everyone is dead, we save her. Isn't that what we want?"

"Yes, we want that, but that wouldn't be enough for you, would it?"

The voice chuckled darkly. "Awe, you know me so well, your right, I wouldn't stop there, it would be so easy to just stay in this world and rule, killing all that oppose us, having absolute power. We are a dragon, all we live for is wealth and power, but you are a disgrace to your heritage."

Spike quickly grabbed the upper portion of the wisp, pulled it close, and glared at it intensely. "No, you are the disgrace, so much so you are desperate to gain control over my body, you are not me, you are not a dragon, all you are is an overindulged thought of want. But instead of being a dream of being strong so I could help others, somehow you got corrupted and now all you stand for is Greed, wrath, and anger. I accidentally let you lose twice, and I regret both of those times. I will admit your words do hold some truth, I am not like other dragons, I don't hoard, I don't fight for fun, I barely eat meat. But you are a part of me, albeit a part I wish I didn't have, but a part of me nonetheless. I see us as two sides of the same coin. Without me, you would be nothing, and without you, I wouldn't be me, but until the day you see this fact yourself, you will stay away from my family." Said Spike as he threw the-wisp to the farthest parts of his mind. Spike then looked at Luna who was staring in shock at his control and chuckled sheepishly. "Sorry, you had to see him."

"Spike, who or what was that?" Asked Luna.

"That was me, more specifically that was me that wants power, gems, and anything valuable. He is my Greed, my anger, my hatred, and my...my....my.... let's just say he's everything that I'm not. I just call him Mal." Said Spike.

"How long has 'Mal' been here?" Asked Luna worried.

Spike chuckled. "To be honest, he's been alive as long as I have. Mom and Twi don't talk about what I was like when I was an infant, but part of me remembers. I was a pain in the ass back then, I hid from mom or Twi for hours and just watched them running around worried, I would steal Twilights notes or burn moms daily schedule, and they would play it off as a baby not understanding the difference between wrong and right so I always got away with it. But in truth, once was an accident, seven times was malicious, all those times were him, but every time I saw one of them start crying because of my bad behavior, thinking that they messed up somewhere when raising me, more of them started to show. Then the day I took over happened, I was like 2 years old and overheard one of the castle guards say the word 'bitch' as he talked about his cheating mare friend, and for some weird reason I liked that word so that night I called mom a bitch, I got grounded for a week, and was sent to my room, but he didn't want to stay in my room so we snuck out and walked around the castle. We walked past Mom's room and we heard her crying and saying 'I'm a horrible mother, where did I go wrong?' among other things. I was horrified to see her saying stuff like that about herself, while he was delighted at the sight. Then she said the words that broke my heart. 'Maybe I should return him to the dragon lands.'. When I heard that something inside of me grew, and grew until I became stronger than him. I forced him into the back of my mind and from that day I was in control. The next morning I apologized for saying that word and I became helpful and kind."

"But you said 'I let you lose twice'. When were those times?"

"Do you remember my tenth birthday?"

Luna nodded.

"Well, since I gained control, I didn't see him again until that day. I was young and naive, I thought he was gone and decided to lower my guard for just one day and enjoy my birthday. That was a mistake, he took over for a short time and my hoarding instincts kicked my growth into overdrive. Technically, I did rampage through Ponyville, but it wasn't me, it was him. But when I saw Rarity in my grasp, I was able to regain my control and reverse my growth. As for the second time, it was the time I was kidnapped by bandits, I let my anger take control when I heard them threatening the family, and then he stepped up. He bashed the outlaw's head in with a pipe after he pried the bars of my cell open. I was able to regain control after I saw what he had done. That was the first time I had killed someone."

"And how often does Mal pop up?"

"Every day, normally we only argue a little, and he is normally very weak, but as you saw, he found a way to wriggle his way up to me, when I saw mom chained up. This was actually the first time I had to throw him back by force, normally he would insult someone close to me and I'd gain the upper hand, but seeing her like that sent my rage through the roof. But now that I have so many years of experience it's taking a lot more for him to manifest, and as weird as it is to believe, I don't want him to just disappear. He is a part of me as much as I am to him. To me, he is sorta my brother, and I don't want to lose my family, but part of me thinks he will never accept this."

Luna started to chuckle. "I guess it runs in the family."

Spike looked at his aunt confused. "What runs in the family?" asked Spike.

"Aside from ungodly self-control. I had Nightmare moon when I felt underappreciated, Tia has Daybreaker when she gets stressed and wants to find the easy way out, Twilight might be just as vulnerable as her human counterpart becoming Midnight Sparkle from overwhelming power, and you have Mal. Spike we all have our demons, and each of us deals with them daily, but occasionally they pop up. Just look at what happened yesterday when Twilight reached the old castle, and the day before, your mother was on the verge of losing control, and I nearly lost control when Starlight switched our cutie marks."

"God, this family needs some therapy, don't we?"

"Yeah, but I don't think any pony is qualified enough to handle that much."

Spike then looked determined. "Aunt Luna, can you bring back the picture of mom for a moment?"

"Do you think that is wise?" Asked Luna worried that Mal will pop up again.

"Yeah, Mal's done for the day, I need to make a promise."

Luna returned the image of the imprisoned queen. Spike walked over to it. "Mom, I promise you I will not let Mal out ever again, and I promise to save you as soon as possible." Said Spike as he looked at the memories.

Spike then looked at Luna. "Lunar, we need a more detailed map of the palace. How long would it take to scan the memories of the castle's staff and construct the model?"

Lunar smirked. "What do you think I do when I'm not giving you some mental help, sit on my flank." Said Lunar as she conjured a much more detailed map of the palace and the city it surrounds. "First off Solariea is here." Said Lunar pointing to an underground room. "And most of the time Sekto is here, in the war room plotting his armies attack on those who still fight him." Added Lunar as she pointed to a room right above the throne room. "Normally he is surrounded by no less than 20 guards chosen by him personally. So you will indeed need support from the others."

Lunar then made multiple x's on the map showing potential entry points. "In my opinion, you have 5 good points of entry, that would lead you to either Sekto or Solariea. First is the main entrance, like you said there are many hidden rooms full of both weapons and some are full of cleaning supplies, this path is, in my opinion, is suicide."

"Agreed."

"The second is going to be difficult for anyone who can't fly, but if we can infiltrate from the highest tower and fight our way down we can secure parts of the palace as we go. This leaves many undesirable openings, if we are unable to fend off their defenses we will be trapped, but if we do make it to Sekto we will be tired from fighting, and lastly, this will allow for information between Sekto and his troops to flow naturally."

"The less they know about what's happening, the better for everyone."

"The third option is we wait till the city is ours and we go in for a full-force attack on the castle from all sides. This is our forces full, all directed at our goal. This is favorable in many ways but will force Sektos hand into doing drastic measures. Most likely including executing Solariea."

"If he touches a single hair on her head, I will kill him without mercy."

"And that would probably let Mal out, and I refuse to let that happen. Next, we have the first option focusing on Solarieas rescue then having her help beat Sekto. We fight past the main gates and instead of heading for the war room, we turn and head to the dungeons, this is not a bad option but it still has its negatives. Our fighting will alert many of the guards, and it will take time for us to return from the dungeons with Solariea, this will allow for Sekto to be moved and for more of the guards to regroup and set up defenses."

"Agreed, we may have saved her, but we still need to fight a full army, and we will be tired, even with the help of Solariea it's still going to difficult."

"Precisely, that is why I suggest we use the element of surprise to infiltrate the castle quietly and eliminate any guards in the halls, then we will either assume their positions, allowing for easy access to Solariea. Once she is free we can regroup all of the disguised rebels and face Sekto with our full force."

"I'm sensing a 'but' in this plan."

"...But this would be nearly impossible with a large group, so a small group of well-trained ponies would be best for the infiltration. Less support, more enemies per head, and vulnerable to an ambush." Added Lunar.

"So it's either, head-on fights, or slow and be out-matched?" Asked Flame.

Lunar nodded. "Yes."

Flame sighed, but then thought of a new plan. "What about a mass sneak attack?"

"That is a contradiction in terms, but let's hear it."

"I have trained Char and her swarm in scouting and infiltration, they can increase the potency of their venom which can incapacitate ponies with just one bite. So we have them sneak into the palace, having them move on the ceiling, when I give them the signal they attack all the guards in the halls leading to the dungeon and the throne room. This eliminates the threat of the guards, letting us conserve our stamina, and this will also allow us to bring in more of our forces without the possibility of being found out."

"A very practical plan, but there are a few problems, first won't you need the Bolamites during the fight, and how will you signal them?"

"No, I'm not going to need them for the fight. I'm not planning on leaving Sekto alive. As for how I'm going to signal Char and the rest, I'm going to use my 'roar'. It's strong enough to get the point across." Said Flame.

"This will definitely aid in the attack. But if I could just make one suggestion." Suggested Lunar.

Flame nodded. "I'm all ear fin." Said Flame as he wiggled his ear frills.

"The one called Celestial Gem, could she cast a powerful illusion spell on you to change your appearance to one of a fully-grown dragon. From what I have seen, dragons in this world can be just as terrifying as back in Equestria, and the sight of a massive dragon combined with your roar will scare many of the enemies."

"It's possible, we have about a week until the battle. I'll talk to Gem about it when I wake up."

"Marvelous!" Said Lunar happy. "I'll pop over to the one called Confetti's dream and ask her to write up the plan, knowing her, she will have a copy for everyone in the morning."

"Ok." Said Flame. "Hey Aunt Luna, thanks for helping me work through some things." Said Spike.

"Your welcome Spike, Just tell me if you ever want to talk. Your Auntie Woona will always make time to see you. But I would like for you to tell Tia about Mal when we return, can you do that?" Asked Luna.

"Yeah, I will. See you later Luna, have a good night."

"And you have a good morning. Also, you will be woken up in ten seconds. The sun is about to hit your face."

Spike groaned in annoyance. "Have I ever told you how much I hate the flow of time in dreams?"

"Yes, yes you have." Giggled Luna as she slowly disappeared.

Flames dreamscape went black as in the distance a bright light shined.

In the morning Flame gathered everyone except Fancy and informed them of his past interactions with Lunar. " So, I know I should have told you all, but last night I talked with Luna, she helped me deal with some problems I was having."

"Spike what kind of problems?" Asked Twilight worried.

"Twi, do you remember what I was like when I was only about 1, and how one day my personality just did a 180?" Asked Spike.

Twilight nodded. "Yes, you would steal my notes and hide around the castle for hours, but you were just a baby back then, you didn't know any better. But what does that have to do with anything?"

"Everything, I never told you or Mom, but back then I wasn't in control of my body during that time of my life. The day I was born I was in control, but soon after when you or mom would leave me to study or attend day court, I was alone, I was so alone that something inside of me was born from the lack of attention. I called him Mal, he took control of my body for a while. He was the one who stole your notes and burned mom's daily schedule, he was also the one who would hide and watch you two run around like chickens looking for me. Mom probably never told you about this, but one day I heard a royal guard complain about his mare friend cheating on him, he said bitch a lot. Mal liked that word and that night he called mom a bitch, she got mad and grounded me for a week. But Mal had other plans, we left our room and walked around the castle and found mom crying about how she was a horrible mother, but then she said 'Maybe I should return him to the dragon lands.' and that broke my heart, but this also let me regain control over my body and banish Mal to the farthest parts of my mind."

Twilight was shocked. "Why have you never said anything about this?"

Spike sighed. "Because if I did then you would blame yourselves, he was most likely born from my loneliness, and what would you of done?" Spike looked straight at her. "Twilight, you lived for your studies, and mom had to run the nation. What if I did tell you, would you give up your studies, or would mom leave the throne to spend time with me? No, and I didn't want you to. Mal is a manifestation of everything I wanted. He is greedy, for what I truly don't know, but I think he is greedy for the time you two would spend with me, and he wanted more. I wanted to be stronger so I could help you and mom, Mal wants to be strong for the power. So from my wants, he was corrupted into what he is now."

"How do you deal with Mal?" Asked AJ.

"At first I didn't have to, after I regained control of my body, I didn't see hide nor hair of him until my tenth birthday."

"So that wasn't you rampaging through town?" Asked Rarity.

"That's right, Mal was gone for nearly eight years, I thought I could just relax for one day and enjoy my birthday. But when my hoarding instinct started working, he regained control. He was the one rampaging through the town, stealing everything. But when I saw Rarity, I was able to confront him, I regained my control and returned to normal. But since then I would have daily arguments with him. Some would be about trivial things, others were about how I was treated by everyone, but he was weak and I would just toss him away."

"What causes Mal to take over?" Asked Pinkie.

"It could be anything but, greed, anger, jealousy, and annoyance are his big triggers. Every time I give a snarky comeback, that's him. Every time I get angry, he seeps out and yells. When Owlicious showed up, it was my jealousy that let him make me want to frame him with that stupid fake mouse, and you saw what happened when I became greedy."

"So you have a hold on him?" Asked Rainbow Dash.

Spike nodded. "That's right, every day I control my greed, quell my anger, ignore my jealousy, and playoff my annoyance, all in the means of suppressing Mal from regaining control. But over the years, I was able to keep such a stronghold on him that now he is starting to struggle even showing up. I think he is going to just disappear soon."

"Isn't that a good thing?" Asked RD.

"If you asked me that before I was sent to Mudos, I would say yes, but now I'm not sure. He has been with me for all my life, he knows my fears, my hopes, my dreams, and my triggers, and I know the same about him. He is part of me and I am a part of him."

"And where is Mal right now?" Asked Fluttershy.

"He is back in the corner of my mind, but last night he was able to pop up, where he tried to convince me to let him take control and fight the battle to save mom. But then he would stay in control and take over the kingdom."

"That's horrible, thank goodness you stopped him." Said Starlight.

"Yeah." Said Spike. Spike then turned to Twilight. "Twi, I know this is a lot to take in right now, and I promise we will talk about this more, but right now we need to save mom from Sekto, so once we get back from the Crystal Empire we will talk about it."

"Very well, Spike I trust in your abilities to handle Mal, and I'm so proud of you for keeping him in check."

"Thanks." Said Spike as he returned to Flame. "So now that that's out of the way, let's get Fancy Pants in the conversation so I can tell you all about the plan me and Lunar came up with." Said Flame as he looked to Confetti. "Confetti do you have the plans Lunar entrusted you to make?"

The naga nodded and pulled out a large stack of the copied plan so everyone would be able to know their roles.

By now it was late afternoon and Fancy had joined in on the plan's debriefing. "... And once we have taken a secure area near the palace, I will release Char and her swarm and let them get ready to strike. When they are ready I will signal them with my roar. This will have two effects, one is the signal and the other, if Gem can create an illusion of agreed growth dragon, will scare all the guards and possibly cause a break in their defenses, that we can then exploit. Once all of the guards are incapacitated, we infiltrate and assume the guard's positions leading to the dungeons, where we will free Solariea. Once she's free everyone will regroup and face Sekto."

"This sounds like a great plan Flame."

"We wouldn't have it without Lunar." Said Flame. "Confetti makes sure all of the rebels get a copy of the plan so no one messes up, and so they know what we will need in terms of supplies."

"On it." Said Confetti as she returned the copies of the plan to her mane and just sat there. This was very confusing to everyone as it contradicted the nagas very excitable personality.

"Um...Confetti are you going to get going?" Asked Serrata.

"Hum... Oh, no need, they all have been delivered and plans are being made." Giggled Confetti.

"But you didn't move!" Shouted Fancy Pants.

Flame placed a hand on Fancy's shoulder and shook his head. "Just don't question it, if she says it's done, it's done."

Fancy facepalmed and sighed. "Ok."

"Good." Said Flame. He then looked at everyone in the room. "So we have about a week to get ready for the battle, lets all split up and go do some training to make sure we are at our best for the battle. Wuzz your to make sure you're hitting the bullseye every time."

"On it." Said Wuzz as he left the room.

"Magic and Incantation, practice teleportation and detect life spells, then when you have that down change over to offensive spells. You don't know when you're going to be attacked."

"Not a problem, come on Incantation." Incantation nodded as she and Magic left the room to start training.

"Ivy, I want you to go on ahead with McBiggin and start rounding up the animals near Dawnhallow. Here's a map of the area." Said Flame giving the map to Ivy. "Remember we need everything except the deer's." Flame then looked at McBiggin. "Biggin you're in charge of her safety."

"I'll do my best/ Yep." said the two as they left the meeting.

"Serrata, you have a large amount of magic but you lack control. So I want you to head out of the city and increase the number of golems you can control. We need at least 3 mighty oaks, and ten Bloomberg's."

Serrata shrugged. "It can't be any worse than apple harvest season. But it's going to take some work." Said Serrata.

"I know, but we all believe in you." Said Flame as everyone nodded.

"Thanks. I won't let you all down." Said Serrata as she left to start her training.

"Fancy I want you to head back to the rebel HQ and whip the fighters into shape."

"Not a problem brother." Said Fancy as he walked to the ground floor and opened the trap door to inform Spitfire of his training mission.

"Confetti, there are going to be a lot of scared ponies who we have rescued. I need you to step up your game. I don't want your run of the mill Confetti party, I want the Confetti party to end all Confetti parties, then I want you to turn it up to 15. Ponies are going to see many things and you are the only one we can trust with this task. I need you to promise me you will give it your all."

Confetti gasped and then her face changed to an uncharacteristically serious one. Confetti then pulled out a military helmet colored Pink and yellow and gave Flame a salute with one hand, and she used the other to do the actions of a Confetti promise. "Cross my heart, hope to fly, stick a million cupcakes in my eye." Said Confetti as she slithered off to gather her supplies.

Flame then looked at Shadow. "Shadow, I'm a betting dragon, and I know you're a betting mare, so how about a little wager?"

"what do you have in mind?"

"I want you to stay in the city and hone your stealth and speed. So for the whole time, I want you to not be seen by anyone, as you make your way from one side of the city to the other. But if you're spotted even once you have to retry that run."

"What are the stakes?"

"If you can go one full day without getting spotted, I will use my powers as a prince to get you the full series of Daring Do books, signed by Daring Do her self, and I'll throw in a chance to join me in a bounty job."

Flame heard a gasp from Gem and gave her a look. "Yes, Rarity I am planning to help Equestria, not only as a prince but as a bounty hunter capturing dangerous criminals every so often. And yes I was planning on telling both Mom and Twi after we get back."

The flame then returned his attention to Shadow. "And what do you get if you win?"

"A few things to be honest. First I want you to wear a dress designed by the succubus in the room to the Crystal Fair next week, and on the last day of the fair I want to hear the words 'I am not the greatest' coming out of your mouth." Flame then heard some squeaking coming from his bag. "... And Banger wants you to teach him how to reach the speed of sound."

Rainbow thought for a few moments, as she weighed the pros and cons. After a few moments, she responded "Deal." Said Rainbow.

Flame smiled, but Rainbow added one condition. "But if I do lose, can the dress not be too frilly?"

Flame looked at Gem. "It's up to you."

Gem looked at Shadow and thought. "Even though I have dreamed of the day I could put you into something frilly, I don't think it would look appropriate on you."

Hearing this made Shadow smile. " You have yourself a deal." Said Shadow as she quickly opened the window of the room and jumped out to the streets.

Flame then turned to the only other person in the room. "That leaves you Gem, I need you to increase your magical control. From what you have told me, you were able to maintain an illusion of around two hundred ponies back in Ravengrove for a few minutes, but those didn't have to move or make sounds, all of that will consume your magic. That's not going to cut it this time. I need you to maintain the spell for at least fifteen minutes on a much bigger scale. So head to the forest with Serrata and practice on her Golems, from what I can gather, one Bloomberg is equal to 25 ponies, and as you heard 4 Bloomberg's equal to one slightly smaller greed dragon-sized mighty oak. So in total one oak is equal to 100 ponies. But we need you to make an image of a fully grown dragon like the one that was snoring smoke, and this one needs to be moving around. Without you we will have a harder time getting to the palace, can you do this?"

"I will try my best," responded Gem, as she left the room to allow Flame to plan his training.

Once Flame was alone he removed his bag and opened it to talk to the 'family'. "Ok guys, we need to talk."

Flame pulled out Sparks. "Sparks, I need you to store as much power as you can, we're going into the fights of our lives." Sparks buzzed fiercely. "Good." Flame placed him into his tube so the Zappflys can get ready.

Next Flame pulled out Fang and Banger. "You two, we are going to war, I need you both to let loose your full power, I know its stressful for all of you to go through the change, but I have a feeling we will need it." Fang and Banger nodded as they slowly started to change. Bangers wings grew slightly longer as one of his eyes closed and was replaced by an eye patch. Then multiple sticks of explosives started to grow out of his head. Fang's fur grew longer as the sounds of bones snapping and reconnecting was heard as Fang's mouth and jaws grew larger to accommodate his now three-inch-long razor-sharp teeth. "Thank you guys, I know it's hard for you all, but I think this is a necessary evil." Said Flame as he placed the two into their tubes.

Flame then pulled out Wallop and Queen. "Wallop, Queen, we're going to war soon, and we're going to need everything we got." Both Wallop and Queen nodded at the request. Wallop's shell became many times harder and changed color to a light purple, as his eye color changed from its dark red color to blue. As Queens natural yellow color darkened to orange, her normally black compound eyes changed to blue and she grew two more setts on her face, her wings grew longer as her main stinger grew longer and two more slightly smaller stingers popped out of her thorax. "Thank you, guys." Said Flame as he let them go back into their tubes.

Flame pulled out Alvin and Belch, and Alvin was about to start an insulting match but was stopped by Flame. "Alvin now is not the time, I need you both to change and get ready for war." Said Flame in a stern voice.

Alvin saluted and shut up, as his tail slowly split in half, and reformed into a pair of megaphones above his head, and half of his whiskers combined and became a microphone. "YES SIR WE WON'T LET YOU DOWN." Said Alvin, but due to the megaphones, it was more yelling.

Flame nodded, and then he looked to the scared Stunkz who has not changed. "Belch, I know you're scared of the change, but I need you to do this. Celestia is in trouble, and without you, we will be in trouble". When Belch heard this news, something in his head flipped. Like Alvin, his tail split into two parts. Belch moved one half to cover his face, and that part slowly changed into a gas mask, as the other part of his tail became flatter. Belches natural black and white colors changed as well, his black became lighter and changed to a toxic green color, as his white color became a dirty yellow. Thanks to the change, his body was now producing more potent gas, and it is so strong that visible stink lines were produced by his body.

"Thank you both." Flame then looked at Belch. "Belch, I need you to change the chemical composition of the gas, we need less nap, more blast." Belch nodded and went into his tube. Flame then looked at Alvin and smirked. "Don't forget to bring your best material, you overrated excuse for a politician's pet rat, but then again one of my shits sounds louder than you, so I don't expect much, but I need you to keep them safe."

Alvin nodded and gave Flame a salute before he hopped into his tube.

Flame then reached into his bag and pulled out Char. "Char, it's time for the change." Said Flame simply. Char was shocked and began to sign. Flame responded as best as he could. "Yes I know it's hard for you all, we need your more potent venom, Celestia is in trouble and you're an integral part of the plan to save her." Char was not happy but she looked at the seriousness of Flame's face and sighed. Her body slowly grew larger, as her black widow design shifted to a darker shade of red, her normal dark color brightened a few shades and her limbs grew longer as more hairs sprouted. Her fangs which would cause a few moments of pain with a single bite elongated and thickened, as her venom sacks started to produce more potent venom. Once the change was finished Char began to sign again. "Look, I know you feel uncomfortable about the changes, but you will always be my little Charlotte." Said Flame as he affectionately rubbed her head. Char signed once more. "You know it, but it's not luck, plus you look cute too." Said Flame as Char walked her way to her tube.

Now that all of the ammo has gone through the change, Flame sighed and walked out of the room, then out of the inn, and then out of the city to begin his training.

Game Night pt.5 (Final part)

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It's been a week since Flame and the others had started their training. In that time Flame had no contact with the others to allow for maximum training time, but it was time to return. He walked into the Boneless in and greeted the rebel agent turned innkeeper. "Cheese, how are the preparations going?" Asked Flame.

Cheese smiled at Flame as he walked into the rebel's establishment. "They are finished, Spitfire is out gathering all of the stationed agents around the town and sending out the call to the other towns so they can get ready to move out." Said Cheese.

"Good to hear, has any of the others returned yet?" Asked Flame.

But before Cheese could respond another voice spoke. "...And to no ponies' surprise you are the last one to show up, you still act like that same lazy dragon whelp from all those years ago." Said Magic Circle as she walked down the stairs.

"And without a doubt, you probably woke up this morning at the crack of dawn." Retorted Flame.

"Awe, you know me so well." Said Magic as she used her magic and levitated Flame into a hug. "I hated the fact I couldn't see you for a week. I missed you."

"Twilight it was only a week, I used to spend twice that staying with mom during the holidays. But yeah I missed you too." Said Spike as he returned the hug.

They broke the hug and smiled at each other. "So how late am I?" Asked Flame.

"Not by much, Fancy just returned not five minutes ago, follow me." Said Magic as she walked upstairs.

As the two were walking, Flame wanted to hear about how Magic's and Incantation's training went. "So Magic how was your training?"

Magic looked at Flame and smiled. "It went well, now both me and Incantation can teleport a total of fifty ponies at once, we are also adept at using elemental magic attacks, I'm good with air, water, and fire magic, while Incantation can use, fire, earth, and water spells." Responded Magic as they reached the room. Flame opened it and instantly noticed a difference in everyone.

Fancy was the first to notice Flame's entrance. "It's good to see you, brother." Said Fancy as he smiled.

Flame returned the smile. "The same to you Fancy, how are the rebels?" Asked Flame.

"Believe it or not they are almost as good as me." Said, Fancy.

Flame nodded. "Good to hear." Said Flame. He then looked at everyone. "How was everyone's training?"

"Mine was good, I was able to control all the golems I summoned." Said Serrata as she shrugged. "Apparently it ain't much different from running a whole farm, or being the leader of the earth team during winter wrap up."

"As for me, I was able to pin a fly to a target from 200 meters without killing it." Said Wuzz.

"I was able to change all three of Serrata's Might Oaks to look like a full-grown version of you for nearly ten minutes. So if I only have to focus on one target we will be fine." Said Gem.

Flame was waiting for Confetti to say something but she had a serious look on her face. Seeing this made Flame nervous. "Confetti how was your training?" Asked Flame.

Confetti looked Flame dead in the eyes and responded in a serious tone. "I've seen things, wondrous, joyful things, I have found love in the arms of a stallion, I joined a band, we played all around the world but after some creative differences we split up, I started a school for party planners and watched my life's work flourish when the first graduating class received their diplomas, I climbed the world's largest mountains, swam across oceans, Bungy jumped over a river of crocodiles, and I found the true meaning of parties." Said Confetti as she took a sip of punch she didn't have a moment ago.

"You did all that in a week?" Asked Gem.

Confetti nodded.

"What is the true meaning of parties?" Asked Flame generally interested.

Confetti smiled for the first time and giggled in her normally bubbly way. "To have fun, silly dragon." Smiled Confetti. Everyone's facepalmed at the answer.

"Were you able to get everything you needed ready for the battle?" Asked Flame.

Confetti giggled. "Of course, I had all of that ready in the first five minutes of leaving the room."

"Good." Said Flame. He then looked at Shadow.

Shadow groaned. "I was about to win, but that dumb kid was walking out of his house and noticed me right before I touched the wall." Said Shadow.

Flame walked over to shadow and gave her a pat on the back, "Hey I was planning on letting you join me anyways when you had time, and the offer still stands, as for the books, I was going to ask Daring to join me as well, next time we meet up for lunch, your welcome to join us." Said Spike.

Rainbow looked at Spike in shock as she began to stammer. "You...kn-know...Dar-Daring Do?!" Yelled Rainbow.

"Where do you think she stores all the dangerous artifacts that a normal museum can't handle? She and Mom would talk for hours about how and where she got it. One day mom was busy and I greeted her at the gate, we talked, became friends, and decided to have lunch whenever she's in town."

"AND YOU NEVER THOUGHT TO TELL ME?" Yelled Rainbow. Spike was slightly annoyed as he pushed Rainbows to face away.

"I did tell you, multiple times in fact. But you were lost in your own world." Said Spike.

"Oh. Sorry." Said Rainbow sheepishly.

"It's cool, but one thing, no fangaseming when you see her." Said Spike as Rainbow nodded.

"So Flame, how was your training?" Asked Magic.

"Everyone has gotten used to the change now, and I have made some slight upgrades to my crossbow." Said Flame showing off his crossbow. "First I changed the strings out with some of Chars most elastic threads, allowing for faster launch speeds everyone can reach, I also added some gages to measure how many of everyone I have left, and lastly I added some reinforced metal that I found in a cave to the bow limbs, this helps to counteract how much power everyone is giving off when they launch."

"What do you mean change, what happened to Sparks and the rest?" Asked Magic.

"Nothing too major." Said Flame as he started to explain. "You see, back in Mudos, there is this specialty shop that sells equipment to bounty hunters like myself. At the time, I was getting ready to go on a very dangerous job, so I decided to stop in and get stocked up. That day the owner was selling a line of enhancers for living ammo. I bought all of them, except the one for Zappflys, that one was still in the works and wasn't available. I used them on the family and this is what happened to them." Said Flame as all eight popped out of Flames bag and showed themselves to everyone.

"I know they look very different right now, but their powers got a major boost, but it came with a cost, the first day I used the enhancer on them they went crazy for two days, then after the two days, they changed back to normal. After that, they seemed to be able to change in between their forms at will, it used to take a lot out of them and they were useless for a day, so we didn't rely on the change in fear of then losing control again. But now they have been like this for a week and the only difference is Alvin is only slightly more intelligent than a sack of Clakerz shit." Said Flame.

"Oh bite me, you walking belt not even a blind person would buy." Insulted Alvin.

Flame sighed. "See what I mean, how does a blind person know where to find a belt let alone know if it's ugly." Said Flame. Everyone nodded.

"Are they really ok?" Asked Magic worried about them.

Flame nodded. "They are, it just places a strain on their bodies when they change back to normal. This is the first time they have been in this form for so long."

"If you say so, but I want to hear their opinion." Said Magic. All eight nodded. Magic sighed and nodded her head. "Fine, I believe them." Said Magic.

Flame nodded. "Now that that's all settled, let's head down to meet Spitfire and the rest of the rebels." Said Flame walking out the door.

Flame and group arrived in the large cavern and noticed how empty it was. The cavern was like a ghost town as a lone tumbleweed rolled by. Flame Looked in the direction of where the tumbleweed came from and noticed Confetti had a sheepish look on her face. "Sorry, but you were thinking it too, and you know it."

But before Flame could chastise her another voice interrupted. "I agree, in the last week this place has done a 180, its now only occupant is me." Said Spitfire as she walked out of one of the side tunnels holding a map of their traveling routes.

"Hey Spitfire. Can I assume that you are the only one here because everyone else is already making their way to the outskirts of Dawnhallow?" Asked Flame.

Spitfire nodded. "You assume correctly. Thanks to Lord Fancy Pants all of the rebels are in tip-top shape, and they are currently on the move as of a few hours ago."

Flame nodded. "Good, can I also assume you all received a copy of the plan?" Asked Flame.

Spitfire nodded. "Again you are correct, and might I say, this plan is very un-conventual, but still holds many aspects of a true tactician."

Flame smiled at the compliment. "Thanks, and as for that un-conventual comment, if you haven't noticed I'm not the most conventual dragon and neither is my party." Said Flame.

"So true. But let's continue our discussion on the weirdness of you and your party on the road. It takes a pony three days by wagon to arrive at the gates of Dawnhallow from Thorngarde, and the others are a few hours ahead of us." Said Spitfire as she walked past the dragon and his party and walked through the tunnel back to the Boneless inn to gather the last two agents in the rebellion. Spitfire looked back and noticed everyone was still standing there, she became cross. "DID I STUTTER SOMETHING, GET A MOVE ON NOW!" Yelled Spitfire, as the echoes reverberated around the cavern.

Everyone was nervous, and scared at the same time, as they all quickly matched her speed and returned to the Boneless inn's secret entrance.

Once everyone was back at the inn, Spitfire shouted. "I found a rubber chicken in a cherry tree."

The moment that phrase finished both agents appeared in front of their leader. The cheese was now dressed in a two-tone gray poncho and a matching hat, as what would appear to be two writs mounted mini party cannons were attached to his wrist. Cherry was now dressed in a red and yellow western burlesque outfit, with dozens of throwing knives strapped to the outfit. "Agent Bread, and Agent Red reporting ma'am." Said the two salutings.

"Good, get ready to move out. You have five minutes."

It took them three minutes even to have everything ready. Spitfire looked impressed. "That would have been an academy record." She then looked at the dragon and his group. "I have readied your wagon and it is waiting outside of the inn for us to use."

"I was wondering why our wagon was outside when I arrived, so thank you." Said Flame as he looked at the fiery mare in front of him. Flame then smirked and opened the door for her. "Ladies first."

Spitfire giggled. "Thank you." Said Spitfire as she walked to the wagon.

Flame then looked at the rest of the ponies in the inn. "I'm not just holding this door open for my health." Said Flame as he motioned for everyone to leave the inn.

After a few more moments of holding the door open, Flame was the last one in the inn and before he closed the door he locked it. Flame walked to the wagon and jumped onto the driver's position. Flame then looked to his side and smiled at the rebel commander. She returned the gesture. Flame then looked at the ponies in the back who nodded at the dragon as Fancy Pants powered up his horn and started the spell that made the wagon move. Soon they left the town of Thorngarde.

It had been three days since our collection of rebels and adventurers have left Thorngarde, and now they were setting up a camp for their assault on the capital scheduled for tomorrow. Flame was setting up a tent for him and Fancy as he heard the sounds of a massive pony right behind him. Only one pony brave enough to approach a dragon from behind and that's because he knows he would be able to just punch the dragon out cold. "Good to see you McBiggin. How did it go?"

"Good." Said McBiggin

"And Ivy?" Asked Flame.

"With the girls catching up."

Flame nodded. "Were you able to get the animals to help?" Asked Flame.

"Yes and no."

Flame sighed. "Who do we have?" Asked Flame.

"Well, we have the Timberwolves, Manticores, wolfs, bears, and deer. But the Hydra was adamant of not wanting to have anything to do with ponies." Said McBiggin.

"Good, but what's with the deer?" Asked Flame, confused by how deer would be useful.

"It turns out they are actually pretty strong, as well as fast. Ivy thought they would be perfect for running supplies to the troops."

Flame was surprised, but he nodded. "Hey, good thinking, I never thought of that." Admitted Flame.

"Flame, get some rest, we're going to be going through a lot tomorrow, and we need you rested." Said McBiggin.

"I know, Spitfire has ordered a mandatory light out at sundown, so we have a few more hours of daylight left, lets head to the others and chat." Said Flame.

McBiggin nodded as the two walked over to the group of girls and joined in on the conversation.

A few hours later Flame and Fancy were asleep in their tent. Flame was talking in his sleep and muttered. "Lunar Glare."

Inside the dragon dreamscape, he was watching an imaginary walkthrough of the battle. Running the plan as a whole. "Should I expect Mal to pop up tonight?" Asked Lunar as she appeared in the dreamscape.

Flame turned around and shook his head. "No, Mal's still out of it after last time."

"Good. So are you ready?" Asked Lunar.

Flame nodded. "I am, so is everyone else, Serrata was able to up her control on her golems, and Gem was able to change the appearance of all three mighty oaks for ten minutes at once so she should be able to maintain the spell for a good while when the time is right."

Lunar then noticed that deer were running around the battlefield and she became confused. "Is this a scenario where Sekto will use deer to fight the rebels?"

Flame laughed. "No, Ivy breeze thought it would be a good use of their speed and strength, so we'll get them to run supplies or messages between the rebels. In a battle, what are you more focused on in the middle of a fight: A pony with a sword aiming to kill you, or a seemingly scared deer that just happened to run into town during the battle?" Asked Flame.

"I see your point." Said Lunar as she looked at the tired dragon. Lunar became concerned. "Flame how many times have you watched this battle?"

"Tonight: 23 times, Since we came up with the plan: over six hundred." Said Flame.

Luna sighed and used her magic and made the scenario vanish. Flame looked at Lunar and only found the disappointed look of his aunt, it was directed right at him. "What's wrong Aunt Luna?"

"Aside from the fact you're running yourself ragged, not much." Said Luna as she used her magic and levitated her nephew over to a dream bed she made appear. She placed Spike into the bed.

"Aunt Luna, what are you doing?" Said Spike as he struggled to break free from the bed's magical hold on him.

Luna sighed at the struggling dragon. "Spike please stop struggling, It no uses, that bed was made with my magic, and you're not strong enough to beat me in my domain." Said Luna. Hearing this made Spike stop struggling as the very inviting feeling of a pillow under his head was slowly making him nod off.

"But Aunt Luna, I need to make sure the plan goes accordingly." Said Spike as he started to lose control of his eyelids.

Luna walked over to the bed and took a seat on the edge as she slowly rubbed Spike's head. "Spike you have spent the last week getting ready for this fight, you are ready along with all of the others. But a person is only as strong as their mind is sharp. And dear nephew, your mind has become dull from lack of rest, so for now sleep and …." Said Luna before she heard the sound of snoring coming from the dragon. Luna giggled quietly as to not wake spike up. She then leaned down and kissed the sleeping dragon on the forehead. Luna then stood up and was about to check on the others but was stopped when she heard Spike muttering in his sleep.

"Love you Auntie Woona." Muttered Spike.

"I love you too, Spike, do your best tomorrow." Said Luna as she disappeared.

Spike was able to rest his mind for the rest of the night.

Flame was awakened by Fancy nudging him. "Flame wake up its time for the attack to begin."

Flame grumbled and tried to return to his sleep. "Not now Fancy, I don't want to hear about what you and Fleur did last night unless it means I'm becoming an uncle." Mumbled Flame still mostly asleep.

Fancy tried to stifle a laugh, tried being the keyword, and the whole camp could hear the sounds of the lord of Ravengrove laughing his ass off.

Flame was fully awakened by the sound of Fancy's laughing and looked confusingly at the laughing stallion. "Um Fancy what's so funny?"

Fancy stopped his laughing fit and looked Flame right in the eyes, and decided to divulge the secret he has been keeping for the last week. "Well, the night before we left Ravengrove, I took Fleur to our bedchambers, we spent the night in each other's embrace." Said Fancy giggling at the look he was getting from the dragon.

"Fancy, why the hell are you telling me this?" Yelled Flame in embarrassment.

"Well, you asked me to tell you what I and Fleur did last night if it meant you would be an uncle." Said Fancy smiling fully.

It took a few moments for the last two or so minutes of the conversation to be pieced together. Once it did Flames jaw dropped. "Really?"

Fancy still smiled as he nodded his head, as he pulled out a letter he had received the night before they left for Dawnhallow. "It's from Fleur. She said that a few days after we left for Thorngarde, she woke up very nauseous and she started to vomit in the morning. She thought it was just sickness but Randolph wasn't going to take the chance and requested the best doctor in all of Ravengrove to give her a full exam. He found two heartbeats. Two. Do you know what that means?" Said Fancy shaking the dragon.

"That my soon to be niece or nephew will have a dad with only one good arm if he doesn't stop shaking me." Said Flame still being shaken.

Fancy stopped shaking the dragon and looked sheepish. Flame smiled at the stallion and pulled him into a hug. "Congratulations Fancy. Now I have all the more reason to make sure we defeat Sekto. I refuse to let my niece or nephew be born into a world ruled by a megalomaniacal dictator. Plus if you die, Fleur would hunt me down to the farthest corners of the world, pregnant or not." Joked Flame. Fancy nodded in agreement. They both laughed.

A few minutes later Flame and Fancy arrived at the final battle meeting, and the battle was only moments away from the beginning. Spitfire, Fancy, and Flame were all standing in front of a very weird collection of fighters. Timberwolves were sitting next to a group of ponies, while a pack of wolfs were playing with the Manticores. A bear was arm-wrestling with a fiery orange pegasus mare dressed in a full set of heavy metal armor and a large war hammer on her back, as the rest of the bears and the ponies were cheering for their respective teams. But two ponies were cheering very loudly, one was a red pegasus with messy blue hair with green tips and a pair of daggers strapped to his hips, and the other was another pegasus with red and black hair and tail, she had a lot of throwing knives with yellow stones on the pommel strapped to her body. Flame looked at the very odd combination of creatures. He then looked at Spitfire. She turned to the dragon. "It's your plan, you're in charge." Said, Spitfire.

Flame sighed and calmed himself. "Attention!" Yelled the dragon as he pulled out all of the ammo tubes from underneath his crossbow mounting. Flame then released all of the contents of the tube and in an instant, the area was full of Flame's entire ammo supply. This gained everyone's attention. "Today is the day we have trained for, today we defeat Sekto and save Queen Solariea." Yelled Flame. "I know we all have read the battle plan already but I want to make sure." Flame looked at Ivy Breeze. "Ivy Breeze is in charge of the animals. The deer will be our main means of communications and supplies, both Timberwolves and Manticores will be aiding in the attack when we gain control of the streets. The Wolfs and bears will be in charge of returning any injured back to our base camp, bears are to carry the injured and the wolves are protected. Is that understood?"

All the animals nodded or howled in agreement.

Flame then looked at Magic and incantation. "Magic and Incantation are the leaders of the spell casters. I want teams of three spell casters accompanied by at least two fighters lead by McBiggin and Fancy Pants. One of the spell casters will locate civilians, one will teleport them out of the war zone, and the last will be for added defense and to increase the number of ponies that can be teleported at once. Once all citizens have been saved, the fighters will return to the battle along with the best offensive magic caster. The other two will stay and use healing magic to stabilize the wounded that the animal teams bring back."

Both the Fighter squads and magic casters gave Flame a salute.

Flame then looked to Wuzz. "Long-range archers will be lead by Captain Wuzz. Once all the civilians are secure, we will take our first objective, The outer wall." Said Flame as Confetti provided a map of the city behind Flame. "Once we have control of the wall we will utilize our archers by sending thousands of arrows into the city and killing anyone not in cover."

Flame then turned to Serrata. "Serrata is on her own and she is providing the main force for our main siege on the wall. I want a group of archers and fighters on the back of all three Mighty Oaks, once they make contact with the wall everyone will disembark the Oaks and then they will break down and be reformed into additional Bloomberg's, and once the wall is ours we will open the gates. At that point, Serrata will send in the Bloomberg's to destroy any defenses Sekto's forces will try and put up. They are made of rock so arrows will not affect them so archers don't worry about hurting them."

Serrata nodded and all the golems grunted.

Flame then turned to Confetti. "Confetti is in charge of keeping morale up and calming the rescued ponies."

Confetti then raised her hand and shook it violently. "I have a question."

Flame was a little confused at the actions of Confetti, but never the less he let her speak. "Should I try and get my band back together?"

Flame raised an eyebrow. "How long would it take?"

Confetti hummed in thought. "about five minutes, we're all here right now. John?"

"Yep."

"Paul?"

"You know it, baby."

"George?"

Nothing.

"George?"

Again nothing.

Confetti sighed and out of nowhere pulled out a megaphone and yelled. "George?"

Then out of nowhere a stallion dressed in a loying cloth came into the group swinging on a vine and ran into a tree. The stallion then peeled himself off the ground and acted like nothing happened as he walked up to the Naga and pulled her into a kiss. Once the kiss was finished the stallion smiled at the Naga. "Hey babe, what did you need?"

"Hey George, but I was talking about the other George, we need him to get the band back together. Have you seen him?"

"Yeah, he's in the bathroom." George then looked at the crowd and noticed the other George. "Never mind there he is."

Confetti looked at the second George and yelled. "George, were getting the band back together for today, you in?"

The second George looked at Confetti, he pulled out his guitar from behind his back and began to tune it.

Confetti then looked at the first George and gave him a quick kiss. "Sweetie I'm about to go to war, but I'll be home soon, why don't you head back."

George nodded and gave her one more kiss and then out of nowhere a vine dropped from the sky and George swung away. Confetti sighed as she watched her colt friend swing away.

Everyone looked at the Naga in confusion wondering what just happened, but Flame spoke up. "It's Confetti, don't question it. Back to the plan." Yelled Flame. Flame then turned to Gem. "Gem you are with me for the last few steps of the second phase of the plan. We will stay out of sight until we have reached the area near the palace, there I will release Char and her swarm into the castle, where they will station themselves over any guards leading to the dungeons. Then when we get there you will use your illusion magic on me to look like a fully-grown dragon. I will then unleash a powerful roar signaling the commencement of the third phase of the attack. Char and the others will incapacitate the guards with their venom while the sight of a full-grown dragon will scare many of the defending guards away. That's when you will drop the illusion and fall back to give aid to the magic casters." Said Flame.

Gem nodded.

Flame then looked at Spitfire and then to Shadow. "This is when our agile troops come in, before I roar, I will be accompanied by both Spitfire and Shadow as they are in command of the infiltration team. Once the roar is finished we will storm the palace, the infiltration team will then disguise themselves as the downed guards and wait until the queen has been secured."

Both Spitfire and Shadow nodded at their assignments.

Flame then returned his attention to everyone. "At the point, we have the queen safe, we need the entirety of our forces to be ready for our final assault, so by the time we have the queen, I expect for most of the fighting in the town to be over. Everyone not in the infiltration team will regroup right outside of the main gates and will wait until we open the gates with the queen in tow. Then the queen will be teleported by a spellcaster and sent to the base camp. Back with the main forces we will all enter the palace and fight off any remaining forces until we reach Sekto. Inevitably reinforcements will arrive so only a few of us will actually face Sekto. They include me, Magic Circle, McBiggin, and Shadow. This is not a backhanded slap to anyone not chosen's abilities, It's just we won't have a lot of room to move around, and we all have the greatest stamina and magic reserves. This doesn't mean your job is any less dangerous, so everyone, Keep on your hooves, paws, and or claws. We move out in five." Said Flame as he walked off the platform and let all of his ammo return.

Flame walked over to Gem and pulled her aside to give her a special assignment. "Gem we need to talk." Said Flame.

2 minutes later, Flame was finished telling Gem about his plan for her. "Can you do that?" Asked Flame.

Gem nodded. "Of course dear, I won't let you down."

Half an hour later. Flame was standing with Shadow, Spitfire, and Gem, along with about two dozen of the infiltration team, they were on a rooftop waiting for the right time for Gem to unleash her magic. Behind them was a literal battlefield. All of the civilians were safely rescued by the retrieval teams and are currently watching Confetti and her band perform. On the city wall, Wuzz and nearly 200 archers were resting after eliminating a large chunk of Sekto's defensive troops, while down below in the streets, the bears and wolfs were transporting the injured that the deer had spotted as they ran supplies to the fighter and magic caster groups. After the Mighty Oaks successfully transported the first attack groups they separated and stormed the streets of the capital, it was an easy job for the main bulk of the rebels to take most of the city from the remaining troops, allowing for Flame and his team to make their way to near the palace, relatively unseen.

It had been 15 minutes since Flame had unleashed Char and her swarm. Flame looked at Gem and nodded as he thought 'here goes nothing' as Gems hands started to glow. Soon the image of Flame was now one of a random adult dragon appearing in the middle of the battle, at first none of the guard tasked with protecting the main gates flinched, but then the fake Flame turned its head as it mirrored the real Flames body. The eyes of the illusion were as dark as night, and filled will the need to kill, this was enough to make a few of the troop's brake rank, but still many held strong. Flame then looked at everyone. "Cover your ears." Said Flame, he inhaled a large amount of air and held it in his chest. He looked at the sky and unleashed the mighty roar. The sound was so powerful it had driven off many of the currently pissing themselves guards away from the gate leaving only a few whose bodies refused to move out of fear or were just passed out standing up.

Once the roar was finished Flame looked to Gem and nodded. Gem dropped the illusion. "This starts at phase three, Gem falls back and help finish the fighting in the town." Gem nodded and used her wings to fly away. Flame then looked at his team. "Let's move out," ordered Flame.

Flame and his squad entered the palace and found that all of the stationed guards were knocked out as each had a Bolamite standing on the body. Char ran up to Flame and started to sign. "You guys did great, gather everyone, and make your way outside of the city and regroup with Confetti." Ordered Flame. Char nodded and she and her swarm left the palace. Flame then turned to his infiltration group. "Get these bodies out of sight and get that armor on. If anything let these guys get a promotion for staying at their stations. I'm heading to the dungeons." Said Flame as he started to run towards the dungeons, and when he made it halfway down the hall he dropped down to all fours.

A few moments later Flame had arrived at the palace dungeons and using the memories of what Lunar showed him, quickly ran to the end of the cells and in the last cell, he spotted her, still chained the wall. "Mom!" Yelled Spike when he saw Celestia. Solariea looked up and became shocked at the dragon in front of her.

"Spike, Oh thank the god's safe, I was worried that you were caught up in the fight I've been hearing for the last hour or so."

"Um... that's kinda my army trying to regain control of the capital city from Sekto's forces. Right now we're here to save the one true ruler of the kingdom, Queen Solariea, IE, you." Said Spike. Celestia just sighed at the fact that her son is commanding an army to save her.

Spike then began to pry the bars out of the wall and soon a hole big enough for Spike to enter was made. Spike entered the cell and used his teeth to break the chains holding her to the wall. Once she was free, Celestia fell to her knees. Spike ran over to his mother and helped her to her feet. Spike looked at his mother. "So mom, how did you like your stay at the royal palace of Dawnhallow?" Said Spike trying to make a joke.

"One star, service was lousy, the food subpar, and the view from my room was crap." joked Celestia. "So how are you doing?"

"Well, I finally told the girls and aunt Luna, the fact that I have my own personal evil self, and now you know, and before we have a long-winded discussion about this development, I have already promised to tell everyone about Mal after we get back next week."

"Mal?"

"Sorry it's not something cool, I named him when I was about two. Also, remember when I called you a bitch?"

"Yeah, I grounded you for a week, I found out that private Bronze Shield was the one complaining about his mare friend and ordered him to scrub the entire barracks for a whole month, for not keeping his daily life separate from his guard duty."

"Yeah that was Mal, actually Mal was in control of my body for a year or so until that night when you thought about sending me back to the dragon lands."

Celestia gasped. "You heard that?"

"I did, but when you said that, something in me got stronger and I was able to take control. Mal has only returned a few times since then, like my tenth birthday, and when I escaped my kidnappers back on Mudos."

Celestia sighed. "Were not done talking about this 'Mal', understand."

"Your the third pony to tell me that, it's now permanently burned into my brain."

Celestia smiled. "Anything else I should know about?"

Spike shrugged. "Well, I think Fancy Pants and Fleur are going to have a kid soon, and to a degree, I'm the uncle. But I don't know if that pertains to the real world, Pinky has a colt friend, and the next time Daring comes to the palace, Rainbow is going to be joining us for lunch."

"Really, that's it, to be honest, I was expecting something more world breaking."

"Like what, if you haven't noticed we are in a fantasy world, where your a high elf mare and queen of a whole kingdom. Sorry if you find a full-blown rebel army trying to save you, lead by your son and his friends not very entertaining." Said Spike.

Celestia laughed as they reached the main hallway. Spike returned to Flame. "As of this moment you are Queen Solariea and I'm Sentinel Flame, we are not related as aside from the fact I'm the one rescuing you." Said Flame.

Solariea nodded as the two reached the first disguised rebel in the hall, a blue pegasus with a darker shade of blue-colored mane, Flame walked over to the stallion to give him his orders. "You." Said Flame.

The rebel turned around and looked at his commander. "Sir?" Asked the pegasus.

"What's your name?" Asked Flame.

"Blue Blitz, sir."

Flame nodded. "Blitz, report back to Spitfire, 'Solariea is safe' and get ready for the final battle." Said Flame.

"Yes Sir." Said Blue Blitz as he sped down the hall only appearing to be a blur as he made his way to report to Spitfire.

After a few minutes of walking the two made it to the main palace doors, where Spitfire and Shadow were waiting. "Spitfire, Shadow open the doors and let the rest in." Ordered Flame. The two nodded and opened the palace doors. Once the doors were opened Flame and Solariea saw a large portion of the remaining rebels waiting for the signal to storm the palace. Flame and Solariea walked out of the palace. But before everyone started to cheer Flame stopped them. "This is not over, get into position now." Said Flame as everyone passed the queen and made their way to their defensive positions. But Flame stopped one of the magic casters before he could enter the palace. "Wait. What's your name?" asked Flame to the spell caster.

"I'm Sargent Spot Light former Royal Guard, Sir." Said Spotlight saluting the dragon and his queen.

"Sargent Spot Light, how large is your teleportation range?"

"I'm more of an offensive spell caster, but I can at least get to the other side of the city walls easily."

"That should do, Sargent, I need you to execute the final step in phase three, can you do that?"

"Sir." Said Spot Light.

Flame looked at Solariea. "Queen Solariea, Sargent Spot Light is going to teleport you back to our base camp on the other side of the city wall."

But before Solariea could retort Flame continued. "And before you argue, there is a large group of civilians who would be very joyful to see their queen." Flame then looked at Spot Light and nodded.

Flame released the queen and Spotlight took his place, as his horn powered up. Once Spot Lights magic was ready, Queen Solariea and Spot Light were gone.

Flame walked back into the palace, and slowly passed by the rebels defenses, Flame stopped by a familiar mare and smiled at her. "Cherry good to see you made it. I need a report of the battle outside."

Cherry looked at the dragon commander and smiled back. "Thank you, sir, as for the state of the streets, there are a few little fights scattered about, but they are looking to be in our favor, and as of the last deer message Ivy breeze sent out, our total losses are only in the '30s, while injuries are in the low hundreds." Then cherry looked sad. Flame noticed this and sighed and placed his hand on her shoulder, giving it a light squeeze. "I'm sorry to report Sir, Fancy Pants is one of the injured, he has lost his arm in the battle for the streets, and Cheese is with him missing a leg." Said Cherry crying now. She looked up to Flame and heard growling coming from the dragon. She took a step back in slight fear.

"Thank you for the report." Said Flame. "Don't get comfortable though, this won't take long." Said Flame as he cracked his knuckles. Flame walked past more of the rebels and even more, of them gave him a wide birth. Soon Flame was standing in front of the doors leading to the throne room. "Magic, McBiggin, Shadow, we're going in now." Yelled Flame. It was only one moment before all three were gathered. "McBiggin and Shadow, you two are in charge of dealing with Sektos personal guard. Magic your in charge of me."

"In charge of you, why?"

"Fancy lost his arm, and Cheese lost a leg. I plan on making Sekto reimburse them." Said Flame as he pushed open the doors with all of his strength. But the doors were not ready for the force of a pissed-off dragon and instead of just banging off the wall, the impact was so strong that it actually broke the stone the hinges were attached to, sending the doors flying across the room. Flame walked into the throne room, where he noticed, sitting on the queen's throne, was a tall creature dressed in a fancy pinstriped suit, with fancy black shoes. Its head was a dark purple color with four ridges of boney edges arcing across its head, in its massive black-gloved covered hands was a glass of wine in one and the other was a lit cigarette in a cigarette stick. The creature's eyes were glowing yellow and they were both focused on the dragon who rudely broke the doors.

"You know those were expensive right?" Asked the creature.

Flame nodded. "I had a feeling, Sekto I presume?"

"Yes, and you are the Great Sentinel Flame, I've heard so much about you. Would you care for a drink or a smoke?" Asked Sekto offering the refreshments in his hands to Flame.

"No thanks."

"Shame, I wanted to make your last moments at least somewhat enjoyable. Nevertheless, it's time for you to die." Said Sekto, as two dozen of Sekto's personal guards, ran out and stood in front of Sekto, spears pointed straight at the group. "Any last words?"

Flame nodded as he readied his crossbow and equipped Banger and Queen. McBiggin pulled out his greatsword and got into a fighting position, as Shadow pulled out her dagger and pulled up her mask. "NOW!" Yelled Flame.

Just then one of Sekto's guards turned around and speared two of the other guards next to her. "What?" Yelled Sekto in confusion. The guard showed her blue glowing hands and dropped her illusion, showing it was Gem.

Gem then unfolded her wings and retreated behind Magic Circle.

Sekto looked at the succubus and was about to order his guards to attack, but he fell silent as he looked at his personal guard's dead bodies on the ground. McBiggin was wiping the blood off of his sword, and Shadow was doing the same to her dagger.

Sekto was scared now and was going to try and make his escape. "I wouldn't do that." Said a voice from behind Sekto. He turned and for just a moment looked into the eyes of the one behind him. He only saw hatred, and the desire to kill. But before Sekto could run away Flame grabbed his neck and started to slowly choke him. Flame continued to grasp Sektos neck as he walked down to Magic. "Magic can you send me and him to the palace training area, and can you get this worthless piece of trash a sword. I don't like killing an unarmed creature."

Magic was very reluctant to comply with the request but complied nonetheless.

Flame and Sekto were in the palace barracks standing in the royal guards training area. On the ground on the other side of where Flame was standing with Sekto's throat still in his claws. Flame threw Sekto over by the sword, and after a few moments of Sekto breathing, Flame growled. "Pick up the sword."

"NO!"

"If you don't, you will die sooner."

Hearing this, and against his better judgment, Sekto grabbed the sword and used it as a cane to get up on his feet. Once Sekto was on his feet he readied himself and pointed the sword at Flame. Flame started to chuckle. "You know, this is a cliché right, a one on one duel between the leader of the rebels and the dictator." Then Flames face became serious. "But do you know what makes me different from that cliché? I don't give the bad guy a way out of the fight." Said Flame as he launched Banger straight towards the sword. Banger exploded right before hitting the sword, and the explosion was just weak enough to knock the sword from Sekto's hand. Flame took a step closer to Sekto. "That was for taking over the kingdom." Flame then changed out Banger, for Sparks.

"Please I surrender." Pleaded Sekto.

But Flame was not in the mood to listen. Flame launched Queen into Sektos left shoulder and she passed through but it still made his whole left arm useless. "That was for the people of Ravengrove."

"Aww...Stop... Please!" Cried Sekto.

Flame changed the Stingbees out for Fang. And launched Sparks at Sektos chest. Sparks gave Sekto a painful shock but not enough to kill him. "That was for all of the citizens that your guards harassed."

"AWW!"

Flame unequipped the Zappflys and got out Wallop. Flame then pointed Fang at Sekto's right foot. Fang proceeded to take massive bites out of Sektos leg. "That was for Cheese Sandwich."

Flame then launched Wallop into Sekto's left leg, The force of the impact was so strong it shattered his bones causing Sekto to fall to his knees. "That's for all those who have died today."

Flame then walked over to the face down a dictator and pulled him up so he could look Sekto in the eyes. Flame proceeded to punch Sekto in the face. "This is for my brother's arm." Then Flame Punched Sekto in the gut with all the force of a pissed off dragon. "This is for pissing me off." Flame then lifted Sekto by the throat again and opened his mouth to finish him off for good. Sekto looked down at Flame's open mouth and noticed a green light coming from his throat. Sekto shut his eyes and accepted his death. "And THIS IS FOR HURTING MY MOM!!" Yelled Flame. As he unleashed a massive fireball towards Sekto. The fireball was so powerful that it destroyed the wall of the training hall that was in front of Flame. Sekto opened his eyes thinking he was dead, but that was quickly replaced with the feeling of his flesh burning off. Flames Fireball may have missed its target, but fire can still burn flesh without it touching the flame itself. Flame dropped the now bloody, burned, and unconscious Sekto into his waiting tail as he carries him out of the training hall.

Flame walked down the halls of the palace going off of the memories of the map Lunar created and soon found himself in front of the main hall. Flame then opened the doors to the palace, walked outside stopping right before he would start walking down the steps of the palace. Flame then in hailed a large amount of air and roared. Across the city and far past the wall of the capital, the sound of the roar was heard. Once the roar was finished Flame took a seat on the top step of the palace and lowered Sekto next to him. Flame looked at the still knocked out dictator and sighed. "Your lucky I'm not heartless, or you would be nothing but a pile of ash right now." Said Flame.

Moments later Magic Circle ran past the front doors and looked at the two. She walked up to Flame and she became worried. "Is he..."

"No, he's not dead, horribly broken and burnt, but not dead."

Magic released a breath she didn't know she was holding and decided to take a seat next to Flame. "So what normally happens now?"

"Well, after the villain is defeated, one of two things normally happen, first is we actually get an epilog of what happens to the world, or we just sit here and wait for Discord to pull us out."

"That kinda sucks, I mean, we did all this work and we don't even get to see the payoff."

"Yeah it does, but it also lets us imagine what our characters would do after it's all over."

"Nope, I haven't just spent the last god knows how long just for the story to end. We're in my castle, technically speaking, so let's change it up a little." Said Twilight holding out her hand to Spike.

"What do you have in mind." Asked Spike taking his sister's hand.

"First let's get everyone outside."

"Easy enough." Said Spike. Spike then walked back into the castle and shouted down all the halls. "ITS OVER, EVERYONE LETS HEAD TO THE PARTY CONFETTI IS THROWING OUTSIDE THE CITY!" Yelled Flame as all the rebels made their way outside.

Once all of the rebels were outside of the palace Magic Circle gathered all of the magic casters and together, teleported everyone back to the base camp.

Discord then snaps his fingers and instantly all 12 of the game players were returned to the real world. Discord had a happy expression on his face as he was excited to hear what they thought, as everyone groaned due to the shifts in reality. "So What did you all think?"

Twilight was the first to respond. "God damn it Discord, what part of my castle my rules didn't you get?"

"Aw, but young Twilight, today I was the game master, I make all the rules." Said Discord.

Twilight groaned in annoyance and sighed. "Aside from the abrupt ending, it was actually very fun and very detailed storytelling."

"My only complaint is, I miss George." Said Pinkie sad at the loss of her colt friend.

"I was demoted to a side character used for plot convenience." Added Luna, not happy with her role.

"Listen to you, I only showed up for a few moments and that's it." Argued Celestia.

"Well I had a lot of fun, it made me feel like I was back on Mudos. Though I wish I could have seen Fancy Pants one more time. But I think you also saved me from Fleur." Joked Spike.

"But you did. You see I lied when I said I created this world, for you see, I merely found a world in the multiverse that seemed like fun and tweaked it a bit. In that world there exists everyone's character minus mine and Big Mac's. Didn't you wonder why Sentinel Flame was a legend? All I did was change a few faces, implanted some memories into all of you, mainly Spike, add a dash of Imagination..." Said Discord as he made a rainbow appear above his head. "... and then I added everyone's personalities, and vola, instant game night."

"So Confetti is still with George?"

"She is. And as for Fancy Pants, he returned home thanks to some help from Flame. That night he was chased around the manor by Fleur, but after that was out of her system, Fancy offered Flame a permanent home in the manor, for a few reasons, first he wanted Flame to be part of the family and wanted him to get to know their daughter Mary, named after her grandmother. Queen Solariea appointed Magic Circle and Incantation as her royal advisers. Lunar still jumps around people's dreams, guiding them in the right direction. After the battle, Cherry actually married Cheese after figuring out that after so long of playing a married couple she actually had feelings for him and him for her. Serrata, Shadow, Gem, Confetti, and Ivy were given royal titles and on occasion, they will be called by the queen to stop a monster attack, and on rare occasions, they would run into Flame and catch up."

"So were these scenarios all fake or are the real Fancy Pants and Fleur pregnant, and Cherry and Cheese married?"

"Sort of. Cheese and Cherry are engaged right now, and I think they are happy together, but Fancy and Fleur, I'm not sure, I'm not going to just pop up and ask. But, I might have also brought in everyone we know into the game as well so depending on how dense they are, I am expecting a few ponies arriving in the morning. Well, anywho, It's past my bedtime." Said Discord as he yawned, "I'll pop up from time to time to check up on you all. Goodnight." Said Discord as he disappeared.

Luna looked at the time and sighed at how late it was. "I must depart as well, being in charge of the day court requires rest and it is past my time for sleep." Luna walked over to Celestia. "Sister, I know Spike has informed you of Mal, but I want you to know that Spike had a better grasp over him than I did over nightmare, so do not fret over Spikes ability to control him." Luna then hugged her. Which Celestia reciprocated.

"I know, but I'm not going to sit on the sidelines and let someone I love to be taken over again. I lost you for 1000 years, 1000 years I should have spent with you if it wasn't for my dismissal of your feelings. But I don't think I could live with myself if I had to banish my own son. Thank you for helping him open up, Lulu." Said, Celestia.

"Anytime, Tia, I don't want to watch my nephew go through the same thing as I did."

Luna broke the hug and walked over to Spike, pulled him into a hug, and whispered into his ear fin. "Remember, if I find out you ever have that dream again, it's a lifetime of Garble kissing, and then Torch." giggled Luna.

"Yeah, I know, thanks for helping me tonight, I had a lot of issues to deal with, but now they don't seem that bad, knowing I at least have a dream valkyrie in my corner."

"That's what I was, a Valkyrie."

Spike nodded. "Strong, graceful, kind, and helps guide lost souls to a better place. Sounds a lot like you. Thanks for everything Auntie Woona. I love you." Said Spike.

"As do I Spike, and just remember your Auntie Woona will always listen to your feelings." Said Luna as she kissed Spikes forehead and teleported out of the castle.

Rainbow snickered. "Auntie Woona?"

" In my defense, I said it when I was only like 3, and I was having trouble pronouncing my L's. Twilight was Twiwight, and Celestia was Cewestia. Plus it just added to my cuteness." Shrugged Spike.

"It did." Said both Twilight and Celestia.

Rainbow yawned. "Well, I'm out, see you guys tomorrow."

"As am I, have a good night dears."

"Well I'm plum tuckered out, and we have apples to harvest in the morning, so I and Mac are going to call it a night. We'll see you in the morning, Spike."

"Yep."

"Yeah, see you two bright and early, but I might have to head to the old castle and get everyone together." Said Spike, just then a piece of paper popped into existence. Spike grabbed the paper and began to read. After Spike finished reading, he chuckled.

"What does that piece of paper say that's so funny?"

"Oh it's nothing, It's from Discord, apparently he transported the whole family into my wrist, and they're sleeping off the change right now, but it also says they should be ok in the morning."

AJ shrugged and smiled at the dragon. "Well, that's convenient. See you in the morning, Spike." Said AJ as she and Big Mac walked out of the castle.

"Well, I need to get ready for our 'YaY we beat the meanie party' plus I need to make sure gummy didn't overfill the tub again. Later." Sang Pinky Pie.

"Um...Spike?" Said a timid voice.

Spike turned around and looked at the yellow Pegasus. "Yes, Flutter's."

"Um... I know it's still game night and all, and I don't want to be a bother, but would you mind if I went home?"

Spike smiled at Fluttershy. "Fluttershy, you don't have to ask me, I am glad you could come and we all got to enjoy a fun adventure together."

Fluttershy smiled at him and giggled. "You truly are a knucklehead with a heart of gold."

Spike gasped an exaggerated gasp. "Flutters you wound me. You didn't mention my stellar good looks or my winning personality."

Fluttershy giggled. "Watch out Spike or you going to overshadow Rainbows ego. But thanks for letting me join in."

"No problem, but I do have one request."

"Anything."

" When we get back from the Crystal Empire, could you help me develop a line of food tailored for each type of ammo?"

"Of course, I would be happy to."

"Thanks."

"Have a good night." Said Fluttershy as she flew home.

"Well aside from the lackluster ending, I had fun. But I'm going to bed, I can hear it calling to me like a siren." Said Twilight as the moment she said siren she instantly remembered something important. Her eyes went wide and she nearly screamed in shock. "Oh my Celestia."

Celestia looked over at her student. "Yes?"

"Sorry, not you, but yes you, but not you right now, but not you... Oh, forget it." Said Twilight. She then looked to Spike. "Spike I forgot to tell Sunset you returned we need to head to the human world and tell her right now." Said Twilight as she grabbed onto Spikes' arm and tried to pull him to the mirror portal. But while she may be an alicorn, she was nowhere as strong physically, as she is magickly.

Spike chuckled at the poor excuse of dragging him off. "Twilight hold up." Said Spike, Twilight looked at her brother. "Twilight, it is way past dark right now, and Sunset is probably in bed asleep, right?" Twilight nodded. "Also, are you really up to waking her up right now?" She shook her head. "Ok, right now it's late, you head up to the bed and grab smarty pants and get some sleep, you can write to sunset in the morning and we'll go from there, ok?" Twilight nodded her head. Spike smiled "Good, and if you want, you can grab 'Starswirls' Collection of Powerful and Ancient Spells Lost to The Ages Vol 4' and read it until you get sleepy."

Twilight looked upset. "I don't need that book to go to sleep, I'm not a filly anymore." Said Twilight miffed.

Spike shrugged. "Your right, how about Vol 5?" Suggested Spike. The moment that volume as mentioned Twilight became a blur. Spike looked at the shocked expression on both Starlights and his mother's faces and shrugged. "This actually happened a lot when she was younger. Every time she would have a test in the morning she would start stressing about not studying enough, so one day I said, 'maybe you should read 'Starswirls' Collection of Powerful and Ancient Spells Lost to The Ages Vol 4' and she found it so interesting that she would read it every time she would get stressed, but after a while when we moved to Ponyville she lost interest in the book and decided to get the next volume and it worked just as well."

They both gave him unconvinced looks. "Are you both really doubting me? I have spent the better part of 10 years with that mare, I know her inside and out. I know how she likes her coffee in the morning on a cold winter's day. I know what she plans to dress up as on nightmare night for the next five years, and you're questioning me on how to get that mare to go to bed when she is stressed."

Starlight shrugged. "He's right, he's the resident Twilight expert, even after being gone for two years, he can still read that mare like a book. But I'm tired and like Rarity says, 'a mare need's her beauty sleep' so I'm out. See you two in the morning." Said Starlight as she walked up the stairs to her room.

Spike looked at his mother and smiled. "Sorry you got the short end of the stick tonight, would a hug make it better?"

"Yes."

Spiked pulled Celestia into a hug as the two smiled. Once the two ended the hug, Spike looked at his mother. "Ready for some sleep?"

Celestia sighed and nearly fell to the ground. "Oh god yes, I was chained to a wall for two weeks with a bed right in my cell and all I did was stay tied to a wall."

Spike laughed at Celestia. "Yeah, it reminds me of the time Stranger tied me to a tree for a month just to teach me about waiting until the time is right. Awe good times."

Celestia just groaned and decided to leave that one for later, not noticing that Spike was scratching at one of his scales.

An Apple a Day Doesn't Keep The Roc Away.

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Spike woke up the moment his mother had raised the sun, that was only 15 minutes ago, now he and Celestia were walking down the streets of Ponyville on their way to Sweet Apple Acres. Spike looked around and remembered how in the next few hours everypony will be going about their day. Opening up their shops, selling their wares. As the two passed Sugar cube corner Spike noticed that Mr. Cake was just flipping the sign over to say open. Spike waved at the stallion and once the stallion noticed Spike and Celestia he gave a wave back. Then Spike began to laugh a little, which caught Celestia's attention. "What's so funny?" Asked Celestia.

Spike looked at Celestia and finished laughing. "Nothing, its just the fact that when I was younger, I never saw Ponyville this empty, it was wake up at eight, have breakfast ready by eight thirty, shower at nine, help Twi until noon, then head over to who ever needed my help until around three, head back to town to do the daily shopping run, be back by five to start dinner, read my comics or do what I wanted until eight, then back to bed. During that time I would constantly run into other ponies while making my way around town. This is the first time I think I have ever seen Sugar Cube Corner open in the morning, and I'm going to be totally honest, its kinda weird, no weird isn't the right word to describe this, but it feels unnatural."

"Strong choice of words, but how is this unnatural?"

"To the world, its probably not, but to me, it is. Its like the first time I saw Twilight try to dance, and I emphasize try. It was just so out of place."

This got a giggle out of Celestia. "Yes, I have failed many times in my life, but one of my greatest failures when I took Twilight as my student was not properly teaching her how to dance, and I fear that is a mistake I will never rectify."

Spike shrugged. "Eh, look on the bright side, at least I don't look like a fish flopping around the dance floor."

"How true, but do your skills still hold up after so long?"

"Trust me, Ms. In Time made sure I had both rhythm and foot placement committed to muscle memory." Chuckled Spike, as he scratched the side of his head.

"Yes, Ms. In Time was the best dancing instructor in Canterlot." Said Celestia. Celestia then turned to look at Spike who was still scratching his head, and a little to vigorously. Celestia became concerned by how much Spike was scratching his head. "Spike are you ok?"

Spike stopped scratching for a moment and looked at Celestia. "Yeah, just for some weird reason all of my scales feel itchy."

"Is it possible Dragon lord Ember is using the bloodstone scepter to summon all the dragons?"

"Doubt it, for one my body's not glowing and the itching is far less irritating." Said Spike as he returned to scratching his head.

Celestia's concerns grew even more hearing this news. 'What if Spike contracted a disease from back on Mudos, no Twilights scans would of shown any potential virus or bacteria in his system, and its not the dragon lords summon, the only logical excuse for all of this itching.' "No... It cant be, can it?" Said Celestia as she was smiling ear to ear.

Spike continued to scratch as his scales started to turn red. "Can't be what?"

"Spike, you see when a dragon grows up, his body is going to change in many ways."

"Stop, if your going to give me the whole changing body and sex talk, your like 11 years to late. Twilight gave me that talk when I turned thirteen."

"No no no, I'm talking about... wait what? Twilight gave you the 'talk', but you were still a child, why would she do that?"

Spike sighed as he continued to scratch his head. "Well after I gave up on Rarity, I might of started to take an interest in some of the fillies my own age. One thing led to another and she was showing me diagrams of the body in a book, as she explained to me how babies are made." Said Spike. Celestia looked like she was on the verge of killing somepony, but Spike didn't want to watch his mother kill Twilight at the moment, so he decided to get the previous train of thought back on the rails. "Any ways, you mentioned something about my body."

Celestia was brought out of her 'Get Back At Twilight' scheming. "Oh right, sorry, as I was saying. Spike while you were gone, pony society learned many things about dragons as a species, for example traits like eye or scale color can be passed down or can skip many generations, or how dragons produce fire and why each dragons fire is unique, but the one that is most likely to be relevant to you right now is what dragons call the 'molt'."

"And what's the 'molt'?"

"The 'molt' is a process of when a young dragon or dragoness had absorbed enough magic in their body. It usually is aided by being near the magical fire of there parents, and they get a small amount of magic stored in the gems they eat, so the process happens at a rather young age for normal dragons. But you Spike are a special case, you were born from Twilights magic, then after that you just gained magic from gems alone, plus the short amount of time the Bloodstone scepter was in your hands, but in the time you have returned, you have spent so much time being around powerful magical beings, me, Luna, Twilight, Starlight, and to top it off when Discord transferred some of his chaos magic to you, your body finally reached its limit and as you can see, your finally starting the process. Do you know what this means?"

Spike shook his head. "Nope, still a dragon raised by ponies, still went missing for two years and still itching, can you get to the point?"

Celestia looked Spike in the eyes as she smiled even wider. "Spike, YOUR.GETTING.WINGS!" Yelled Celestia in joy as she pulled Spike into a hug and started jumping up and down in excitement.

The moment Celestia told Spike the news, he started to cry. Tears cascaded down his face as in his head so many emotions were swimming around. Celestia stopped jumping in joy when she heard Spike start crying. She released Spike and looked at his tear soaked face. Celestia was about to comfort him but she was stopped when Spike began to talk. "Finally, I have waited for so many years, I have been made fun of, looked down upon and had so much self doubt, and for what, just because I wasn't like other dragons. But this just proves them wrong. It may have taken me a little longer but its finally happening, and its all thanks to my friends and family." Said Spike as he was crying tears of joy. Spike looked at his mother and smiled a smile to match hers. "Thank you."

Celestia again pulled Spike into a hug and just let him cry himself out. "I'm so proud of you, your finally becoming a full grown dragon. This is every mothers greatest hope and her greatest fear."

Spike stopped crying in time to hear Celestia's statement. "How so?"

"Every mother wants to see her son grow up into a strong stallion or dragon, but that would mean its time for her to let go of her little baby so he can live his own life."

"Well, what if the son still wanted his mother to be part of his life?"

"Then that would make the mother so very happy."

"Good." Said Spike as he lovingly returned the hug.

Spike finished crying and was so excited about the fact he was going to get wings he was jumping up and down in excitement as the two continued on to the apple farm. "So how long does it take? Is there any treatment to help with the itching? What's going to happen to me now that I'm going to molt?" Asked Spike in rapid order.

"It depends on how quickly your body can process the magic, not that I am aware of, and you will start to produce a horrible odor that will most likely attract a massive flying creature called a Roc, that will try to eat you." Responded Celestia.

Spike stopped jumping and looked a little surprised at the news a Roc will be gunning for him, but then he smiled in joy. "Oh, you think its strong?"

Celestia chuckled at how Spike was taking the news. Normally dragons use the threat of a Roc attacking and eating a whelp as a tool to make said whelp behave. But not Spike. "Well to a normal dragon whelp its a terrifying creature, but to you, its probably only a slight annoyance." Said Celestia. Hearing this made Spike go crestfallen. "But from what I heard from Dragon Lord Ember, is that roasted Roc is a delicacy to dragons, so if one does attack you, I hear by give you permission to hunt it and eat it, as long as you don't let it suffer."

"Yes Ma'am." Said Spike saluting.

Spike and Celestia were brought out their little conversation when they heard the country twang of a certain overly honest mare walking towards them. "Howdy Spike, Howdy Celestia."

Spike and Celestia turned to the side and noticed that they were right out side of the front gate of the farm. They both became embarrassed as they both scratched the back of their heads. Spike out of a need to scratch and Celestia out of embarrassment. "Hey AJ, guess what?" Asked Spike.

"Your finally going through the molt."

Spike gasped and began to look between his mother and the farmer. "How did you know?"

AJ giggled. "Its not every day you see a dragon jump up and down in joy. Plus I over heard you asking your questions." AJ then pulled Spike into a tight hug and gave him a warm smile. "I also heard you say its all because of your friends and family, and while that's sweet of you to think that, its not true Spike, it was all you. You were the one who weathered through all that pain from your past, your the one who found a way back to us, and your the reason we all are so proud of you. Right your highness?"

"That's right Spike, without you Twilight probably wouldn't be a princess, I would be lonely, Luna would still be nightmare, we would still have strained relations with dragons and Thorax would just be a mindless drone for Chrysalis. You may not see it but everything that you have done has led to this moment and its all because of you." Said Celestia watching the display in front of her.

"Thanks you two, but AJ would you mind letting me go, or at least letting go of my arms so I can scratch my itchy scales?"

"Nope, one more minute. Spike, I have watched you grow up from that little dragon who came to Ponyville with the most book obsessed mare in the world, and look at you now five years later your finally going to molt." Said AJ not letting go of Spike.

Spike sighed as he accepted his fate."Fine."

One minute later. AJ released her grasp on Spike and the dragon immediately scratched his head scales vigorously. AJ whistled. "Dang, I had no idea it was this bad. You sure you still want to help around the farm? I can just go tell Granny something came up and you couldn't make it."

Spike shook his head in opposition. "No, I'll be fine, its no worse then the full body cast I was in for a month after I broke most of my bones." Said Spike.

Both Celestia and AJ gave him questioning looks. Spike gulped. "Um... I ran into a door." The looks stayed. "I saved some Clakerz chick." The looks began to bore into his soul. "Fine... Some ass hole working in a crane dropped his coffee and it released a boulder that rolled through a town I was passing through, I tried to stop it and it didn't work all to well, I was literally caught in between a rock and a hard place, the hard place being an orphanage's wall. The town was so thankful that the local doctor let me stay in the hospital while I was healing up."

Both AJ and Celestia sighed. Celestia decided it was time to make Spike come clean once and for all. "Spike, as your mother, I want the truth right now or so help me I will get Twilight to give you a lecture on lying, you have one chance, in total how many times have you been hurt and had to go to a hospital?" Demanded Celestia.

"In total, 39 and a half, 20 with broken bones, 18 for getting patched up from the wounds I got during a job, one from the time I got shot in the chest, and the half was for when I got sick with a cold after falling asleep in my bath over night, but all I needed was some medication. And that's all the times I can remember I swear. Dragons honor." Said Spike holding out one of his dragon code cards.

AJ started to laugh at the sight of one of the hand drawn cards he had made years ago. "Where did you find that old thing?"

"I found a few of them in my desk drawer in my old room. Twilight kept everything as it was when I left, and out of nostalgia I decided to rummage through it, I came across a few of these old things."

Spike then looked at Celestia. "Mom, my life on Mudos was very challenging, and I doubt I will ever run out of stories to tell you, but what I went through was part of the daily grind for everyone their. Granted my life was a little more hectic then others, but it was the hand I was dealt and I'm just waiting for the flop. And speaking of flop, I might be a gambling legend in a town called 'Seed Bank', because I won a small fortune of 154 million moolah from a casino, but its in a bank account right now."

AJ whistled again, as she mentally thought about the story Spike told them about how much money it cost him to get home. "So you could of paid for your trip home thousands of times over. What's going to happen to all that money?"

Spike shrugged. "I had planned to use it to expand Beeks farm through the whole canyon, plus I was planning on starting a relationship with Abigail, if I joined the farm. And while I only saw her in passing and only talked with her once, I did find her attractive for a Clakkerz. But I also planned to have all that money transferred to the Beek's account after three years of inactivity, so they still have another year or so until it goes through." Said Spike as he scratched under his chin.

Celestia sighed again. "Drinking, gambling, killing. Am I missing anything else I can be ashamed of for not stopping you from doing?"

"Expanding my vocabulary that is now full of swear words." Shrugged Spike.

"That was a rhetorical question, but thank you." Celestia sighed once more and looked to Applejack. "Applejack may we please go see the rest of your family before I have a slight mental brake down or at the very least a heart attack?"

AJ laughed a little but nodded as she started to walk to the farm house.

Spike and Celestia followed the farmmare as the sight of the historical Apple family farm house came into view. Spike took a sniff of the air to revel in the smell of perfectly ripened apples, but there was a more powerful scent passing through the air. Spike took another sniff and his stomach started to growl loudly, and his mind was urging him to run straight for the source of the smell. Following the command of his stomach and brain, Spike started to pick up his pace, soon he passed AJ, then he begin to run straight for the farm house. Once he reached the fastest speeds he could achieve on two legs, he dropped down to all fours and shifted it into high gear, and reached a speed even Rainbow Dash would be proud of.

But Spike was not a instinct driven dragon, he was a kind and sophisticated genteldrake, and a genteldrake does not just brake down the door and scarf down food, instead he knocks on the door and waits to be invited in, and if he is offered food, only then is it ok to chow down like a starved dog.

Once Spike was right in front of the house, Spike slowed down and returned to running on two legs and then slowed down to a walking pace. Once he was walking Spike approached the old green screen door and knocked. Spike waited, and waited, and waited some more, and began to wonder if everyone was already out in the fields, but then Spike heard the sound of old wood creaking under the weight of a pony. The creaking grew louder and closer, until it stopped, then the sound of a lock unlocking echoed in the silent morning. Slowly the door began to open and behind it was the oldest pony to live. She was a light green mare with old white mane with some stray white hairs poking out, around her neck was a very old bandana with a apple design. Her amber eyes have seen many things, from the first steps of Ponyville's development, to the return of Princess Luna, to the ascension of the princess of friendship, to seeing a power crazed centaur destroy the town she helped start, to the birth of the first natural born alicorn in history, and lastly the loss of the young dragon prince who would visit from time to time, and on her sides was a apple pie cutie mark. She slowly opened the door and got a good look at the person knocking. "Um... sonny, I don't know why your here at this hour, the farm isn't even open for another few hours, so if you'd kindly come back later I would be happy to talk with you then, but right now I'm expecting a small little purple and green dragon, who I haven't seen in a long time."

Spike chuckled at the mare. "Granny Smith, when was the last time you had your eyes checked?"

"Why you young whipper snapper, Your from the doctors office aren't ya, did AJ set this up, If I find out she did, then I'm taking away her hat for a week." grumbled the old mare.

Spike chuckled as he shook his head. "No, I'm not from the doctors office, I actually was invited to arrive this morning by both Applejack and Big Mac. But it looks like you don't recognize me, here my card." Said Spike handing the old mare his dragon code card so she could read it.

Granny took the card and pulled it right to her face and began to read. "....Honor...Life debt... Servant until debt is repaid.... By Spike Drake." Granny read the card and then became angry.

Granny looked at the very blurry figure and scowled at it. "I don't know where you got this card, and you have one minute until I buck it out of you, so start a talkin."

Spike sighed. "I wrote that card using a green crayon, on the left of the card is a crudely drawn picture of me, and on the right is an explanation of what my code entails."

"Not good enough, and your down to 30 seconds."

"Um... I pledged my life to your granddaughter when she saved me from a Timberwolf."

"Nope that happened at least once a week, 15 seconds left."

"I repaid my debt when I saved her from a massive Timberwolf."

"I don't remember planning that." Shrugged Granny. "Sorry sonny, I'll try to not hit bone, only soft tissue." Said the old mare as she turned around and lifted her leg and pulled it back.

Spike had survived a lot of shit, bullets, explosives, lightning, lava, but there was one untested challenge he never faced, getting a buck from one of the apple family. Spike was scared and shouted the first thing to come to his mind. "I attempted to help both you and AJ bake some pies and it ended in disaster." Screamed Spike as he flinched.

Spike closed his eyes and waited for the inevitable hoof print on his chest. But after a moment, nothing happened. Spike opened his eyes and looked at the blind mare and all he saw was the old mares warmest smile. "I promised to keep that incident a secret as to not hurt the little fellars feeling's, and only two ponies and one dragon know about that." Granny slowly walked closer to Spike and wrapped her arms around the dragons body. "Good to see you took my threat to heart." Said Granny as she chuckled.

Spike joined in. "I know you Granny Smith, and you don't make idle threats."

"No, I don't." Said Granny as she removed herself from the dragon. She then grabbed the dragons wrist and unlike Twilight the night before, Granny was actually able to drag the half ton dragon with ease. "Now get that scalely butt in here and I'll go grab that pie for ya." Said Granny as she dragged the dragon over to the couch, made him sit down and continued to walk over to the kitchen.

Spike sat in the rustic Apple family living room, as the sound of small hooves descended the stairs. Spike turned his head and smiled at the teenage filly walking down the stairs. "Hey Bloom, how's grounded life treating you?"

The Yellow filly looked to the couch and smiled for a moment but it soon became a frown. "Its horrible, I have to clean the pig pins and that's on top of all my normal chores, the only good thing to happen so far is the fact that Ms. Cheerliee got distracted during our lesson two days ago and she didn't finish it, so I don't have any makeup lesson. What are you doing here?"

"Well you missed out on game night last night, but before we started, I wanted to ask Mac if I could spend some time on the farm and catch up."

Apple Bloom walked over to Spike, where she noticed that some of his scales were red and slightly swollen, she gasped in excitement. "Spike your molting?"

"Yeah I know." Said Spike as he scratched his head. "Mom told me about it just this morning, and right now its not that bad aside from the itching that is."

Apple Bloom gasped. "Spike you know that's only the first symptom right?"

"Apple Filly say what now?"

"Spike, first is the itching of the scales, next is the unexpected and uncontrollable volume shifts..."

"How do you KNOW ALL THIS." Said spike in a whisper as it changed to a yell.

Apple Bloom cleaned out her ears. "Some of the dragons that stayed in Ponyville searching for you, talked about their kids and a few were talking about the symptoms of the molt. But as I was saying, next comes uncontrollable fire burps, and finally the horrible smell that normally attracts Roc's, after that I have no clue." Shrugged Apple Bloom

"WELL IT COULD BE WORSS, BUT MAYBE I SHOULD NOT STICK around for the fire burps especially when I'm near SOME HIGHLY FLamable trees." Said Spike as his voice changed.

Granny Smith walked into the living room and handed Spike a piece of pie and a mug of cider. She gave the dragon a look of disappointment. She sat down next to him. "Spike, I hear them stories about what a dragon goes through during the molt, and I ain't gonna care if a few things get burnt, but if your that worried about setting things on fire, why not make it into a help instead of a hindrance?"

"How so?"

"Sorry dearie, your going to have to speak up, my hearing ain't that good anymore."

"How so?"

"One more time."

"HOW SO?" Yelled Spike.

"Say again."

Spike facepalmed and gave a look at the youngest apple. "CAN YOU GET ME SOMETHING TO write with please?" Apple Boom nodded and walked into the kitchen and grabbed a note pad and pencil for Spike and handed them to the dragon.

Spike began to write his question and once he was finished he showed the note to the old mare. Granny slowly read the simple two word note for a few minutes. Then her brain figured out how to respond. "Oh, that's what you were saying, its simple there's some old trees that need to be chopped down and the stumps need to be burned so we can plant new trees, Just make sure your looking at the stump when them fire burps show up." Granny then looked at Applebloom and glared at her. "And you little missy are needed at the pig pin this morning, now get goin." Said Granny sternly.

Bloom groaned and walked out the door to start her chores for the day. Granny looked back at Spike and gave him a kind old mare smile. "Spike, Mac will be down in a few moments, he'll show you where to start, but until then you sit there and enjoy that pie, I on the other hoof have to go make a run into town, it'll probably take me a while, my hip ain't doin' so good." Said Granny.

Spike wrote a response,and showed Granny the note.

Granny do you want me to go with you?

Granny read the note quickly and shook her head. "Aw, thanks for the offer, but between you and me, I got my eye on a handsome stallion who just retired and move to town, and I don't want him to think I'm taken." Said Granny as she tried to fix her hair.

Spike nodded and wrote again.

Good luck.

"Thanks, see me when you get your voice back and tell me all about them little critters you have."

Spike nodded as Granny grabbed her shopping bag and slowly walked to the town. Spike was alone and only one thing was on his mind. 'Pie'. Spike grabbed the pie piece and the moment it hit his tongue the world faded away and soon a song started to play along with a light show.

Spike was so lost in the taste of the pie he didn't see or hear his mother and AJ walk into the house, both of them stared at the near comatose dragon with his tongue hanging out of his mouth, sprawled out on the couch. Celestia didn't know what was going on and leaned over to Applejack. "Should I be concerned?" Whispered the white alicorn.

"Na, he'll be fine, you heard what Granny said, he's enjoying the pie." Said the farmmare still looking at the dragon. AJ turned her head to the princess. "So princess, I know you are taking the week off to spend some time with Spike, and that's a mighty fine idea, but may I ask, why are you here?"

"Its simple, Applejack, aside from spending time with Spike, this week is the perfect opportunity for me to see how my subjects live."

AJ laughed. "Well, if that's your mentality, would you mind helping out on the farm for the day?"

Celestia giggled as she shook her head. "Not at all, but what about him?" Asked Celestia as she pointed to the dragon on the couch.

"Well Mac should be down in a few moments and he'll probably be able to snap him out, so if your up to it lets head out to the western field and start harvesting." Said AJ as she walked out of the house.

Celestia smiled excitedly and followed the mare, but before she left she quickly walked over to Spike and placed a kiss on his forehead.

A few minutes later. Two sets of hooves walked down the stairs. "All right Sugar, Spike should be waiting down stairs right now, remember what I told you, to everyone in town, he is just Spike, not Prince Spike, or your highness." Said Mac as they talked on the stairs.

"I know Mac, and if he's even half the dragon that everyone has told me about, then I think we will be good friends."

"And what kind of thinks have you heard?" Asked the now aware dragon. The two looked down the stairs and spotted the dragon who was sitting on the couch.

Sugar Belle blushed in embarrassment as the two walked down stairs and joined Spike in the living room. "Um...Hi." Squeaked Sugar as she waved. Sugar Belle, a pink colored unicorn mare with a purple mane. Her eyes are fuchsia, and she has a cupcake with light purple frosting and a cherry on top as a cutie mark.

Spike chuckled. "So you are the one who stole my bro's heart?" Asked Spike as he pulled himself off the couch and walked in front of the still blushing mare.

Sugar nodded. "Yes."

Spike Laughed as he grabbed the mare and pulled her in to a hug. This made Sugar Belle blush even harder. Spike looked down at his captive and gave her a wide smile. " I'm glad to see Mac found a wonderFUL MARE OF HIS OWN." Said Spike as his voice shifted from normal to loud.

Mac then got a good look at Spike and noticed something off about him. Mac gasped. Spike turned his head towards the gasping stallion, and nodded his head. "Yep, I'm molting." Said Spike in a whisper. Spike sighed and released the mare and grabbed his note pad and pen. Spike wrote his response and showed it to the two.

Yep, I'm molting.

The two nodded and Spike began to write again.

I'm having problems controlling my volume right now so I'm going to stick with righting, AJ and Mom are heading to the western fields right now and Granny told me you needed some help with some old trees around the farm before she left for some shopping in town, I don't know when, but I'm going to start having fire burps soon, and I can still help deal with trees, and when I do start burping fire I will try my best to aim for the tree stumps we have to burn.

Spike showed the note, Mac nodded.

Mac turned to his wife and smiled. "I'll see you later Sugar, can you make sure Bloom gets to school on time, while I'm working with Spike?"

"Of course." Responded Sugar Belle as she kissed big Mac on the lips, then she whispered something into Mac's ear, "If you do a lot of work maybe I can give you a massage tonight, how does that sound?"

Mac blushed and his face became as pink as his wife's fur. Spike groaned and started to write. Once he was finished he showed the note.

Fun fact: Dragons have great hearing, I heard every word, and I would kindly like not to image my bro getting a 'massage' in my nightmares tonight, so tone it down please. PS. I promised Granny I would show everyone off when I get my voice under control.

. Both Blushed hard as they looked down embarrassed. Just then Spike felt an uncomfortable feeling build up in his stomach, it felt like a letter was being sent to him, and out of instinct he turned his head and opened his mouth. But instead of a letter, a large stream of fire shot out of his mouth and put a scorch mark on the wall.

All three looked at the scorch mark and then back at Spike, then back at the mark and then to Spike. Spike groaned and flipped the page on his note pad and started to write.

And now come the fire burps. I'm sorry about the mark, Twilight should have some scorch remover in the castle, I'll give it to you tomorrow.

wrote Spike as he showed the married couple the message.

Mac nodded. "It's fine Spike, none of us were expecting this today, but your still family and this is part of life for dragons. Now come on lets head to the north fields and get started." Said Mac as he kissed Sugar Belle goodbye.

Spike wrote once more.

It was nice to meet you, tell Granny I'm sorry about the mark.

Sugar giggled. "Not a problem." Said Sugar Belle. "Now get going or do I have to throw you out?"

Spike lifted a single claw and wrote one last thing.

How hard can you buck a tree?

Sugar smirked. "My baking isn't the only reason why the farm has been more profitable."

Good to know.

Wrote Spike as he ran after Big Mac.

Spike caught up to Mac and noticed that he had an ax in his hands and was still heading for the northern fields.

Spike and Mac were heading for the northern fields, Spike tried to talk but his voice was still a problem.

So Mac, how has married life been?

Mac smiled. "Its been good, I love her and I'm happy to see that she's happy on the farm with me." Mac then looked nervous. "Spike can you keep a secret?"

Spike nodded as he wrote.

Can't really talk right now but your my bro and what ever it is I'll take to the grave.

Mac sighed and looked at Spike with a serious look. "Spike I want to start a family with Sugar, but I'm not sure if she's ready or if I'm ready for that, any idea on what to do?"

Spike was shocked for a moment but nodded.

Ask her if she is ready, then take a while to picture your self as a father and don't just picture all the good thinks about having a kid, think about all the late nights and early mornings, all the diapers and crying, and seriously ask Shinning Armor how it was when Flurry was born just minus the all powerful alicorn part, and if you both think your ready, go for it, but I call dibs on being the cool uncle.

Mac laughed and nodded at the idea. "Cool uncle Spike, the dragon bounty hunter. Yeah that sounds about right. Thanks Spike you are always the voice of reason."

"YEP." Yelled Spike mimicking Mac.

Mac and Spike arrived at the northern fields where as far as the eye could see stood old withered trees with no leaves on them as the bark was starting to peel off. Spike was saddened at the sight. Mac noticed the saddened look and nodded. "Yep, its a sad sight when you first see it, but these trees had a good run, the oldest was planted even before I was born, but their to old to produce apples anymore and soon enough they'll start to rot, so its best to get rid of them now." Said Mac as he walked over to one of the first trees and started to take swings at it with the ax.

Thanks to Mac's overwhelming strength the old tree fell to the ground after a few swings. Spike laughed as he had a better way. Mac turned to the laughing dragon and gave a confused look. Spike noticed the look and smirked.

Spike walked over to another tree and with one fell swoop of his claws did nothing, or at least that's what Big Mac thought as he laughed at the failed attempt not seeing the smirk on the dragons face. Spike then used one claw and pressed it against the tree and in an instant the tree fell to the ground with a large thud, leaving the now dropped jaw Mac to stare. Spike then wrote on the note pad.

Did I forget to mention, I'm not the same little dragon any more.

Spike showed the note to Mac and all Mac did was slowly nod his head. Spike then felt another burp come up and quickly yelled. "DUCK!"

Mac heard the yell and quickly dropped to the ground. Spike let lose the burp and a large jet of his fire shot over Mac and hit one of the trees, setting it on fire. Mac turned his head and saw the tree burning, he got up and continued to watch the tree burn. After a few moments the tree was nothing more than a pile of ash on the ground. Soon after a hard breeze blew and scattered the ashes through out the farm. Mac tried to speak and was able to say a few words. "Well that was something." Said Mac. Spike nodded.

Mac then turned to Spike with a twinkle in his eyes. "Spike if this breeze keeps up and you keep up them burps, the trees will be fertilized, and the apples will be better." Mac then looked at all the trees that still needed to be cut down and smiled, as he walked over to another tree and started to cut it down.

Spike and Mac continued to work for a few more hours until Mac smelled a horrible scent in the air. It made Mac want to puke, as he looked around to see where the smell was coming from. Mac looked at the tree he was currently standing in front of and examined it to see if it was starting to rot, but the tree was fine, and some how the smell became even worse. Mac turned away from the tree and immediately regretted it, his nose was face to snout with Spike. Mac covered his nose with both hands and started to cough violently as his eyes started to water. "Spike, it looks like your at the smelly point in the molt." Said Mac as he coughed and cried.

Spike lifted his arm and took a sniff, just shrugging it off, years of living with Belch tends to harden ones sense of smell. Spike was about to comment on what was going on, but he was interrupted by the sound of a screech piercing the sky. Spike and Mac looked up and noticed the silhouette of a bird flying in the sky. Spike shrugged and again tried to comment but again the screech sounded, but this time it sounded closer. Spike looked up again and noticed that the silhouette was much larger then before, but it still was only the size of an eagle. This time Spike was going to comment but was stopped again by the sound of a massively large thud coming from behind him. Spike sighed and looked to see a scared Big Mac. "Let me guess, there's something behind me?" Said Spike.

Mac nodded.

"How big is it?" Asked Spike.

"Very." Responded Mac.

Spike sighed. "Fuck you Fate, you whore." Said Spike as he turned around and looked at the massive bird creature behind him. There stood a Roc and it had a satisfied look in its eyes that were looking directly at Spike. But before Spike could do anything, the Roc lowered its head and in one fell swoop ate Spike in one bite. Mac was visibly scared for both his life and Spikes so he did the only thing he could think of, he tossed the ax with all of his strength at the Roc. The ax embedded itsself into the Roc's leg, making it cry out in pain, as blood started to trickle out of the wound. The Roc glared at Mac, not happy about the wound. It started to attack him with its beak and its one still good leg. But Mac was to quick for it and ran behind a tree to hide.

AJ and Celestia were working in the western fields when they first heard the Roc's screech, and like Mac and Spike, they just believed it to be a normal bird, but when the second screech was heard they both stopped working and became worried when they saw the massive bird creature quickly heading for the northern fields. Celestia used her magic and pulled AJ close to her, she teleported close to where the Roc was. Both AJ and Celestia arrived at the point when Mac was dodging the Roc's attack. Mac noticed the sudden appearance of his sister and the princess as he was dodging yet another attack from the Roc. Celestia noticed the absence of Spike and grew concerned. "Big Macintosh where is my son?" Asked Celestia in a rather dark tone, which everything in the area noticed, even the Roc as it had stopped its assault.

Mac pointed to the Roc. "It ate him."

Celestia quickly turned her head towards the scared Roc and slowly approached it. The Roc was terrified as it tried to use its wings and fly away from the overwhelming figure in front of it. But it stopped, not out of fear, or by Celestia's magic, it just stopped moving. The Roc wasn't dead, it stopped because it was confused, when it felt its beak being forced open. There inside of the Rocs mouth was Spike, using only one hand to force its jaw wide open, and to everyone's shock, he looked bored. Spike sighed, "How the hell are these things dangerous, I mean sure their stomachs are fireproof, but they are so weak." Said Spike in a annoyed tone. Spike then noticed that his mother and AJ were there. He smiled at them. "Oh, hey mom, hey AJ. When did you guys show up?" Asked Spike as he used his other hand to wave.

"Um....not long." Responded AJ

Spike nodded as he felt more force being applied to his hand, meaning that the Roc was trying to force it's mouth close. Spike became angry. "DO YOU MIND, I'M TRYING TO HAVE A CONVERSATION!" Yelled Spike, but it seemed to have no ground with the Roc as it still tried to shut his mouth. Spike looked at his mom and sighed. "Sorry mom, we'll talk in a moment, ok?" Asked Spike. But before Celestia could respond Spike jumped out of the Rocs mouth and landed in front of the Roc. Spike then looked at the large bird. "Two words, Breath. Mint." Said Spike insulting the Roc. Spike then looked at his mother and smiled. "Guess what, I found a treatment for itchy scales, it turns out its Roc saliva." Said Spike as he held in a fire burp, "But it doesn't help with the fire burps."

The Roc became furious at the fact that it was being ignored, after it was insulted by it's own meal, and by the fact that its meal was not in its stomach. The Roc used its wings and took flight as it seemingly flew away. Spike became very annoyed at the fact that the Roc just up and left. "Hey, get back here right now and try to eat me, its no fun if you just run away." Yelled Spike. Just as Spike turned around feeling dejected the Roc screeched again. Spike turned around again and noticed the roc dive bombing straight towards the group, but then the unexpected happened, instead of aiming for Spike, the Roc at the last second altered its course and aimed for AJ, and in a matter of seconds the Roc snatched AJ from where she was standing, now she was in the Roc's talons, as the Roc retreated with its concelation prize.

AJ was surprised. "What the hey, let go of me you varmint." Yelled AJ as she tried to force her way out of the Rocs grasp, but then she looked down and noticed that she was hundreds of feet in the air and every second the gap was getting bigger. "HELP." Screamed AJ.

Spike and Mac ran after the Roc in an attempt to catch up to the beast, as Celestia used her wings to fly towards the Roc. But even she has her limits and the Roc was abjectly faster then her.

"THATS IT!" Yelled Spike. "MOM YOU CATCH HER, I'M DONE BEING NICE, HE TOOK MY FRIEND AND NOW HE'S GOING TO PAY!!!".

Spike pulled out Blink who was annoyed. Blink started to buzz angerly but stopped mid buzz when he saw the look on Spikes face. Blink didn't like Spike's happy go lucky personality very much, but he loved seeing this side of Spike. Blink then climbed into the Sniper Wasp barrel waiting for instructions.

Spike pulled out his binoculars from his bag and pulled them to his face. "Blink, target: The massive pain in the ass bird, range: 300 meters and rising, wind speed is 7.6 mph south east, angle is currently 53 degrees and rising by one every minute, avoid the orange pony in targets grasp". Blink buzzed once. "Ready. Give him hell." Said Spike as he shot Blink.

Blink was flying through the air heading for the Roc. The last thing the Roc heard was the sound of something buzzing, then the Roc fell limp and lost control of its body as it took its last breath. The Roc's grip on AJ loosened enough for AJ to start free falling. "AWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWW." Screamed AJ as she quickly started to fall and approach the ground. AJ Closed her eyes waiting for her death, but after the feeling of the air hitting her face had stopped, she opened them, she noticed that she had stopped falling and she was incased in a golden magical aura. AJ tuned her head and saw Celestia huffing in exhaustion as she tried her best to get AJ into her magics range.

Once AJ was safe she let out what she thought to be her last breath, as she just went limp from the adrenaline leaving her system. "Princess for the record I'm going to kick Spike in the ass for trying such a stupid stunt." Said AJ exhausted.

"As your Princess, I hear by give you a royal pardon for all the actions you will do in the next two hours. As Spikes mother, all I ask is make sure he doesn't ever attempt something this stupid again. I'm glad your safe." Said Celestia.

"You and me both." Said AJ as Celestia started to fly back to Spike and Big Mac.

When Celestia landed she placed AJ next to Spike. Spike looked relieved seeing that AJ was safe. Spike pulled AJ in to a hug. "Thank god your ok, it didn't hurt you did it?"

AJ returned the hug and shook her head. "No, I'm ok, a little out of it but I'm good, also I'll try to aim for the soft tissue so don't flinch." Said AJ as she broke the hug and quickly and very powerfully gave Spike a Apple Family Buck to the gut. Spike was sent flying for a moment and landed 100 feet away on his back.

Spike groaned but smiled, "Well I'm not dead, that's a plus, but I don't think I'll be trying to piss off this family anytime soon." Said Spike as he just stayed laying down. Celestia, AJ, and Mac walked over to Spike and gave him a glare. "Ok, I get it, no more stupid ideas, I'm sorry for scaring you AJ. We good?" Asked Spike holding out his hand.

AJ giggled and grabbed Spikes hand and pulled him up. "Yeah were good, Thanks for saving me."

"No problem, just glad to see your safe." Said Spike. Spike then looked in the direction of where the Roc landed and started to lick his lips. "Now if you'll excuse me, I got lunch plans." Said Spike as he started to walk to the Roc's body, but step by step he found it more difficult to move his legs. Spike looked down and noticed that his legs were slowly getting covered in a stone like substance. Spike became concerned as the scales on his feet turned to stone, his boots were getting torn to shreds. Spike quickly removed his crossbow, its mounting, and his backpack, dropping all of them before they were ruined as well.

Spike then found it difficult for him to move his tail. Spike turned to see most of his tail was incased in the stone. He tried to remove his poncho, to save it from meeting the same fate as his boots but it was in vain as the next part of Spikes body to get covered in stone were both his arms. The stone crept up his arms and cut the shoulders of the poncho making it fall to the ground. By now Spike found it very difficult to breathe as his chest and back slowly became incased in the stone. With one last massive inhale of air Spikes face was covered and in the place Spike was, now stood a jagged Spike shaped statue.

While this was all happening, Celestia, Mac, and AJ were just smiling, excited to see what Spike would look like after he finished molting. Moments later the stone statue of Spike began to crack, and in a massive flash of light stood Spike kneeling in a hole in the ground. Spike groaned. "Why do I feel like I just went ten rounds with Tirek?" Groaned Spike. The next thing Spike knew was he was tackled in the chest by a white mass and the sound of crying. "What happened? the last thing I remember was taking one last breath and then darkness."

Celestia giggled. "Look behind you."

Spike didn't know why he should, but followed what his mother asked him to do. Spike turned his head and instantly went silent. On his back, sat a pair of purple wings with green colored membrane. Spike started chuckling like a mad man. The chuckling turned to laughing like a psychopath, and then it changed to one of insanity, as Spike fell to his back. Celestia became concerned and thought 'Did I tackle him to hard and knock a screw lose'.

A few moments later Spike stopped laughing like the Mane-iac and stood up. Everyone got a good look at Spikes new additions, folded in, Spikes wings reached down past his knees and were just slightly wider then his shoulders. Out of natural instinct, Spike tried to unfurl his wings, and after some slight difficulty, he was able to display his full wing span. From the tip of his wings to where it attached to Spikes back, measured slightly longer than Spike was tall, minus his head crest.

Spike then started to flap his new wings, he slowly sped up his flapping, then he got faster, then faster, until he got off the ground. Spike looked down and smiled at the fact he was flying. Then he did something stupid. Spike was not thinking clearly as he flew up into the sky and at a speed only Rainbow Dash would find slow, sped straight for Ponyville.

AJ leaned over to Celestia and asked. "Princess should we stop him?"

Celestia giggled. "No, let him enjoy himself, to dragons, their first flight is a right of passage, and it shows the dragon the pit falls of not listening on how to fly or land." Celestia then noticed that all of Spikes gear was still on the ground and she used her magic to levitate all of the gear behind her. But instead of following Spike, she made her way to the dead Roc to save it from being eaten by any other predators, as well as to recover Blink.

Spike was enjoying his first time flying as he approached Ponyville. "I finally understand why Dash loves flying." Cheered Spike as he reached the edge of town.

It was nearly 1 pm and the whole town was enjoying a peaceful day. Spike was just running on instinct as he was thinking and didn't notice that sitting on a cloud was a specific prismatic maned mare with her jaw dropped at the sight before her. Spike passed the mare and continued to fly around the town. RD blinked slowly in shock and then in true Rainbow fashion shrugged it off, assumed she was still dreaming and returned to her dream nap.

Spike was approaching the castle, but instead of opening the door to the castle, he decided to surprise Twilight and Starlight, who no doubt were in either the library or in Twilights study, practicing new spells. Spike decided to try the library first. Spike flew to the other side of the castle and dropped down a few levels, there he arrived at the window to the library and knocked on the window. After a few moments of nothing happening, Spike decided to fly up to Twilights study and repeated the same process. Spike heard two groans imamate from inside the room. "Rainbow Dash what do you need, me and Starli- SPIKE!" Yelled Twilight in shock as she became frozen.

Spike Laughed at the frozen mare. "Do I have a story to tell you, head to the farm and I'll explain everything." Spike then looked into the room and noticed that Starlight was in just as much shock as her teacher. Spike sighed, flew into the room, grabbed a couple of scroll and started to write a note for Twilight. 'Twilight when you come to, head the farm and gather the rest of the girls, P.S. Don't ruin the surprise. Love your new and improved not so little anymore, fully adult dragon of a brother, Spike.' and to make sure she gets the message, he uses her horn to spear the message to her head, taking special care not to damage the message. Spike took one last look at the still out of it mares and laughed, he started to feel the strain on his untrained wings, so he headed back to the farm, ready to enjoy his quarry for lunch.

Spike returned to the farm and noticed that his mother was carrying all of his none destroyed gear and a massive pile of feathers. Spike figured that his mother was kind enough to bring back the Roc so he could eat. As Spike approached something began to bother him. "I feel like I'm forgetting something important, I told Twilight to gather the girls, mom got the Roc and that means Blink was recovered, I'm getting tired and could go for some of that sweet apple cider, but I need to land." Said Spike to himself.

3 seconds later.

"Oh Fuck." Said Spike as it dawned on him the fact that he was going to crash. Spike looked up to the heavens and screamed. "FUCK YOU FATE, YOU MASSIVE WHORE!"

Then a voice spoke back to Spike. "You know what, this ones on you for not waiting to learn how to land. Also tell Discord that he still owes me a dinner for resolving the 'Jackalope incident'." Said Fate.

Spike was shocked to find out that Fate was a real being. "Wait your real?"

"Of course I'm real, also I don't like being called a whore by a specific dragon, but I'll admit your coin rarely lands on the good side."

"Wait, what coin?"

"Um... forget what I said, Oh look the ground, have fun Spike and welcome to the family." Said Fate as her voice stopped.

But before Spike could process what just happened he began to eat dirt upon impact.

A few moments later Spike groaned in slight pain from the impact as he had to dig his way out of the crater. Once his head was above ground Spike noticed his mother looking at him in amusement. "Did you have a fun first fly?"

Spike got to his feet and used his claws to wipe away the dirt on his body. Once all the dirt was off of his body Spike looked at his mother and smiled like it was heartswarming morning and he got the present he has always wanted. "Mom, did you see me, I finally flew in the sky." Said Spike very giddy.

Celestia smiled at Spike's excitement, it was the same as when he sent his first intact letter to her when he was 3 years old. She was so proud of him and that smile was the greatest gift she had ever received. Celestia giggled, "Yes I did, you were doing so great at least until the words "Fuck you, and massive whore" part, also would you kindly stop calling her a whore."

"Wait you know her?"

Celestia giggled. "Of course, we play bridge every third Tuesday of the year, she brings the tea cakes and I bring the skill she doesn't have." Giggled Celestia but then a sudden apple landed on her horn with a message attached to it. Celestia used her magic and pulled the cored apple off her horn, she read the message. 'To C. Just for that your in charge of the cakes, PS. Tell Spike to duck in five seconds he got the good side of the coin.' Celestia looked at her son. "Duck in five seconds." Said Celestia.

Spike was confused but counted to five and then ducked to the ground. Thanks to Fate, Spike missed the combination tackle from Pinky and RD. Spike lifted his head and looked at the smiling pink mare with stars in her eyes and the stars orbiting the head of a certain prismatic mare who just headbutted a solid wood tree. "Really dear, did you have to do that, Spikey just had his first crash and you two thought it would be appropriate for him to have another one." sighed Rarity as she walked up to the downed dragon. She then bent down to looked at Spike. " And you!" Said Rarity sternly.

Spike figured it was safe and got to his feet again and looked at Rarity. "What did I do?"

"You didn't think of mentioning that you were going to molt, now I need to take your wings into account." Said Rarity as she used her magic to take measurements of Spikes new wings so she can change his order. A few moments later and a few words of muttering numbers Rarity rolled up her measuring tape and teleported it back to her shop. "Now that that is finished might I say, you look dazzling with wings."

Spike blushed as he scratched the back of his head. "Thanks Rares, also I had no idea this was going to be my day. So you got my message from Twi."

Rarity nodded. But then Spike was glomped to the ground by a yellow blur. Spike looked at the thing that glomped him and saw Fluttershy smiling at him. "Spike you have wings!" Said Fluttershy.

Just then another apple landed on Celestia's horn with another message. 'PPS. He's about to be tackled by a yellow mare, but he will be fine, his coin landed on the rim.'

Everyone looked at the random event in confusion, even Pinkie was confused. Take that news as you will.

Spike then returned his attention to the yellow mare still hugging him. Spike tapped Fluttershys head and she released him. For a third time Spike got to his feet and wiped away the dirt. Just then a apple dropped into Spikes hand with a message. 'Spike tell C that I'll see her in three weeks. PS your going to want to take a few steps to the right.' Spike took a few steps to the right and almost immediately was grateful for the advice as both Twilight and Starlight teleported in the exact spot.

Spike smiled as he looked at his sister. "So you got my message I see."

Twilight nodded and then she used her magic and pulled Spike into a hug as she started to cry in joy. "You got wings, I'm so proud of you, I can't begin to imagen how happy you are right now." Just then Spikes stomach started to growl in hunger. Twilight giggled, "But at least I can imagen what you want right now."

Spike then looked at Celestia who was still holding all of Spikes gear and prey in her magic. "Hey mom can I get my gear back?"

"Of course." Said Celestia as she levitated her sons equipment over to him. As he reattached his crossbow to his arm and returned his back pack to his back, being mindful of his new wings.

"Thank you, now unless you want to see some shit, I would go back to the farm house and wait for me there. I'm also going to need that barrel of cider I was promised, and Twilight can you poof me up a metal pole about 50 feet long?"

It took a moment but everyone figured out what he was going to do. "You don't have to worry about us Spike, not all of the dragons that came with Ember were strictly gem eaters, don't get me wrong it's not like we're used to the sight of a roasted chicken, but we've seen it enough that we can stomach the 'process' of preparing meat." Said Twilight.

"Besides, I don't know how many times I have had to cook meat for some of my carnivorous animals. Its just natures way." Said Fluttershy.

"Wow, so your all cool if I cook this thing back at the farm?" Asked Spike.

Everyone nodded.

Once Spike and the others arrived back at the farm he was greeted by Granny Smith who looked slightly crossed with Spike. Suddenly a apple dropped on the ground right in front of Spike. 'This is your last free notice, you got the bad side on this toss, your going to need some ice.'

Spike sighed and looked at the heavens and yelled. "FIX MY COIN, NO ONE IS THIS UNLUCKY!"

Suddenly two apples dropped from the heavens. The first said 'No.' As the other said 'Yes there is, his name is Trouble Shoes'. Spike dropped the apples and let destiny take its course, before it did he uttered a new phrase. "FUCK YOU MURPHY, AND YOUR LAW". Spike was then pelted in the back of the head by a cream pie.

"Don't insult her husband, its not his fault." Said Pinkie. This earned her an apple note. 'Thanks.' it read.

"Wait she has a husband, and his name is Murphy?"

"Yes, lovely being, horrible luck seems to follow him like no other though, so I don't get to see him often." Added Celestia.

Spike sighed, as he thought "Can I just say, fuck you Fate."

Suddenly an apple. 'Yes you can, I can live with that, I know you don't really mean what you say though.'

Spike smiled. "Fuck you Fate." Said Spike and then he proceeded to get his ear fin pulled by the ancient mare and a ear full about endangering her family.

One bag of ice later.

Spike had gathering wood for the fire, both Twilight and Starlight were combining their magic so they could create a spit and forks, that could support the Roc's weight. After years of hosting carnivores in the castle, it was bound to happen that Celestia would see how to de-feather the beast. Applejack proceeded to hall up a barrel of Apple Family cider from the cellar. Pinky Pie was setting the massive apple family party table for the meal, she somehow pulled out a giant serving platter out of nowhere, for when the beast was cooked. Rarity was gathering some herbs and spices at Spikes request, to at least flavor the meat. Fluttershy was disposing of the organs, sayin she can use them as ingredients in some of her animals food. Once Spike finished gathering enough wood for the fire, he used his claws to remove the Roc's beak and both it's feet, he decided to give them both to Zecora later, so she could use them in her potions.

Once everything was ready, everyone turned away from Spike, who was skewering the Roc, as the sound of flesh and bone snapping was very loud. A few moments later Spike used all of his strength and lifted the ready bird on to the forks and allowed it to cook. Twilight then used her magic on the spit, so it would rotate at a constant speed, until the Roc was cooked fully.

They sat down at the table and talked for a while until something dawned on Spike. He looked at Twilight. "Hey Twi, did you remember to get a hold of Sunset today?"

Twilight nodded. "I did, she's happy to know that your all right, apparently I caught her at a bad time. But she wrote she wanted to see us soon, so once we get back from the Crystal Empire, we will be making a trip over to the human world." Smiled Twilight.

Spike shrugged. "Ok, at least this time its planned. I do wonder what I will look like as a dog now." Said Spike.

"No clue." shrugged Twilight. "But I doubt your still going to be the same little dog, like last time."

"God I hope your right."

A few more hours of talking amongst themselves, the sound of a few new voices that were arguing sounded from the sky. "Remind me again why I have to come to this nammby pammby pony town." Said a very familiar voice.

"For a few reasons. 1, there is someone I would like you to meet, 2, it looks good on me for having a knucklehead like you trying to accept pony culture, and 3, they have Roc meat. I don't know how they captured one or why, but like hell I'm passing on this once in a life time chance to have it, so shut up or do I have to punish you?" Said another very familiar voice.

"Fine, but I want a taste of that meat."

"Fine."

Spike looked up and smiled at the sight of Dragon lord Ember, and almost immediately became annoyed at the dragon next to her. Garble. Then Spike got an idea. He turned to his mother and gave her a pleading look, "Mom, can I roar this one time just to scare that ass hole up there, it's Garble."

Celestia looked at all the ponies who have had previous experiences with Garble, she became shocked when all of them nodded their heads rapidly. "God he must be a pain, even Twilight is saying yes."

"HEY!" Yelled Twilight. "But yeah, that's the dragon who bullied Spike about living with ponies."

"Oh, so that's him." Said Celestia glaring death at Garble.

Celestia nodded at Spike, giving him the go ahead.

Spike smirked and stood up from the table and inhaled a massive amount of air and roared a bone chilling new roar, thanks to the effects of the molt.

And the desired effect happened. Both of them lost their cool and one began to cry in fear of being eaten alive. "Please, I'm sorry Dragon Lord Ember, I promise to turn my life around, just please don't let what ever that was eat me." cried Garble as he hid behind Ember.

At this point Spike lost his shit and began laughing his ass off, this caught the attention of the two dragons in the sky. They looked down and then one of them became very angry. (guess who?)

"So it was you, who do you think you are, laughing at one of the strongest dragons in the dragon lands?" Said Garble.

Ember just facepalmed at the stupidity of her companion. "I wouldn't do that if I were you Garble. Look at him, look at all those scars on his body, that dragon has seen some things, and as much as I would love to see you beaten into a bloody pulp, I know your sister Smolder would hate to lose her brother."

Garble chuckled stupidly. "What him, but he is so weak, I could take him out in a few seconds, max." Boasted Garble.

Ember sighed as she 'tried' her best to convince him to not start a fight. "Fine what ever." Said Ember as she and Garble landed near the table. Ember then noticed the extra special guest at the table and smirked even harder knowing the looks Garble was getting. "Greetings Princess Celestia, Princess Twilight." Bowed Ember.

"Greetings Dragon Lord Ember. Thank you for accepting my invitation, today is truly a special day that deserves to be enjoyed by friends and family."

"Not a problem, but the invitation was very vague on the details, is today a random pony holiday, and how did you capture a Roc this massive, even full grown dragons have problems getting one half this size." Asked Ember.

Celestia then pointed at Spike. Ember noticed Spikes new wings and became shocked. "So he..."

"Yep"

"Then the Roc was..."

"Yep"

"So Garbles..."

"Probably."

Ember shrugged. "Dibbs on the leg." Said Ember as she sat at the table and just watched the show.

Garble Stomped up to Spike completely unaware of who he is. "How Dare You laugh at me, Garble, king of the hoard for three years. Who are you, are you one of those dragons who decided to live like those weak, squishy, nammby pammby ponies. You are aren't you, just like that poor excuse of a dragon, Spike. What a waste of scales."

Everyone became shocked at what Garble just said as Celestia was doing everything in her power not to storm over to Garble and show him a mothers wrath.

"Oh, I'm spike, I care about ponies, Princess Celestia is not a nammby pammby pony princess." Mocked Garble doing an impression of Spike. "You know what I think, That mistake was hatched, raised, and became just another, worthless weak pony and I'm glad I don't have to hear anymore of his crap about friendship or ponies." Ranted Garble.

By this point Celestia was using the force of the suns gravity to keep her still. But then everyone felt a sudden chill run up their spines. Celestia and everyone else became worried.

Spike laughed a dark laugh. "So you think ponies are weak?"

"Yeah, so what, all ponies in this waste of a country are." Said Garble.

"Is that so." Said Spike as he let his wings unfurl. Spike looked Garble in the eyes and smirked. Spike then grabbed Garble by the throat and lifted him off the ground slowly choking him. "I'll let you in a very important secret Garble. One I'm sure you are to stupid to of figure out on your own, so hears a hit, who stopped you from killing a poor defenseless phoenix egg, who stopped you from becoming dragon lord and starting a war with ponies, and who is currently waiting for the moment they can beat you to a bloody pulp, that's who I am."

"Sp-Spike?" Choked Garble.

"Right in one. Now here's your prize." Said Spike as he released Garble and dropped him to the ground. Spike then bent down and looked Garble in the eyes. "I'm not the same little Spike that you knew, I have died on a few occasions, I have been shot, blown up, electrocuted, drowned, and poisoned, and do you know how many people lived to tell the tail?"

Garble shook his head. "One, and your looking at him. So unless you want to see my angry side, I suggest you lose that bravado of yours, shut up, enjoy the Roc I killed, and prey to what ever god you believe in that my mother can hold back from using the power of the sun to boil your insides, do I make myself clear?"

Garble nodded. Spike Smiled and returned to his happy self. "Good, now let me help you up." Said Spike as he easily picked Garble off the ground and on to his feet.

Spike walked back to the table and sat back at his seat, as he was getting nervous looks directed at him. "What?"

"Spike?"

"Yes. Who else would I be?"

"Mal."

"Oh, no no no no. If that was Mal, at the very least Garble would of had his wings torn off, and all of his limbs would be broken."

"Um, I know I'm really out of the loop right now but who's Mal?" Asked Ember.

"Oh, Mal is a manifestation of all the things I despise about being a dragon, greed, aggression, jealousy, that sorta thing. And don't worry, we have come to an understanding of sorts recently."

"What kind of understanding, and when did this happen?" Asked Twilight.

"I talked with him when I was covered in the stone like shell when I molted, as for what we agreed upon its simple, I stay in control until everyone I love is dead, but when I need to I can call in some help from him, and in exchange I stop throwing him back and he gets to reside on the surface of my mind."

"And what happens when we all die?" Asked Rarity.

"Aw, that's were your first mistake lies. I never said you all, I said when everyone I love is dead. Aside from being a dragon who would normally live for tens of thousand of years. I have a mother and aunt who are near immortal, or at least for hundreds of thousands of years, plus this time next century I will become immortal seeing as I'm the assistant god of chaos. And you all know me, I will always have some one that I love. May they be family or friends." Said Spike.

Suddenly the chill returned, and everyone looked at Spike scared. "And I'm now regretting making that deal." Said Mal. Mal then looked at Celestia. "Hello Mother, its good to see you again."

"So your Mal?"

"Yes, it feels good to actually talk again, also can you drop that stink eye your giving me, Spike is still in the driver seat, he's just letting me give out directions right now. See."

"Hi mom, I am still in control, Mal just has some things he want's to say to everyone first." Said Spike.

"Yes, I do." Said Mal.

"So what do you want to say, the Roc is almost finished." Said Celestia upset.

"Well first off, could you be a lamb and retrieve our dear auntie for us. As you said, today is a special day for family to gather and celebrate."

"Er very well." Said Celestia reluctantly, she powered up her horn and teleported Luna to the party.

Luna appeared in one of the free seats but was unaware of where she was as she had her eyes closed half asleep. "For the last time Blueblood I will not make it Illegal for any non ponies to enter the castle." said Luna as she opened her eyes expecting to see her spoiled nephew for some reason. But then she became embarrassed when she noticed that she was no longer in the throne room. "Um?"

"I see Blueprick is still as speciesist as ever." Said Mal.

Luna looked down and nodded. "He thinks now that Tia is not sitting in the throne during the day, he has some power, and I keep telling him to shut up." Said Luna as she looked at Spike but the moment She looked she got a chill down her spine. She narrowed her eyes and with much venom and anger talked. "MAL, RELEASE YOUR HOLD ON SPIKE THIS INSTINT!" Yelled Luna in anger.

Mal laughed slightly humored. "Really Auntie Woona. No Hi Mal, just straight to threats."

"I SAID RELEASE HIM, NOW!"

"Spike, calm her down."

"Fine, Aunt Luna I'm in control permanently, all he can do is speak, so hear him out." Said Spike.

Luna huffed but nodded. "Fine but if I feel like he's trying to take control, I'm going in."

"Thank you, as I was saying, Aunt Luna if you would kindly look at Spikes back, you'll see a certain set of wings." Said Mal.

Reluctantly Luna moved from her seat and walked to Spikes side and looked at his wings and gasped in shock. "Oh my god." Said Luna as she pulled Spike into a hug.

"Yeah. Big shock to me this morning." Said Spike as he flexed his wings to show them off.

"Yes, yes, Spike has wings, now can I talk?" Asked Mal.

Luna released Spikes body and returned to her seat very warry of Mal.

Mal looked at the confused Ember and Garble. "Yes, I'm not the same Spike as you have known for a while, but we are unsure of my existence. I believe I am the manifestation of what a true dragon is and what Spike denies." Said Mal.

"While I believe Mal started out as a mixture of jealousy and greed, but slowly grew to include anger and other such emotions." Said Spike.

"So I would like to know, where do I come in to all of this?"

Ember scratched her head trying to think about this. "Um, when was the first time you became sentient?" Asked Ember.

"I was always sentient but I didn't surface and gain control until shortly after our first birthday, then I stayed in control for a year or so, but then Spike regained control. Why?"

Ember sighed as Garble laughed. Mal gave Garble a death glare. "Garble, we came to an understanding, but there is one exception that will let me pummel you to a pulp, and your getting really close to it, so shut up."

Garble shut his mouth so fast and so hard it almost sounded like he broke his jaw.

"MAL!" Yelled Spike.

Mal groaned. "Fine."

"Wow, it's pretty bad." Said Ember.

"And what is so bad?"

"Normally a dragon whelp will go through the molt by its third year, and in that time the dragon has two different personalities, they make themselves present soon after they are hatched. During the molting process the dragon is taken into its mind and the two personalities try to gain control. Depending on who wins, determines who is in control until death. I was victorious over my other half, preferring to talk and be nice."

"While I won thanks to my strength." Said Garble proud.

"Yes. That is what happens during the molt, its not just a physical change its a mental one as well. But the both of you have slowly become your own entities. Spikes warm and kind nature, and Mal's cold and stronger mindset. There have been a few cases of dragons with two personalities coming to an agreement and working together, and it looks like your one of them now."

Both Mal and Spike groaned as Mal guessed. "But...."

"But it would normally end in the merge of the two personalities, and the fact that you are able to speak at all, is in a word, unnatural."

Mal looked depressed at hearing this and sighed. "I'm going to bed, wake me up when I get my turn." Said Mal as he left Spike in control.

"Mal." Said Spike as he looked concerned.

Spike looked at Ember a little angry. "Really the best word was unnatural?"

Ember slowly nodded. "Yes, when a case like yours happens, the two personalities merge, as the two work together as one, but since you didn't go through the molt until now, and after over two decades, Mal has become so much more than a half of you, he's his own dragon, so much so that he is unable to merge with you fully. But in your true fashion, you were able to still come to an agreement. So while it maybe unnatural, its not a bad thing."

Spike sighed. "Give me a moment." Said Spike as he retreated back into his mind.

Ember looked at the glassy eyed Spike and then looked to Luna. "Did you teach him how to do that?"

Luna nodded sheepishly. "Yes, its something that both me and Tia use to focus on other things while listening to the stupid request of the nobles."

Celestia face palmed.

Inside Spikes mind. Spike was talking to Mal, trying to explain what Ember meant when she called him unnatural. "Please Mal, come back." Said Spike as he tried to push Mal out of a mind bed.

Mal groaned. "No, I don't want to. You got your wish, as it turns out I shouldn't exist."

Spike groaned. "No, I wanted you to come around to see my way of seeing the world." Spike then smirked. "And you did, do you think I didn't notice that it was you who shouted out when AJ got taken by the Roc?"

"I did not."

"Yes you did, somewhere deep down in that moody heart of yours you actually care about Mom, Luna, Twilight and everyone else."

"No, they are my treasures and nothing takes my treasures, they are mine." Screamed Mal, but then he covered his mouth.

Spike smirked. "You don't care, sure."

Mal groaned. "Fine, I'll get up but I want to punch Garble for laughing at us."

"Fine." Said Spike.

Spike returned to the real world smiling. "I'm Back."

"Is Mal ok?" Asked Fluttershy.

"He is, he just took being called unnatural the wrong way." Spike then looked at Ember. "Also he wants to punch Garble." Garble gulped.

Ember sighed but she nodded, she then used the power of the Bloodstone scepter to force Garble to stay still. Spike looked at Garble as Mal took control of one of Spikes arms. Spike looked at Garble and had a sympathetic look. "Sorry He's not happy about you laughing at him earlier, I'll aim for the non vital organs, ok?"

But before Garble could respond he was punched hard in the stomach, Garble dropped to the ground, groaning in pain. Spike sighed as he returned to his seat. "Sorry about that, I'm going to let Mal speak now."

"Thank you, Ember I understand what you meant now, but I do not like to be called unnatural, its very insulting."

Ember nodded as she looked down. "Sorry."

"It's fine, but lets get back on track. The next thing I want to talk about is the idea of going to therapy for us, mom and Luna."

"And why is that?" Asked Luna.

"Because I believe you two are similar to both me and Spike. Two personalities, one mind, think of what we could do if Luna was able to harness the power of Nightmare, or if you could control Day Breakers strength, we could rule this... No sorry old habits and all... think of the good we could do, no more having to fear our enemies, able to protect my treasures from anyone." Said Mal.

"Treasures?" asked everyone.

"Yes, Mal sees everyone hear as his treasures, and a dragon lives for his treasures." Said Spike.

"Shut up." Yelled Mal

Everyone laughed.

Once the laughing died down Mal continued. "So what do you say, want to try and come to an understanding with Day and Night?" asked Mal.

Celestia and Luna looked at each other in concern, but then nodded in agreement. "Yes, It would be for the best." Said Celestia.

"But what if they take control?" asked Luna.

"Don't worry, If you can project all six of us into our mind scape, me and Spike can 'persuade' them into talking it out and not trying to take control." Said Mal.

"Very well." Said Luna.

Just then Twilights horn started to buzz and glow. Everyone looked at Twilight and cocked an eyebrow. Twilight chuckled sheepishly at all the attention. "Its a timer spell, the Roc's finished."

"IT IS!?" Shouted Spike, Mal, Ember and Garble who then groaned in pain.

Suddenly a new voice entered the conversation. "Good, I was wondering when that there oversized chicken was going to be done." Everyone looked in the direction of the voice and noticed that Granny Smith was standing there and next to her was Big Mac, Sugar Belle, and Applebloom. "Cause I just made a feast fit for a royal banquet and unless everyone is going to eat that oversized piece of family snatching bird I suggest we enjoy." Said Granny as she and the rest of the apple family carried over mountains of food. Mac then started to distribute the apple cider. Once everyone was seated with their food on their plates Celestia started to toast.

"To Spike."

"To Spike!" Repeated everyone as they all took a swig of their drinks, and started to eat.

A few hours later everyone was sitting around the table and enjoying each others company. Then Granny Smith gave Spike a glare, she walked over to him and tapped his shoulder. "Spike?"

Spike looked at the old mare and smiled. "What do you need Granny?"

"I want you to fulfil your promise you made earlier, and I ain't leaving until I see them critters you consider family, cause to me, their my family too." Said Granny.

Spike sighed but nodded. "Give me a moment." Said Spike as he got up from his seat and walked away from the gathered group. Spike looked back at Mac and AJ and gave them both a look saying 'Don't let her die.'

They both nodded as everyone watched Spike pull out four tubes from under his wrist strap and place them on the ground. Spike then pulled out another four tubes and held them in his hand, bending down Spike picked up the first four tubes and placed them all in between his fingers. Once they were all set Spike used the tubes to press the release buttons.

Soon the skies of the farm were covered in four massive groups of flying creatures and on the ground were four more groups, as one by one all of the heads took their position on Spikes body. Spike gave a chuckle and looked at the shocked expressions on Granny, Mac, Sugar, Garble, and Ember. "Everyone, Say hi."

"Hi" said Granny as she fell to the side. Spike sighed and walked over to the old mare. Spike then grabbed Sparkes from his shoulder.

"Sparks we have a code blue, give me 200 joules." Sparks nodded as he started to buzzing. Suddenly an apple lands of Celestia's horn.

Celestia sighed and pulled the apple off her horn and began to read the message. 'Get some water, the old mare will be fine, also I like this method of sending messages, its fun.'

Celestia used her magic to get a cup of water for Granny, as Spike placed Sparkes on Granny's chest and removed his hand. "Clear." Sparks shocked the mare.

Granny's eyes shot wide open and she gasped into life. Granny looked at Sparks still on her chest and took a deep breath. "Thanks little feller. I wasn't ready to see my hubby yet, but at least Honey Crisp is doing good, thanks for bringing me back." Said Granny as she pat Sparkes head.

Spike laughed. "Yeah, I know what you mean, my parents were shocked to find out that I was dead." Said Spike.

Everyone gave him shocked looks at what he just said. Celestia walked over to Spike and placed both of her arms around Spike, pulling him into a hug, as she cried.

"Um...Mom are you ok?"

"I'm the one who should be asking you that, you just told us that you met your parents after you died."

"Um...Yeah, so what?" Asked Spike like it was nothing.

"That means their dead."

"Yeah, kinda figured that out when I was shot in the chest and died for a few moments. Lovely dragons by the way, turns out I have my mothers eyes and my fathers looks."

Celestia pulled away from Spike and looked at him. "How are you ok with this?"

Spike shrugged. "Like I said earlier, I have died on multiple occasions, some for a few moments, others for a few minutes, I have gotten to know them over the years."

"How many times?"

"9 times if you count the chest shot. 1 from being electrocuted, 1 from poison, 5 from blood loss, and 2 from drowning."

Celestia passed out, as her magic dropped the cup of water and it landed on her waking her up. "How are you still alive?"

"That would be my doing to a certain degree, mother. You see I can not live without Spike so when he's in one of those situations I might of given him a couple of improvements to make sure of our survival. Stronger immune system to fight off the poison, slowed the blood flow of our body to allow for clotting, and tapping into our dragon biology and giving him gills."

"WAIT, GILLS?" Screamed Ember and Garble.

"Yes Gills. Can't all dragons do that?" Asked Mal.

Garble shook his head and then looked at Ember. "We cant do that can we?"

Ember shook her head. "Normal dragons can't, but as the dragon lord, I can control the powers of the Bloodstone Scepter, and take on attributes of each kind of dragon, but from what Father told me, it takes years for dragon lords to develop that much control, and that's with constant training and letting its power flow into its holder. There is no way Spike or Mal could do that. Unless..." Ember then looked at Mal. "Mal I need to know did Spike ever get the name of your parents?"

"Yes, our mothers name was Tia, or at least that's what our father called her, but our fathers name is Bahamut."

Suddenly Celestia's, Luna's, Ember's, Twilight's, and Garble's jaws dropped, as another apple dropped from the heavens and landed in front of Pinkie Pie. 'Cover your ears!'. Pinkie covered her ears and it was followed by everyone else.

"WHAT?!!!!!!!!!!!!!!" Yelled all the alicorns and dragons.

Mal groaned from the headache and swapped out with Spike. "So I'm guessing their important, dad did say that dragon lord Torch was a blow hard and that the current dragon lord was doing much better, but I don't know what he was talking about."

Ember gasped in excitement. "Oh my god, King Bahamut thinks I am doing a great job."

"Wait, King Bahamut?" asked Spike.

Ember gasped again. "You don't know about Bahamut?"

Spike shook his head. "Still a dragon raised by ponies, kinda missed out on the whole cultural exchange, would someone like to fill me in please?"

Ember walked over to Spike and pointed the Bloodstone at Spike and showed him the history of the powerful gem, as she narrated. "Long ago before Celestia and Luna, there were four all powerful beings that rules this world. Grogar the evil necromancer, Lilith, your grandmother, Bahamut king of all dragons, and your mother Tiamat if I'm to assume that was who you saw next to Bahamut. At first all four lived in a understandable conflict, but over time Grogar craved more and more power, he started to attack the others land and add to his kingdom. So it was decided by Lilith, and your parents that Grogar needed to go. After much planning and preparation they had a plan to banish Grogar to a limbo dimension, but they would need items of great power to act as anchors to keep Grogar in his prison. Lilith had received six items from a old stallion named Starswirl, that he called the elements of harmony. King Bahamut used his blood and the power of the worlds volcanos to create the Bloodstone that is before you, and Tiamat's Item was lost to the winds, some say its a mask, others say she created a creature of godly ability's that can control the powers of the known universe, but the truth is that it was an egg, hers and Bahamut's child, you. But before the battle was to happen Grogar stole your egg and hid it to the corners of the world. But what Grogar didn't know, was that was going to be his final act of evil, as once Grogar was banished the anchors would receive their powers, or if the worst happened, and for your mother it did. Tiamat was furious at Grogar for taking your egg that she was not thinking and she was killed. Bahamut seeing his mate laying dead, activated a dragons true power, as Bahamut transformed into what most dragons know him as today, a massive golden scaled dragon with powerful wings able to slice through mountains. With the help of Lilith, Bahamut was able to banish Grogar to his prison, powering both the Bloodstone and the Elements of harmony. After the battle Bahamut spent the next 3 thousand years searching for his son, but he had no luck and returned to the dragon lands and became the first dragon lord until it was his time to join Tiamat, while Lilith settled down and gave birth to both Celestia and Luna before it was her time as well. But in legend it was foretold that one day the missing egg would be hatched and protect this world from those who wish to harm its people." Said Ember as she moved the Bloodstone.

"Wow, that's a lot to take in." Said Spike a little shocked to finally find out about his parents and his egg.

"Wait then how did Celestia's school get Spikes egg?" Asked Twilight.

Ember shrugged. "Don't ask me, the scepter is only ingrained with the memories of Bahamut."

Twilight looked to Celestia. "Truthfully I have no idea who donated Spike to the school or where they found it, and honestly I don't care. I love Spike and finding out that he is older than me will never change the fact that he is my little ball of fire."

Spike laughed. "Now my life makes so much more sense. The tree of harmony giving me a throne, the weird powers Mal talked about, and my dad telling me a lot about the scepter, it all makes sense now."

AJ walked over to him and placed a hand on his shoulder. "Your taking this a lot better then I thought you would."

"Oh no, I'm about to pass out from everything that happened today." Spike looked at Celestia. "Mom your in charge of making sure I don't die in my sleep from exhaustion."

"Of course, I'll also get place you in your bed when we are done here." Said Celestia.

"Thank you mom." Said Spike as he looked at Twilight. "Twi, I want you to make sure everyone behaves themselves and the introductions go smoothly."

"On it, get some rest Spike."

Spike then looked at Granny Smith and frowned. "Granny, I'm sorry I won't be able to give proper introductions, its been a certain kinda day."

Granny gave Spike a warm smile. "Think nothin of it Spike, all I did today was have a mild heart attack, you have molted, been eaten by a Roc, got revenge on your child hood bully, crashed, gotten a talking to, tackled at least 3 times, prepared a giant bird, saved my grand daughter, found out about your past and came to an understanding with yourself, and you've been up since sun rise, we Apples pride ourselves on our stamina and our apples, but not even we can out last a dragon, and not even they can out last you, now get some rest."

Spike then looked at the large mass of creatures looking worried at him. "And Everyone, don't let Alvin say one word, I don't think even a chipunkz can survive a buck from an Apple."

"HEY!" Yelled Alvin.

Spike laughed. "Head back to the old castle when your all finished, I'll come by in the morning, we have some new type of training to start." Smiled Spike as he looked up to the heavens. "For once, thank you Fate."

Suddenly a Pillow fell from the sky, as a apple landed on Celestia's horn. 'Don't tell anyone, but I might of flipped his coin, the kid has had a day, and Spike has grown on me. You did a good job raising him C.'

"I didn't do this, it was all him." Said Celestia as she kissed Spikes forehead, she used her magic to place the pillow under his head, and sending the dragon to sleep.

New Suit, New Wings, New Sweetes

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Spike groaned in annoyance, he tried to swat away the single beam of sun light that was hitting him in the face. Spike turned to his side and the light followed. Spike groaned again and turned onto his other side, and again the light moved to his face. Spike groaned as he opened his eyes. "Fine I'm up, I'm up. Your lucky I love you mom." Said Spike. He sat up and yawned. "I feel like I could of slept for a month." Said Spike.

"I know, It took a lot out of me to constantly swap with you. After this I'm only going to be that weird little voice in your head. Tell mother and our sister, I say hi. I'm going back to bed its still to early for me." Said Mal using Spikes body.

"Fine, get some rest." Said Spike as he got to his feet and started to stretch his body. The sound of Spikes joints popping echoed through the castle.

Once Spike was all loosened up he walked out of his room and headed for one of the bathrooms for his morning shower.

One 30 minute shower later. Spike walked out of the bathroom, only wrapped in a towel. He started to walk back to his room, so he could grab all of his gear that wasn't destroyed while he molted. "So all I have is my crossbow, my bag, and my hat." Spike groaned. "Well that's great." Said Spike a little saddened that he lost most of his gear.

Spike looked down at his body and sighed. "Well I used to walk around town naked, so this shouldn't be any different." Said Spike, but then he looked at his big chest scar. "Oh who am I kidding, the ponies are going to notice the scars and more importantly their going to notice the wings." Spike thought for a moment. "Wait, I can use my wings to get around town, less ponies will stop me in the streets that way." Spike smiled.

"I'll head over to the castle and do some early morning training. Then I'll head over to Rarity's for the final fitting, assuming she has it done today. After that, I'll head over to the Cake's place and visit them after the lunch rush is over. Then its back to Rarity's, before the dessert seekers show up, to pick up my new duds. Head home, make dinner, then pack my stuff for the trip." Said Spike happy that he has created his daily mental calendar.

Spike walked back into his room, he quickly grabbed his crossbow, hat, and strapped his backpack on to his back being careful not to damage his wings. Now that he was 'dressed', he walked out of his room. Spike walked down the hall of the castle and down the stairs heading for the kitchen. Once Spike reached the kitchen, he smiled and opened the door. Spike greeted his mother, sister and friend, all of whom were enjoying the morning. Twilight was talking with Starlight, as Celestia was using the stove to make breakfast. "Good morning, Twilight, Starlight." Said Spike as he walked to the table.

"Hey, what about me, don't I get a good morning?" Asked Celestia a little saddened that her son forgot her.

"Depends, was it you who moved the sun so the light would wake me up?" Asked Spike already knowing the answer.

"Depends, do you want my special good morning pancakes?" Asked Celestia knowing that her son is unable to say no to her special pancakes.

Celestia smirked in victory when she felt her son hugging her from behind. "I'm sorry mom, Good morning." Said Spike with a smile. Celestia giggled and levitated a plate stacked with pancakes over to the table.

"Works every time." Thought Celestia as she was cheering for herself on her victory.

The moment Spike noticed the pancakes on the table, he made a b line for them. In a fraction of a second the pancakes were devoured, and in their place was only the syrupy remains of the poor defenseless pancakes. Spike leaned back in his chair and gave a hearty pat to his stomach. "One day I tell you, one day, I will figure out what makes your pancakes so great." Said Spike content.

Celestia giggled at her sons satisfied expression. "I will tell you, if you do one of two things." Said Celestia.

This caught Spikes attention as this was a golden opportunity to learn one of Celestia's greatest secrets. "I'll do anything."

"Either wait until I'm dead." Said Celestia.

Spike shook his head. "Nope that will take to long."

"Or get married and have kids." Said Celestia. "Besides I'm not getting any younger, I want to at least see some grand children, and I don't see little miss Princess of Friendship, moving on to the next step of friendship any time soon." Said Celestia.

Twilight blushed and yelled in embarrassment. "HEY!" Yelled Twilight. She then looked to the ground and grumbled. "I could find a special sompony any time I want, I'm just to busy is all."

Everyone gave her 'a are you serious face'. "What?" Asked Twilight.

"Twilight, you are many things, busy is not one of them. Most of the day you spend in your study practicing new magic spells." Said Starlight.

"On occasion, you will be called by a giant crystal map to fix a friendship problem somewhere in the world, but that only happens like once a month now if that." Added Celestia.

"And, you can't cook, are too obsessed with books, and lets be honest, are related to not only the prince and princesses of the Crystal Empire, but are a element of harmony, and the alicorn princess of friendship. And as of a few days ago has an over protective little brother again, who will flambé anyone who makes you cry. Am I missing something?" Asked Spike.

"Yeah, not to mention five great friends who will hunt them down at the drop of a hat." Added Pinkie who suddenly appeared in the kitchen.

Spike looked at the mare and just sighed as she handed him a cup of coffee. Spike took a long sip and smiled. "Thank you Pinkie, for the coffee and your input, care to join us this morning?" Asked Spike.

Pinkie giggled and shook her head rapidly. "Sorry Spikey, I'm running around town inviting everyone to your, 'YAYSPIKESALIVE,YAYIMNOTDEAD,IWENTTHROUGHHELL,GOTCOOLSCARS,FOUNDANOTHERFAMILY,WELCOMETOPONYVILLE,MOLTING..." Pinkie took a breath and continued. "...YAYIHAVEWINGS,GOTREVENGEONMYBULLIE,METMYPARENTS,SURVIVEDAROCATTACK,SAVEDAPPLEJACK,NEWARMORGETTING,BIGREVEAL,YAYWEBEATTHEBIGMEANNY..." Another breath. "TURNSOUTIMOLDERTHENMYMOM,STOPPEDCHRYSALISFROMKIDNAPPINGFLURRYHEART,NEWASSISTANTGODOFCHAOS,COMINGTOTERMSWITHMAL PARTY." Said Pinky holding out a banner with the title of the party, but the banner was over 400 feet long and still fit in the 60 foot wide kitchen.

"Wait, what did you say?"

Pinkie then took a gasp of air and was about to start saying the name of the party again. But she was stopped by a sudden Discord popping into the kitchen, he used his lion paw to close her lips. He shook his head. "Don't ruin the surprise. Where's the fun in that?" Said Discord as he poofed out of this reality leaving everyone confused.

Spike sighed. "Don't question it." Said Spike.

Suddenly one of Discords Arms reappeared holding a large ink stamp. The arm then stamped Pinkie's side and then disappeared. Spike sighed again, and looked at what his new boss just stamped on Pinkie. "It says, 'Hi my name is Pinkie Pie, I can do a lot of things, don't question it or you'll go insane, please see 'Feeling Pinkie Keen for only known case of Pinkie induced crazy'". Said Spike who just shrugged it off and took the final sip of his coffee. "Well I've reached my limit for Discord influenced crazy for the day, I'm out." Said Spike as he walked to the kitchen door.

Once Spike reached the door he looked at everyone and smiled. "I'm heading to the castle to start my aerial training, be back in a while. Love you." Said Spike as he waved and walked to the front door.

Spike opened the front door and smiled. Spike smirked, unfurled his wings and started to fly towards the old castle.

Once Spike reached the old castle, he used one of the holes in the ceiling to fly into the main hall. There he started to land, but unlike the first landing that ended in a crash. Spike used half the night talking with Mal in his mind. They talked about what he was doing wrong when it came to landing, they used the memories of all the dragons Spike has seen, and copied their motions.

Spike landed perfectly on the ground, this time. It was unlikely that anyone was going to come into the main hall for a while so Spike decided to wait. Spike decided to light the campfire and take a seat in the stone chair that his mother made.

A few moments later Spike noticed a single Stingbee drone flying past. Spike gave a short whistle to catch its attention. The moment the bee saw Spike it flew down to him. It landed on the stone table and waited for orders. Spike looked at the bee. "Tell Queen that I have arrived and I want her to gather everyone, you have ten minutes, buzz once when ready." Said Spike. The bee buzzed once and then flew away.

Ten minutes later the room was now filled with all of the ammo. All the leader's moved over to the table and waited for Spike's orders. Spike smiled and gave a pat to everyone. "Thanks for showing up, now who's ready to start some training?"

The room was filled with cheering. Spike smiled as he looked at Wallop. "Wallop I need a few of you guys to act like our targets, you are used to hard landings, but I'll make sure to keep it to glancing blow's so no one gets hurt." Said Spike, Wallop nodded. Spike nodded and smiled as he gave the order to get ready. "All right, we are going to start some new training, so all fliers are to report in right now, as for the ground troops your getting the time off. Also everyone, we are leaving tomorrow morning and your all coming with me so plan to be in the tubes for at least a few days." Said Spike as all the ammo nodded at the information and started to pile in to their tubes.

Once everyone was inside of the tubes Spike walked out of the castle and equipped Wallop and the Thudslugs. Spike launched 12 Thudslugs into the air, they started to hover in the sky as they were awaiting their orders. "Today is the beginning of our aerial combat training, you 12 are to spread out around the castle and hold position, I will fly around getting used to the movements and learning to adjust for everyone's flight paths, move out." Said Spike as the Thudslugs dispersed.

Once Spike knew all the Thud slugs were ready, he unfurled his wings and took flight. Spike started to fly around the castle to locate all of the slug targets.

Spike circled the castle from the air and after the 5th fly around, he had located all of the slugs. As Spike was flying he equipped the stingbees next to the thudslugs. Once Spike was near the first slug target Spike shot one of the stingbees and completely and utterly missed. It was an overshot. Spike groaned. "Damn, it looks like this is going to take a while."

It took Spike nearly two hours to hit all 12 targets. It turns out that Boombats don't do well with high altitude flight, thudslugs are much heavier then they look, but now the castles grounds had 12 new holes in the ground. But Spike knew this was going to be difficult at first and aside from nearly crashing twice, it went well. As Spike was flying back to Ponyville he went into auto pilot and started to review his training today with Mal.

Inside of Spikes mind Mal was watching a replay of what Spike was doing during training. Spike walked over to Mal and let him finish the review. Mal sighed. "You need a lot of work It seems."

"What was your first clue?" Asked Spike.

"Instead of your normal 95.67% accuracy with Queen and her hive on the ground, today your accuracy was shit, at 15.78%. You need more training with your aerial stability. Imagen that your just standing on the ground but over a hundred feet in the air, that's your first goal, once you feel comfortable hovering in the air, start moving slowly and then speed it up. That's when we will need to take into account, leading like you do with Blink. So I'm recommending similar training for all the fliers. Its a opening if you miss the target the first time. Don't assume that they'll miss you."

Then we need to take into account your strategies. Thanks to those upgrades that we still have we can keep track of how many of them we have left. But from what I saw, it takes about 2 seconds longer for you to swap out and to reload them when you try and gain altitude. So if your swapping or reloading either stay still and get shot or do a dive bomb and let the air help you. Lastly now that you have wings doesn't mean you will be unstoppable. You still need to train with out them. On the ground, in enclosed spaces, or if you hurt your wings, you will need to rely on your training for survival."

"I agree, can you pull up a image of what we're seeing right now?" Asked Spike.

Mal nodded an pulled up a window of what Spike's eyes were seeing, but all it was gray and yellow. Mal was confused. "Um, what the hell is that?" Mal took a sniff of the air and became even more confused. "And why do I smell muffins?"

Spike sighed. "Its the mail mare, I'm going out, see you soon." Said Spike as he returned to the real world.

"Um....Sir, would you please stop for a moment and let me go?" Asked Derpy as she was struggling to get free of the dragons hold.

Spike was now fully in control again. He looked down at the mare in his arms and became embarrassed.

Spike slowed down to a hover as he released his hold on the mare. For the first time in ten years, Spike has reconnected with one of his old friends that would stop by the castle to talk with him. Derpy, a gray coated mare with a blond mane, her eyes were a yellow that matched her hair. She is Ponyvilles resident mail mare. But she wasn't always in that position, she started out as part of a local moving company, it didn't end well. Then she joined the weather team for a day, that did not go well. But she needed a job so she could support her daughter, Dinky. She joined the REMS (Royal Equestrian Mail Service) and she was stationed in Ponyville. Despite her impaired vision, she is still considered one of the best mail mares in the business, and from the looks of it. She was doing her rounds. On her head was a mail mares cap and hanging on her side was a large mail mare messenger bag.

Spike smiled but looked sheepish. "Sorry about that Derpy, are you ok?" Asked Spike.

Derpy looked at the dragon that was holding her and looked confused. "Um sir do I know you?"

Spike sighed in annoyance and was starting to think that he needed to start wearing a sign. "It's me Derpy, its Spike."

"psh, no your not Spike disappeared two years ago and he hasn't gotten any mail in just as long." Said Derpy waving off the statement.

Spike sighed and facepalmed. "Your real name is Ditsy Doo, you have a daughter named Dinky, who you had when you were a teenager. The fathers name is Dusk, but currently your dating a brown stallion named Time Turner, but everyone just calls him The Doctor. But if all that's not good enough. Your favorite type of muffin is a chocolate chip, blue berry muffin, that you make yourself, but only you and I know the secret ingredient, which is orange extract."

Derpy Gasped and slammed herself back into the dragon as she hugged him. "Spike it is you!"

"Yeah, but if someone from a town called 'Maizal' comes around asking for a dragon named Clavar, then you never saw me, understand?"

Derpy shook her head. "Nope, but ok."

Spike smiled. "And that's why Dinky is lucky to have such a great mother." Said Spike. He looked at the position of the sun, it was right over head, meaning it was about noon. Spike figured it was time to go. He looked at Derpy. "Derpy, why don't you drop by the castle some time next week so we can catch up, I got to get going right now."

Derpy nodded and released Spike. "Ok Spike, I'm glad to see your back, I'll bake a tray full of my muffins for you, when I come and visit." Said Derpy as she flew off waving, but now she was heading south, not east.

Spike sighed. "Wrong way!" Yelled Spike.

Derpy gasped, as she turned to the east and headed back to the town.

Spike smiled, as he continued to fly to Rarity's.

Spike touched down in front of the boutique and knocked on the door. He waited to be invited in. But after a few moments of waiting, Spike knocked again, and again nothing. Spike was about to knock for a third time, but the door was opened before he could. But not by Rarity, but by Sweetie Belle. "Sorry, Carousel Boutique is currently closed for a special request." Said Sweetie Belle not even noticing that Spike was the one knocking.

"Well, that kinda sucks, I was hoping to pick up my special order today." Said Spike nonchalantly.

Sweetie Belle turned her head and blushed in embarrassment when she noticed the dragon. "Oh, sorry Spike, Rarity wasn't expecting you till a little-FINISHED!" Said Sweetie until the sound of Rarity cheering interrupted her. "Now." Said Sweetie as she walked Spike into the showroom.

Once Spike was inside of the shop, he was enveloped in a blue magical aura, levitated to behind the changing screen as his hat, backpack and crossbow were teleported off of his body. Once he was behind the screen, the same blue aura levitated what appeared to be a collection of golden and black fabric. "Put these on first, then I'll hand you the rest." Said Rarity.

The fabric was a simple shirt and pants, probably to make sure that the new set of armor didn't rub up against Spikes scales.

"This is the main part of the outfit, and thanks to my enchantments, it should be as strong as steel, but as light, and flexible as silk." Said Rarity as she levitated the chest piece over to Spike.

Spike grabbed it. He was in awe at the design. It looked to have the same design as the old set of armor, he had shown her. But it was mixed together with the style of his poncho. The only difference being a few holes down the center of the back for his spines and two large slits for his new wings. Spike put it on and smiled. "Its fits perfectly, and I was able to get my wings in without a problem."

"That's good to hear dear, next, are a set of gauntlets that have a set of gloves built in." Said Rarity as she gave Spike the pieces.

Spike fed his arms through the gauntlets and inserted his fingers into the holes. "As you can see, the cuff of the gauntlets are a series of layered reinforced pieces of fabric colored a dark wooden color, that accent the whole set. On the right gauntlet, I have made it so that your crossbow could be easily transferred between the armor and its old mounting."

"That's a great idea, but the gloves are a little too big in the hands, so that will need to be adjusted." Said Spike.

Rarity hummed as she wrote herself a note. Once the note was finished, she levitated Spike a pair of boots that matched the armors style. "Here are the boots I designed. The drawings you showed me, looked to be designed for creatures with hooves, similar to Centaurs. So I adapted the original design of your old boots, I took off those horrible belts, and added a series of adjustable tighteners that will act like shin guards for you."

Spike inserted his feet. He got a feel for the boots and after a while he was satisfied with the design. "Thanks, they are just the right size and they feel good against my feet."

Rarity smirked in victory. "I'm glad to hear, you have no idea how hard it was to find a material that is soft, but not prone to being destroyed by dragon claws." Said Rarity. She levitated the final piece of the armor set over to Spike, the helmet.

"This is the last piece, the horns are real goat horns. I got them from one of Fluttershy's big horn sheep friends, who had shed them this spring. The side panels are meant to protect the sides of your head. But I also scrapped the piece that sits in between the eyes, along with the spikes that go from the forehead and crest to the back of the helmet. Instead I went for a few spikes at the forehead, that will then transition into your natural spines." Said Rarity as she revealed the helmet to Spike.

Spike grabbed it and placed it on his head. Once it was on his head, Spike was amazed at how Rarity was able to combine practicality of an ancient, alien, and lost civilization of warriors, while added her own personal style, but still adjusting it to complement Spikes own features.

Once Spike was finished admiring the outfit, he walked out from behind the changing screen to show Rarity and Sweetie Belle. "So how do I look?" Asked Spike.

Sweetie Belle whistled impressed at the outfit, as she looked at her sister. "Wow Rarity, you have really out done yourself with this design. Its not to much, not to little, and it perfectly complements Spike. Those goat horns even look like the horns some dragons have."

Rarity nodded in agreement. "Quite right Sweetie. I agree, not to much, not to little, but the gloves are to big, it seems." Said Rarity. She used her magic and teleported the entire outfit off of Spike, sending it to her work room to adjust the gloves once Spike leaves.

Spike laughed at how blunt Rarity could be when it comes to fashion, and instantly stripping a client was pretty blunt only betting out, saying that the waist of an outfit needed to be taken out some. AKA, telling them, they are to big for the outfit. "Thanks for the outfit Rarity, but I got to go, I have plans to meet up with the Cake's as soon as the lunch rush is over. I'll be back later to get the armor, and before I forget, we leave at 8 am tomorrow, so make sure to get packed tonight." Said Spike as he grabbed his stuff, walked out of the shop and took flight, waving back to the two mares standing in the door frame.

Spike flew for a few moments until he was right over the sweet shop. Spike looked down to see if it was safe to land and to see if wouldn't stop the flow of the business. When he did, he noticed that it didn't look too busy, there wasn't a line out the door like there used to be, around this time. Plus there was no one sitting at the outdoor tables. Spike deeming it as the best time as any, landed. Spike descended to near the ground and landed right in front of the store front. But the moment Spike landed, he could hear whispers coming from the locals, that were walking around town. But Spike ignored the comments as he had another task ahead of him.

Spike pushed open the door, the bell above the door rang out, alerting the occupants of the bakery of the new customer. Oh, how Spike was wrong, the bakery was chock full of ponies enjoying a wide range of sweet treats. But now they all stopped eating and turned their attention to the winged dragon with a lot of scars that just entered the establishment.

Spike chuckled nervously and decided to just smile at the pony patrons. Yeah, that plan was thrown out the window, smashed with a hammer, torn up, taped back together, put through a shredder, twice, then the remains were set on fire, buried, left to decompose, then dug up, set on fire again, and for added overkill, it was sent through the shredder one more time, the moment Pinkie Pie saw him. She was manning the counter. Pinkie gasped when she saw Spike, and in true Pinkie fashion, she instantly handed all the ponies in line their orders, even those who hadn't ordered yet. She pushed them to the side so Spike could get to the front of the line quickly.

Spike chuckled even more nervously when all the ponies that were in front of him, were now looking at the food in their hands confused. Then Pinkie, again in her own special way, pulled Spike, who was nearly 20 feet away by the front door, to right in front of the counter. Once he was in front of the counter, she pulled Spike into a hug. Pinkie giggled, "Hiya Spikie, what can your auntie Pinkie Pie do for you?"

Spike laughed at the actions of his most hyperactive friend and smiled, forgetting about the ponies who were staring at him. "Well Auntie Pinkie, why do you think I'm here?" asked Spike.

Pinkie hummed in thought as she rubbed her chin and stuck out her tongue. Then a real light bulb popped out of her mane and lit up brightly as she gasped. "Your here to tell the cakes about your time on Mudos while you play with the twins." Said Pinkie smiling.

Just then, a score board with the names Pinkie and Spike popped into reality. It started to hover above the mare. Then a certain draconequuses arm holding a piece of chalk appeared and made a mark under Pinkies name, then the arm disappeared. The totals now were, Spike 2, Pinkie 146.5. The board stayed above the mare for a few moments and then disappeared to god knows where, as Spike looked at the mare and nodded his head. Pinkie giggled as she pointed up the stairs, "I had a feeling that was the case, so I told them to expect you and I'll hold down the front for a while. Also here's a cupcake for you, on the house of course, for my favorite little dragon." Said Pinkie holding out a cupcake with a green wrapper, purple frosting, and little emeralds she used for the eyes. She handed it to Spike who just shrugged, removed the wrapper, and popped it in his mouth. Spike savored the flavor of the cupcake before swallowing it.

Spike smiled at Pinkie. "Thanks Pinks, don't forget to have everything you'll need for the trip tomorrow, we leave at 8am, and no flugelhorn. Twilight was very adamant about that." Said Spike as he watched Pinkie deflate slightly, and immediately return to normal for Pinkie standards, as she nodded, then Spike smirked "Buuuuuuuut, if I don't know, a certain pink pony just so happened to have already packed her luggage, then a certain dragon wouldn't be able to know if or if not said pink pony did or did not pack said instrument." Said Spike as he watched a pink streak head up stairs, and return before the after image disappeared.

"Well I'm sorry to say, but your too late. I'm afraid I already air mailed my luggage to the Crystal Palace, so there's no way to know for sure." Said Pinkie as she played the innocent act, and she wins best actress.

Spike smiled and nodded at Pinkie. He walked past the counter, up the stairs and made his way to the Twin's old nursery. Once Spike made it to the door, he knocked. The door knob was enveloped in a light blue aura, which turned the knob and opened the door. The next thing Spike saw was a mixture of cream, brown, orange, and pale yellow slamming into him. Sending him to the ground with a thud.

Spike looked at his attackers and saw the widest eyes he had ever seen. "Um hi." Said Spike.

"Hi." Said the two in unison.

"So, does this mean you 2 are in trouble and didn't know I was outside the door or you actually remember me?" Asked Spike.

The two looked at each other and nodded, then Pound spoke. "We remember you, Mr. Spike."

Spike smiled. The two little terrors, were picked up by Mr. Cake and carried back into the room. Mrs. Cake walked out of the room and helped Spike to his feet. Spike cracked his neck and looked at the mare. "What did they do now?" Asked Spike.

Mrs. Cake giggled and shook her head. "Nothing for once, they were actually excited to see you, this was just a unfortunate incident." Said Mrs. Cake as she showed Spike into the room.

Once Spike was in the room, he saw how much it has changed over the years. The crib was replaced with two small beds, one with the logo of the Wonder Bolts, and the other with butterflies, little bunnies, and other cute girly things, showing how different the twins are. But there was still the toy chest and the same decorations as last time. Showing that not everything has changed. Spike looked at the Cakes. "So what do you want to know?" Asked Spike.

The Cakes looked at each other and whispered in a family huddle. Once they came to a consensus among themselves, Pumpkin looked at Spike. "Mr. Spike could you tell us about where you went?" Asked Pumpkin.

Spike smiled, but then he looked nervous. He then looked at the older Cakes. He whispered to them. "Just what am I allowed to tell them about, the place wasn't exactly made of ice-cream and kittens."

"Try to limit the violence, and no cursing please?" Asked Mrs. Cake. She gasped as she remembered that Pinkie mentioned Spike and the little creatures he had. "Um Spike, Pinkie mentioned you had little creatures with you, would you mind showing us them?"

Spike thought about it for a moment. 'Yeah, why not, it would be a fun way to introduce the family to other ponies.' But then he thought about who he could bring out that wouldn't traumatize the kids. "Um, are any of you scared of Spiders?" Asked Spike.

All of them shook their heads. "No, I'm slightly allergic to bees, but I'm not afraid of them." Said Carrot Cake.

Spike nodded and pulled out all eight of the ammo tubes from under his mounting, then one by one, Spike popped the tops off of the tubes and released only the heads of the family. "So to start off with..."

Four hours later:

"So then I walked back into town, made sure the money was ready for Doc, Beeks, and who ever else I owed money, then I headed to Doc's and after nearly 10 years of making my way in Mudos, I was able to return home. But I appeared in the middle of the Everfree forest over a hundred feet in the air and started to fall to the ground..." Just then the clocktower bell started to ring, and it rang six times signaling 6pm. Spike sighed, "And 'The Wonderous Story of Spike the Bounty Hunter' will have to conclude next time."

The audience made a groan. "But why?" wined Pumpkin.

Spike picked her up and placed her on his knee. "Because Pumpkin, I need to head home and see my mom. She took this entire week off to spend time with me. But I have spent a total of 10 minutes with her today. Plus I have to get ready to head to the Crystal Empire for the crystal fair. Trust me I still have a lot of stories to tell you guys and I promise to tell you all of them, when I get back." Said Spike as he looked at Pumpkin.

Pumpkin sniffled but nodded in understanding. "Ok, Mr. Spike." Said a sad Pumpkin.

Spikes heart broke at the sight but then he thought of a way to cheer her up. "Hey Pumpkin?" Said Spike.

Pumpkin looked at him. "I promise to tell you all about what I've done since I got back, when I return from the Crystal Empire, so long as I'm not mobbed to death when I show up, cross my heart, hope to fly, stick a cupcake in my eye." Said Spike doing the motions. It worked wonders as Pumpkin smiled, so excited.

"Thank you Mr.Spike." Said Pumpkin hugging the dragon. Spike hugged her back.

Spike placed Pumpkin back on the ground and walked over to Pound and gave him a fist bump, which was returned by the colt. "See you around Pound."

"You too Mr. Spike, but you got to up your story telling game, there was hardly any cool fight scenes."

Spike laughed, "How about a deal?" asked Spike, "Once you turn ten I'll give you the uncut version of what happened." Said Spike.

Pound gasped and Buzzed excitedly around Spike, causing the dragon to laugh again. "I'll take that as a yes then." Spike then looked at the two parents and smiled. "Thank you for having me today, I had fun."

Mrs. Cake giggled. "No, thank you Spike, for the first time in a month nothing was destroyed, cracked, broken, set on fire, smashed, or put a hole in the wall."

Spike looked at the two children in shock, then back to the adults. "Really, but they are only like three, just how?" Asked Spike. "I mean, I know they fight, and occasionally stuff gets damaged, but set on fire?"

Carrot Cake nodded. "We accidently left the window open, Pound found a storm cloud and brought it inside, kicked it, and lightning struck the wood floor setting it on fire, it was a small fire but we have child locks on the windows now."

Spike whistled. "No offense but y'all have some strange kids. Last I checked, pegasi can't move clouds, let alone storm clouds, until their at least six, and unicorns can't do that." Said Spike pointing to Pumpkin, who was levitating all of her dolls and making them dance in the air around Pound.

Both parents shrugged. "What do you expect, they see Pinkie as an aunt." Said Mrs. Cake.

A cold chill ran down Spikes back. "Can they... you know."

Both shook their heads. "Thank Celestia no, it appears to be unique to Pinkie alone, this family can only handle one Pinkie Pie, imagine what life would be like with three."

Spike tried to imagine that but all he saw was pink. "All I saw was pink."

"Exactly." Said both parents shuttering at the thought.

"But anyways, thanks for visiting Spike, we need to head down stairs and get ready for the after dinner crowd to show. Your welcome to stay if you want."

Spike shook his head. "Sorry, but no can do. I got a early morning and I need to head back to Rarity's to pick up my new outfit, have a good night you two." Said Spike as he walked out of the twin's bed room, back down stairs, said good bye to Pinkie, then left the shop, and headed back to Rarity's.

A few minutes later Spike arrived at Rarity's and knocked on the door, and almost instantly Spike was teleported to behind the changing screen, but he was now completely naked. "Your stuff was teleported back to your room in the castle, dear." said Rarity from the other side of the screen. "I have your outfit all ready as well, try it on." Said the mare as she levitated the completed outfit over to Spike. "And I also have a special surprise for you when you get out."

"First off, thanks for sending my stuff back, second, thanks for getting this done on such short notice, and lastly, what surprise?"

"You'll just have to wait and see, and it was no trouble at all Spikie Wikey." Said Rarity.

Spike groaned at the use of his old pet name, but donned his new armor.

Moments later Spike walked out from behind the changing screen to show it off to Rarity. "It fits perfectly now Rarity." Said Spike smiling as he looked at Rarity who was smiling back at the dragon.

"Well I'm glad you like it. Seeing that smile brings back so many memories. Now close your eyes, and put out your arms for your surprise." Said Rarity.

Spike trusted Rarity and was actually excited to see what Rarity has in store for him. He put out his arms and closed his eyes. Moments later Spike felt a weight being added to his arms but he kept his eyes closed. "Ok, now open your eyes." Said Rarity. Spike opened his eyes and was shocked to see what was in his arms. "Surprise." Cheered Rarity.

In Spikes arms, was his old poncho and boots completely fixed and looking brand new. "How did you?" Asked Spike who looked at Rarity in shock.

Rarity giggled at the dumbstruck dragon. "Well, I just fixed them up, you should really thank Celestia. She's the one who thought it would be a good idea to have your old 'outfit' repaired." Said Rarity.

"Well, still, thanks for fixing it up, none the less." Said Spike as he smiled at having his old outfit back with him.

"I'm glad you like it, but you need to leave." Said Rarity as she pointed to the door.

Spike was confused. "But why, did I do or say something?" asked Spike.

Rarity gasped and shook her head. "No, no ,no , no, no, absolutely not, its just a lady needs her beauty sleep, and it takes me a few hours to get ready in the morning, so shoo." Said Rarity shooing Spike away.

Spike laughed and walked up to Rarity. He pulled her into a hug. "I never understood why a beautiful lady like yourself needed so much sleep in the first place." Said Spike. "But if that's what my lady wants, then that's what she gets." Said Spike. He released Rarity, walked to the door and opened it, but before Spike left he looked back at Rarity and smiled one more time. "Still as beautiful as always, goodnight Rares." Said Spike as he took off for the castle.

Rarity walked over to the door and watched Spike fly away. She sighed. "Good night Spikie Wikey, my sweet little prince."

Spike arrived back at the castle, opened the front door, walked in, and closed it behind him. Spike then shouted. "TWILY, I'M HOME!"

Spike only had to wait a few seconds, but he was joined by Twilight, Starlight, and Celestia, after they all walked out of the map room. Once they saw Spike in his new armor, they all fell silent. Spike smirked. "So, do I look good or what?" Asked Spike flexing and showing off.

Spike stopped flexing and walked over to the still silent mares, he waved his hands in front of their faces. "Hello... Mom, Twi, Star....Hello?" Said Spike. He got no response. Spike shrugged and decided to head to the kitchen to start cooking dinner for everyone.

Spike walked into the kitchen, headed to the fridge, opened it. He looked at what Twilight has in stock. "Hum, cauliflower, no, lettuce, I could make a salad, but we don't have any dressing, so that's out, Eggplant sounds good." Said Spike as he pulled the eggplant out and started to make his famous Eggplant Parm.

Spike was pulling out the finished Eggplant Parm, as all three mares walked into the kitchen looking a little dazed. Spike turned to the mares and placed down the hot dish on to a crystal counter top. Spike smirked at the mares. "I know I'm good looking, but I didn't think I could make mares stop in their tracks." Joked Spike. "So, what was the whole silent treatment about?" Asked Spike.

"Um..." Said Twilight.

Spike sighed. "Its not good news, is it?"

Starlight nodded her head.

"What happened?"

"Well, as it turns out, Cadence decided to close the Spike museum and memorial on Tuesday, for 'renovations'. It didn't sit well with the populace, who are demanding a explanation for the closures. Cadence and Shining are only telling them its a surprise. That isn't going well also, so we have to move up the time table of your reveal or risk losing the trust of the crystal ponies."

Spike facepalmed. "To when?"

"Twenty minutes after we arrive." Said Twilight.

Spike sighed and shrugged. "Well it could be worse. They could of blabbed and Ponyville would of been overrun by crystal ponies looking for Spike the Brave and Glorious. I can work with this. I can still spend time with Flurry, Shining and Cadence." Said Spike. "So who's hungry?" Asked Spike holding out plates.

Spike was laying down in his room, sleep was alluding him. The thought of what will happen tomorrow was driving him to stay awake. But suddenly Spike sensed a familiar presence, that had just landed on his rooms balcony, it was Luna. Spike got off of his bed and opened the balcony doors to let his aunt in. "Hi Aunt Luna." Said Spike.

Luna jumped up surprised by the sudden appearance of Spike. "Um... its not what it looks like?"

Spike raised an eyebrow, not buying that at all. "Well, it looks like my Auntie Woona decided to come visit her nephew, am I wrong?" Asked Spike.

"Um... then its exactly what it looks like then." Said Luna as she looked at Spike. "So, the fact that your still up at this hour must mean you know about what you are to do tomorrow, correct?" Said Luna.

Spike nodded. "Yeah, Its not like I'm actually scared of dying tomorrow, I know that's over thinking, but it would be nice to talk to my parents again, and this time actually know who they are." Joked Spike. "But I don't want this to ruin the fair. I had planned to do this on Sunday night right before the fair ended. But now the fair is going to get overshadowed by the return of the hero of the Crystal Empire." Spike groaned. "I mean, all I did was jump out of a tower and then Cadence caught me and the heart, that's it." Said Spike slightly annoyed.

Luna giggle as she looked at her nephew. "First off, you look good in that new armor. Second, do you know how the crystal fair started?"

Spike nodded. "Yeah its, a fair to restore love and unity for the empire started by the first queen of the empire, or something like that."

Luna nodded. "Yes, that is all true, but do you know how it started in the first place?"

Spike shook his head.

"Well, it all started soon after the defeat of Grogar. The area known as the Crystal Empire was nothing but a small section of our mothers territory. But unlike most of her area, it was a harsh and dangerous land, filled with many dangerous creatures. Life for the ponies that lived there, was far more hazardous, but the ponies that lived there united together and persevered. Slowly, overtime they expanded from a small village, to a small town, to a city, then to the empire that Sombra took control of, over 1000 years ago. All of this, while staying united and sharing the love they had with each other. In that love and unity was born the crystal heart, It was decided that to insure the continuation of what the empire stood for, every year the ponies would celebrate who they are and where they came from. All of that culminated into the crystal fair." Said Luna.

"Then why am I considered a hero to them?"

"You Spike, reminded the crystal ponies about what their ancestors stood for. Love and unity. Love for both friends and family. Unity to stand against any challenge no matter how dangerous. To them you are the physical embodiment of what the crystal empire was founded upon. You played an integral part in retuning the empire to if former glory. So with all that going for you it was only natural that they would see you as a hero of the empire."

Spike groaned. "But I'm just me." Said Spike pointing to his everything.

Luna cocked an eyebrow. "And what is wrong with just you?" Questioned Luna.

"You want the full list?" Joked Spike. "I'm lazy, childish, a drunk, a gambler, I've killed..."

"But you have the greatest sense of duty, are very mature, no your not a drunk, gambling is a fun pastime, you did it for your friends and to survive." Said Luna trying to counter Spikes list.

"You united three of the major races on the planet, you show great dedication to your friends and family, you risk your life for others, at every chance you have, with no thought of what will happen to you." Said Luna. "And that's just what the plaque on your memorial says, but the list goes on, so while you just see you, others see a true hero, a hero who is humble to a fault. Its just the Crystal Empire was the first to notice the true you."

Spike groaned, he walked to his bed and sat down, as Luna sat beside him. "Does Fate have a twisted sense of humor?" Asked Spike.

Luna giggled. "Yes, but only with those she likes does she really show it." This earned her an apple to the horn. Luna looked up and wondered where the apple fell from, but she shrugged at ate the apple. "But Fate isn't the one who decides how you feel about your situation." Said Luna as she pushed Spike onto the bed and used her magic to cover him in his covers. "That's all up to you, now get some rest or your not going to be able to outrun the mobs." Giggled Luna as she kissed Spikes forehead. She started to hum a lullaby to help Spike sleep.

Spike succumbed to the relaxing tones and slowly closed his eyes, drifting off into a deep slumber. Once Spike was out, Luna looked to the door. "You can come in now." Said Luna.

The door opened and Celestia walked in. "Thanks for this Lulu, I had a feeling he was struggling to sleep, and he has so much more ahead of him. I'll be damned if lack of sleep is what causes him to fall." Said Celestia, as Luna left her spot on Spikes bed, walked to the balcony and started to teleport back to the palace.

"One day I hope he sees what he truly is to the world." Said Luna as she left.

"As do I Luna, as do I." Said Celestia as she looked at Spike, like a mother does when she looks at her child. "Get some sleep my little ball of fire." Said Celestia as she kissed Spike's forehead, and left the room to let him sleep, but she was stopped when Spike started to talk in his sleep.

"I love you mommy." Sleep spoke Spike.

"And Mommy loves you too sweetie." Said Celestia as she smiled back to her room.

Spike The Brave and Glorious Returns

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Spike was not woken up by the sun, but instead he was woken up by it's handler. Celestia was trying to wake up her son. "Spike, its time to wake up, the train will arrive soon and you need to get ready." Said Celestia as she tried to wake up Spike.

"Nnnnn...no....sleepy...five more minutes." Grumbled Spike tossing and turning in his bed in an attempt to go back to bed.

Celestia sighed. "Dragons." Said Celestia as she rolled her eyes. She used her magic to teleport all of Spikes clothes off of him. Then she levitated the still sleeping dragon to a bath room, while turning on the shower. Once it was ready, she tossed the dragon into the water.

The moment Spike's body touched the water his eye shot open. He screamed in shock. "AWWWWWW."

Celestia was laughing at the display in front of her. "I remember doing this to you so many times, when you would refuse to get up in the morning. So much so you started to sleep with a bar of soap and a luffa."

Spike shot her a glare but started to laugh as well. "Don't forget about Sir Squeakers."

"That's right, Sir Squeakers, royal knight of the bubble bath." Said Celestia. "But now is not the time for us to go down memory lane, we need to get ready, the train will arrive in an hour. Get cleaned up and be down stairs in five minutes." Said Celestia.

Spike laughed. He used his tail to turn off the shower, this confused Celestia. "Spike, I said you need to get ready, why did you turn off the shower?"

"Simple..." Said Spike as he stepped out of the shower. "You see, dragons are fireproof, and unlike mammal's we don't sweat." Said Spike.

"This is common knowledge."

"Let me ask you, in the time the dragons were around did any of them actually bathe?"

Celestia thought back. "Actually no, a few would head to a lake and clean off their scales when they got dirty but never to bathe."

"That's because we can do this!" Said Spike as he proceeded to blow his fire onto himself. Celestia was shocked seeing her son set himself on fire, but more shocking was once Spike was extinguished his scales looked clean and shiny.

Spike laughed at his mothers shocked look. "Dragons don't need to bathe, because our scales don't trap dirt like fur does, so to clean ourselves, we just need to breath fire or take a quick jump into lava and we're clean."

"Then why do you?" Asked Celestia.

Spike shrugged. "Its relaxing, and rubber ducks can't survive lava." Said Spike. He walked out of the bathroom and headed to his room to get ready to leave. Leaving Celestia standing there.

Once Spike was back in his room he gathered all of his stuff, placed his extra set of clothes into his bag, put on his new armor, but he decided to place the helmet in his bag as well. Spike moved all of the ammo tubes to the built in crossbow mounting that Rarity had added to the armor, then Spike removed the crossbow from the old leather strap and moved it to the new mounting. Spike looked at the new home of his crossbow, he smiled at how cool it looks with the new armor. "Looks good, feels good." Said Spike. He placed his old mounting strap in his bag, it was just in case something happens.

Now that everything was packed. Spike put on his normal hat, placed the packed bag on to his back, and walked out of his room to get a quick breakfast before it was time to leave.

Spike walked down the stairs and looked at the main hall of the castle. There next to the door was a set of bags. All of which had the cutie marks of one of the girls including the CMC's marks. That was except for the 37 bags, 9 makeup cases, and three full sized wardrobes, all of whom donned Raritys cutie mark on each piece. No doubt, filled to the brim with the 'Essentials', and placed in a wagon that looks like it was about to break. Spike smirked. He shook his head as he walked past the bags. "Somethings never change." Said Spike. He opened the door to the kitchen. When he entered he was greeted to the sight of all the girls and to his surprise Ember.

"Morning everyone."

"Morning Spike."

Twilight then used her magic to levitate a hot cup of coffee to Spike who was just standing in the door way. Spike took the cup, sipped the life giving drink, and just drank it, not moving an inch.

Once half the coffee was gone Spike decided to addressed the elephant in the room. "So why is Ember here?" asked Spike. "Not asking annoyed, just wondering why?"

Ember walked up to Spike and punched him in the stomach without a moments warning. The action of the dragoness left everyone shocked. The next thing everyone saw was Embers fist still on Spikes stomach as he just took another sip of coffee. Spike cocked an eyebrow. "And what was that for?" Asked Spike, acting like he was just tickled by a feather.

Ember removed her hand and then clutched it in pain, before shaking it. "Um... just wanted to know if you could take a punch." Said Ember still holding her hand.

Spike took another sip and nodded. "Yes, I can take a punch. I can also punch back." Said Spike as he placed his coffee on the counter. Spike walked over to a wall and out of nowhere punched a door sized hole through the wall of the kitchen.

This left everyone in more shock, but Twilight was snapped out of it when she noticed the new door to the kitchen. "SPIKE!" Yelled Twilight in anger.

Spike looked at the mare and gave her a glare to calm her. "Twilight, first off you and I both know this isn't even in the top ten worst damage this castle has seen. Plus we both know that the castle will probably be completely fixed by the time we get back. And you know I would never hit a lady, not even Ember, who might of survived with a broken arm, so the castle was the closest thing." Said Spike as he looked that his sister. He then looked at the table and noticed that there was a box of donuts, Spike looked at Pinkie. "Are those chocolate?" Asked Spike.

Pinkie nodded and opened the box to reveal the worlds most popular morning sweet. "With sprinkles." Said Pinkie.

Spike licked his lips. In a flash of speed that not even Rainbow could follow, the box was removed from Pinkies grasp. Its contents were scarfed down by the dragon. The girls giggled at the display, Spike licked the last of the chocolate from his muzzle.

Once the laughing died down Spike grabbed his coffee and restated his question. "So again why is Ember here?"

"I was invited by Celestia and Cadence to be part of the fair this year." Said Ember.

Spike shrugged as he finished his coffee. "Cool." Said Spike, he then looked at Twilight. "Hey Twi who else is going to be at the fair?"

"A few others, Thorax and his student Ocellus, Prince Rutherford and his niece Yona, Ember as you can see, as well as a few other dragons that want to visit Equestria, and..." Said Twilight hesitating.

Spike groaned. " Prince Blueprick is going to grace us all with his presence, isn't he?"

Twilight nodded.

Spike sighed as the room became really cold for a moment, but then it went back to normal. "Sorry about that, Mal promises to be on his best behavior, but on one condition."

"And what are the terms?" asked Celestia who just arrived from the bathroom.

"Any time he insults me, or anyone for that matter, Mal gets to burn one of his suits and he has to watch."

"He deserves worse." Stated Rarity. Everyone turned to the mare, surprised at her attitude for this. She realized what she said. Rarity giggled. "Sorry, old grudge is all."

Celestia returned her attention to Spike and nodded to the terms. "Deal, it might actually teach him not to be..."

"Pompous." Said Twilight.

"Self absorbed." Said Rarity

"Egotistical." Added AJ.

"Racist." Said Fluttershy.

"Glorified." Said Pinkie.

"An overall Ass." Added Spike.

"A bleached piece of shit." Said Alvin as he popped his head out of the tube, shocking everyone.

"Um Alvin, why are you out?" Asked Spike.

"I hear the name Blueprick, and I thought you got drunk again and were complaining about the guy who locked you in a closet for three hours."

"HE WHAT!" Yelled all of the girls at once.

Alvin looked at Spike questioningly. "Um... bad time?" Asked Alvin. Spike nodded as the foul mouth rodent retreated back into his tube.

Spike looked at the angry looks everyone was giving. They all started to plan on what they are going to do to Blueblood. "Now everyone calm down, I got back at Blue for that, the next day when I changed out his shampoo with water resistant ink." Said Spike as he tried to calm down everyone. It didn't seem to get through to their brains. Spike sighed and the room fell cold again.

Mal looked at the display and sighed. He gave a ear splitting whistle that made all of the rooms occupants cover their ears. Once the plotting was over, Mal looked disappointed at them all. "Hey this was my plan of revenge on Blueprick, and lets be honest, its Blueprick. He's bound to piss more then one of us off sooner or later. So as the next ruler of the kingdom both I and Spike, hear by give all of you one pardon to punish Blueprick when that time comes." said Mal as he let Spike back in control.

"And before you say no, I remember reading that at the age of 18 I would assume all the power and responsibility that comes with my title as prince, and lets be honest, its Blueprick." Stated Spike.

Celestia sighed as she nodded reluctantly. "Technically what he says is true, and I agree, but I ask you all, what ever you do don't leave a mark."

Everyone nodded as they all grinned evilly.

Celestia smiled slightly as she noticed that the time was 7:38. The train would be here any moment, she nodded and informed the group of the time. "Everyone its time for us all to start making our way to the train station." Said Celestia.

Everyone nodded, finished off their coffees, and one by one walked out of the kitchen to grab their luggage.

Spike was the last to leave, and the sight that greeted him when he walked into the main hall was hilarious. Spike chuckled at the sight. Rarity trying to lift all of her luggage in her magic, but not even Twilight would be able to lift all of the bags. Spike walked up to Rarity still chuckling. "Need some help Rarity?" asked Spike.

Rarity shot him a glare in opposition as she again attempted to lift all of her stuff, but again she failed to do so. By this point Rarity was huffing in exhaustion as she nearly collapsed to the floor. Spike looked at the mare on the ground and sighed. Spike walked past the mare and like it weighed nothing, lifted the wagon. Rarity looked at the dragon and put up a fake smile for him. The same smile, Spike had seen her put up plenty of times before. "Rarity, drop the fake smile and tell me what's wrong."

Rarity played the innocent card. "I don't know what you mean dear, my smile isn't fake at all."

"Rarity!" Yelled Spike in anger of her closed off response.

Rarity looked down to the ground and started to mumble something. Spike couldn't hear her. "Say again."

She mumbled a little louder, but Spike still couldn't hear her. "One more time."

Rarity sighed. "I said, I don't want to make you feel like I'm using you again." Said Rarity as she was crying a little.

Spike sighed. He placed down her luggage, walked over to the mare, wiped away her tears, and pulled her into a hug. Spike held her tight. "Rarity, I don't regret doing what I did for you all those years ago, minus the time I gave you that spell book, and while yes, I admit I was a little over eager to please you, I did all of that because I wanted to. You didn't force me to do anything." Said Spike. He let her go and looked her in the eyes to show her his honesty. "And now is no different, I am your friend, and I saw you struggling to get all of you stuff. I decided help you, do you understand?" asked Spike.

Rarity sniffed and wiped her eyes but nodded in understanding.

Spike smiled. "I'm glad you understand." Said Spike. He then looked at the mountain of luggage. "How the hell did you get all of this stuff here anyways?" Asked Spike.

Rarity giggled. "I made five trips between here and my shop." Said Rarity honestly as she started to laugh at her packing job. Spike joined in the laughter, as the sad air of the room was replaced with laughter.

Once the laughter died down Spike tossed Rarity his bag. She caught it, but she looked questioningly at it and to Spike, wanting an explanation. "Um Spike, why did you toss me your bag?" Asked Rarity.

Spike looked at her as he lifted her stuff. "It was too heavy for me to carry, would you mind?" Asked Spike.

Rarity nodded as she strapped it onto her back. "Not a problem Spike."

"Thanks Rares." Said Spike as the two smiled.

Spike turned his head. He saw all of the girls in the room, they were crying a little because of the display of emotion. Spike sighed a little annoyed. "Take a picture, it'll last longer." Said Spike. Just then Pinkie pulled out a camera. She took a picture with the flash dazing everyone, and returned the camera to her mane.

"I'm not even going to dignify that with a response." Said Spike.

"But you just did." Said Pinkie. The score board popped into existence above the mare. Like the day prior Discords arm appeared next to it and added a mark. Totals are Pinkie 147.5, Spike 2. The board stayed above the mare for a moment, then it popped out of existence. Everyone watched the display, all except for Spike, who just grumbled and walked out of the castle. He was now heading for the train station. Soon after everyone had processed the possibility of the game between Spike, Pinkie, and Discord, which will never be truly understood. They all noticed that Spike had already left for the station. They quickly matched pace with the slightly annoyed dragon, it wasn't hard to find him thought. He's not exactly known for blending in, especially when he is the only one who was just casually walking around the town with a giant pile of luggage in his arms.

They all arrived at the station. But it was still early, so the train platform was empty, aside from a few night guards standing around a certain midnight blue alicorn. On the ground near the alicorn was a small overnight bag. Spike ignored the guards, and after placing Rarity's luggage on the ground, Spike took a seat next to Luna. But he was still slightly annoyed, so he just smiled at her. Luna looked confused at the normally not so quiet dragon, a little worried, but she was stopped from inquiring about it by her sister. "Lulu don't worry about him, he's a little miffed since Pinkie out logiced him." Said Celestia.

Luna looked at the mare in question. She looked between Pinkie, Spike, and Celestia, thoroughly confused. "What happened?"

Pinkie giggled. "Well he and Rarity were having a moment. He said take a picture it will last longer. So I did, here you go by the way." Said Pinkie as she handed Luna the developed photo. "And once the camera was put up, he just looked at me and added 'I'm not going to dignify that with a response, and I told him 'you just did'. Then everyone saw the scoreboard Discord made for us. I have 147.5 and Spike has 2, and now he's a grumpy pants."

Luna oh'ed for a moment then started to giggle. Celestia looked at the horizon, and over the horizon were puffs of smoke, that were growing larger every second. "Looks like its almost here, everyone cover your ears."

Everyone including the normally statue like guards, did as their princess ordered, as a ear piercing, brain melting, screech echoed in the early Saturday morning. The tale tell sign that the very fast, very shiny, Crystal Express, started to apply the brakes. After a few moments of pure agony, it was over. On the tracks, was the fastest known mode of train travel in all of Equestria.

Once the train was fully stopped, a set of doors on the train opened. Two guards walked out of the car, waiting at attention until it was time to depart. One was a purple crystal stallion wearing the signature Crystal Empire royal guard armor, and the other was a normal orange pegasus stallion, with blue hair, and he was wearing the standard solar guard armor. Cadence, Shining, and Flurry Heart walked out of the train to greet their friends and family. But they were stopped when they noticed Spike, more specifically the new armor, and new set of wings on his back.

Cadence slowly approached Spike with her mouth wide opened, but when she regained control of it she spoke. "Spike, wings, when?"

Spike chuckled, "I'll tell you on the ride, but first someone wants to say sorry, isn't that right Mal?" Said Spike. The area became silent, and Cadences face paled in horror.

"Yes, hello Cadence, long time no see." Said Mal.

Cadence jumped back and charged her horn, she was ready to attack Mal, determined to get Spike back. "No, I won't let you take him, he fought too hard and for too long just for you to pop up again!" Yelled Cadence. Everyone looked at the battle ready alicorn and the nonchalant dragon, thoroughly and utterly confused.

Mal chuckled as he looked at his cousin. "Seriously, all I get is more threats, this family is truly in need of some counseling." Said Mal as he shook his head. He looked at Cadence. "Look, all I wanted to do is pop out, say hi, say I'm sorry for being a annoying little ass, and to thank you for keeping my secret. Now that's all out of the way I'm going back to bed. Don't wake me up until its time to run for our lives Spike. Also you owe me for taking that punch." Said Mal as he swapped out with Spike.

The area went back to normal, as every one continued to look at Cadence and Spike in shock. "YOU KNEW?" Yelled Twilight, Celestia, and Luna.

"Um, Happy crystal fair day?" Said Cadence. She was receiving a glare from the other princesses. Cadence sighed in defeat as she nodded. "I did. At first, I thought Spike was just being a normal baby dragon, I thought he didn't know better, but when I heard that you grounded him, I decided to go check up on him, like any good cousin would do. But when I got to his room, I heard him arguing with someone. He was saying 'But she told us to stay in the room', and 'I don't care'. I decided to talk to him about it, but when I walked into the room, 'They' looked back at me. I got scared, so I ran to my room. The next day, Spike dropped by and told me all about Mal. He assured me that he had Mal under control now, but he made me promise to not tell either you or Twilight." Said Cadence as she looked to the ground.

Spike smiled as he walked up to his cousin and gave her a hug. "Yeah, I got a lot to tell you." Said Spike.

"Oh you have no idea." Said Cadence. "But first lets get all of your stuff on to the train."

All the guards were loading the train the moment Cadence said so, as all of the passengers took their seats in the royal train car. Cadence looked at Spike. "You have as of this moment 4 hours and 23 minutes to explain." Said Cadence as the train whistles sounded and the train started to move.

"So lets start off with...."

4 hours and 15 minutes later.

"...And it turns out that I'm actually the oldest thing in this car, and my parents were actually badasses. So in conclusion, the last few days have been very, very eventful." Said Spike as he finished telling about his week.

"So, your actually the son of the first dragon lord Bahamut, an anchor that is preventing the release of a tyrant named Grogar. You and the others, saved a kingdom in a alternate reality. Then you started the molt, where you got eaten by a Roc, then you killed said Roc and ate it. You became the new assistant god of chaos, grew wings, and on top of all of that you have been lying to all of us about most of the stuff that happened to you on Modus. You technically have a massive, and might I say deadly army in the palm of your hand, made a deal with Discord to give up your first kid, stopped Daybreaker and Twilight from going on a rampage. Got revenge on your old bully, Garble, and your planning on punishing Blue if he insults anyone. And to top it all off, you some how made an agreement with your other personality. And you did all of this in a matter of days?" Asked Cadence, making sure she got all the major plot points of the story.

Spike nodded. "So, on a scale from 0 to 10, how believable does that all sound?" asked Spike joking.

"Coming from anyone else, it would be the ramblings of a mad man, but ever since you got back, normal has been thrown out the window." Said Cadence.

Spike chuckled. Spike looked out the window, and saw the top of the palace. "So how likely is it that I'm going to die?"

"Honestly, all of the guards have been notified of potential mobs, they are going to guard you and you alone for as long as the hype last. But they can do nothing if the ponies decided to storm you. So you got a 50% chance of saying hi to your parents today." Said Shining Armor.

Spike sighed. "Fine, I've dealt with worse odds. But if I do croak, I want to be buried surrounded by a massive pile of gems and all of my worldly possessions. Actually, you know what, its all in my will." shrugged Spike.

Celestia looked at him a little shocked. "You have a will?"

Spike nodded. "Technically I have three. One I wrote myself before I got to Mudos, one for when I was in Mudos not sure if I was going to get home, and as of Tuesday night, I got Discord to make another one for me, turns out he's a attorney." Said Spike.

"Just another perk you get to have when your immortal, law school was a breeze." Said a disembodied voice.

Spike smiled. "So you did make it, I was wondering when you were going to pop up." Said Spike, as Discord slowly assembled from all the dust in the train.

"And miss the big day? Spike, you wound me." Said Discord with fake hurt in his voice. "I even got the commemorative Spike the brave and Glorious souvenir cup." Said Discord showing a large cup with a model of Spikes head used as the lid and his tallest spine holding the straw.

"Hey, where did you get that, their not supposed to be available until tomorrow." Yelled Shining.

Everyone looked at the stallion, who shrugged. "What, you think financing a whole empire is simple, spoiler, its not. So we make as much as we can when we have events."

"Fair enough." Said Spike, he then looked at the empire and decided to cover his ears again, as the train started to slowdown, incapacitating everyone on board.

Once the train was stopped. Spike got to his bag and pulled out his new helmet, placing it on his head. He walked out of the train and was immediately surrounded by a platoon of guards. One of the guards spoke. "We know who you are. Don't say a word, and keep your head down, if you don't, there will be a mob." Said the guard. Spike nodded. "Move out!" Ordered the guard. The platoon and dragon quickly made their way to the palace.

Twilight was watching the events unfold before her. She looked a little worried. She looked at her brother. "Shining be honest with me, is Spike in real danger?" Asked Twilight only letting out a little of her true feelings.

Shining slowly nodded. "He is. Everyone thought he was dead Twi, there was a three week mourning period for everyone in the empire. Once they see he's alive, what do you think will happen?" Asked Shining Armor, just as worried for his little brother.

Twilight nodded as she watched the platoon of soldiers move Spike to the Palace. She then smiled. " Then we better be there with him. We're family and no two bit mob is going to lay a single finger on our brother." Said Twilight confidently as she used her magic to teleport all 17 of the remaining trains occupants directly to the palace.

All of the crystal ponies who were watching the odd display shrugged it off as just a very special guest, decided to visit for the fair.

Once Spike made it to the palace. He was escorted to the main balcony, where he would reveal himself to the world. But he was stopped in his tracks, when he spotted two familiar ponies walking towards him. But they didn't recognize him. Spike decided to interact with them, in hope of set his mind at ease. "Um, excuse me." Said Spike.

The two ponies looked at the dragon. They were a little shocked, but quickly let it slide. "Sorry, what can we do for you?" Asked the orange unicorn stallion with white fur limbs, raggedy dark orange mane and goatee, wearing a cape.

"I was wondering, are you Sunburst the crystaller?" Asked Spike. He then looked to the blue fur unicorn mare, with a white and pale blue mane, wearing both a cape and wizard hat. "And aren't you The Great and Powerful Trixie?"

"So, you have heard of me." Said Trixie in her usual smug tone.

Spike nodded. "You turned me into a ball after you went crazy from using the Alicorn amulet. I also know that your both good friends with Starlight Glimmer." Said Spike smiling.

Trixie was in thought as she tried to remember what she did in the past, but she came up with nothing. "Trixie is sorry, but she does not fully remember what she did when under the influence of that amulet. Might she have your name?" Asked Trixie.

Spike shook his head as he chuckled. "Nope, no offense to either of you, I just find it funny to watch ponies try to figure it out. So here's your next hint. Sunburst, I saw Princess Flurry Heart shatter the Crystal Heart, right after she was born." Said Spike.

Sunburst thought for a moment and then everything clicked into place. his jaw dropped. "Your..."

Spike nodded. "But lets see how long it takes her to figure it out." Said Spike as he pointed to Trixie.

Five minutes later. Trixie shrugged. "No clue, next hint please."

Spike facepalmed. "I was there when Twilight stopped the Ursa. I helped Starlight and Sunburst get reconnected. There's literally like two statues of me around the empire. Any of this ringing a bell?"

Trixie shrugged. "I didn't stick around for that, I usually tune others out until my name is mentioned, and I'm not into modern art."

Both Spike and Sunburst facepalmed at the mare. "I give up." Said Spike. "Discord, do the thing."

Suddenly a flashing purple and green neon sign with a giant red arrow pointing at the dragon appeared. One by one the words 'This is Spike, you idiot.' flashed to life. Trixie 'ohed' in realization. Then she shrugged and cocked her head in confusion. "Wait ,I thought you were dead."

Again both Spike and Sunburst facepalmed at the mares idiocy. "Really, no 'Oh My God your alive', or no 'The Prince has returned', or I don't know the fact that last time, I was shorter then you and now I'm at least a head taller and have wings?" Said Spike waving around his arms.

Trixie shrugged. "What do you expect, we were never that close, I mean I'm glad your alive, but I was never one for politics."

Spike sighed and threw up his hands. "I'm done. I might die in a few minutes and I rather not be wasting the last few moments of my 10th chance at life like this." Spike then looked to Sunburst. "If I survive the next hour or so, treat me to a drink and I'll tell you one hell of a story. But until then, either find a safe place to lay low, or get out of the castle." Said Spike.

Sunburst nodded but then looked at Spike. "Wait you can drink now?"

Spike nodded. "Yeah, I'm 22 years old." Said Spike as he left the two unicorns, and headed out to the balcony to face his fate.

Spike arrived at the large crystal balcony. He noticed that he was not alone anymore. There were now in total 22 different creatures from 5 different races standing there talking to each other. Spike looked at everyone and smiled. "At least I go out next to family and friends." joked Spike, catching the attention of everyone on the balcony. "So what up every one?" Asked Spike.

Spike was greeted by a few creatures. "Yak glad see purple dragon return." Said Rutherford as he bowed to Spike.

Spike bowed as well. "I too am glad to be able to see you again Prince Rutherford." Said Spike. He smiled at the rather large yak prince who was dressed in his finest clothing, with his horns covered in gold rings. Rutherford then moved over to show a smaller yak girl. Her hair was tied into hoops by a set of pink hair clips, but her horns were still poking out, and she was dressed in a formal light green dress. "And who is this?" Asked Spike.

Rutherford smiled. "This be Yona, my niece, Yaks proud of Yona for being true yak."

"Yona honored to meet Spike." Said Yona bowing to Spike.

Spike bowed. "As am I. Thank you for joining us on this special occasion." Said Spike.

Yona Smiled. "Yona so excited to visit Crystal Empire, this Yona's first time out of Yakyakistan."

Spike smiled. "Well, I hope you have a good time and make lots of friends."

"Yona will." Said Yona nodding.

Thorax and a small light blue changeling with a pink fin and wings, walked over to Spike.

Spike smiled at Thorax. "Good to see you could make it Thorax." Said Spike as he gave Thorax a hug.

When Thorax hugged Spike he gasped and looked behind Spikes back and gasped again. "You have wings?" Asked Thorax.

Spike nodded. "But that's not all, but we can talk later over a drink, Sunburst is buying." Spike then looked at Cadence. "He gets paid for his services right?" Asked Spike.

Cadence nodded, "He does, but we'll cover the bill, go have fun."

"Sweet I'm in." Said Ember

"Me too." Said AJ.

"Bet I can drink you under the table in ten seconds flat."

"Yak hope pony bar have yak drink, pony stuff to weak."

"Aw what the hell, I'm not planning on flying tonight." Shrugged Garble.

"I could go for a drink, I have the good stuff at my house." Said Discord.

Shining looked at his wife with big pleading eyes. "Can I go?"

Cadence nodded. "But I want you home before 12."

Shining smiled. "I'm in."

Then Prince Blueblood sighed. "If I must join these 'creatures' as a representative of the true royal family of Equestria, just to make a sign of good faith and to show them pony superiority, I guess I must go."

Everyone looked at the pompous white unicorn. A dark and chilling presence was felt across the balcony. Everyone who knows about Mal just facepalmed at Blueblood. But those who don't know about Mal, were scared and started to back up, Blueblood included. "Well, well, well, long time no see cousin." Said Mal as he walked towards Blueblood. "Not only did you just insult me, Ember, Thorax, Discord, and Rutherford by openly called us inferior, you just insulted Cadence, Twilight, Shining Armor, and Flurry Heart by insinuating that they are not part of the royal family. But you almost causing an international incident, which could of resulted in a war as well, that's just low. So you have two options, and only two: You say your sorry to everyone here, then shut up for the rest of the fair, or and I would love it if you chose this option, I let you go..."

"I choose that option." Said Blueblood scared to the bone.

Mal Smiled. "I'm glad, but you should of waited for me to finish, I was going to say, I let you go and give you a ten second head start before I set my family on you." Said Mal just waiting for the punch line.

Blueblood laughed at the threat as he pointed to everyone. "And what do you expect them to do to me, I am the bridge between the nobles and the princesses." Said Blueblood.

Mal laughed harder and the punch line was almost ready. "And you are nothing but, a experiment that wormed its way into the heart of Celestia. You are no prince and you will never be, you worthless lizard." Ranted Blueblood.

Everyone was giving him glares a pure hatred and death.

"THATS IT! WE'RE MOVING OUT LADS!" Yelled a high pitched voice.

Everyone looked around to find the source of the voice, but they didn't see anything. Suddenly Mal started to laugh again. he looked at Celestia. "Mother can I show him the errors of his ways?"

Celestia nodded. "Yes you may, but don't kill him, he's still family."

"I can live with that." Shrugged Mal. He pulled out all eight tubes from his crossbow mounting and pressed the release button. Mal smirked as he watched the once smug Blueblood stand there helplessly. The whole of the balcony became packed with all of Spikes ammo. All of the heads took their spots on Spikes body. Mal smirked. "Everyone, Operation Blueprick is a go, but no killing him." Said Mal.

"You heard the Commander, show Blueprick why he shouldn't mess with our dragon." Said Alvin as he changed his form. All the ammo nodded as they changed as well, all while glaring daggers at the now whimpering unicorn. All the creatures that didn't know about the ammo, dropped their jaws when they saw all of them, as Thorax, Rutherford, Cadence, Shining, and Flurry Heart just started to gasp like fish at the sight.

"What are those?" Asked Thorax.

Mal looked at the changeling king and smirked. "This my friend is 'the family'. Spike will explain everything at the bar so hold all comments, questions and concerns till then."

"Auntie, stop this beast right now." Ordered Blueblood, who has had enough of this craziness.

Celestia just giggled. "Why? Blue, all I see is a simple family argument. I'm sure you two can talk it out yourselves." Said Celestia as she and everyone else just turned around.

Mal chuckled. "10...9...8...." Counted Mal.

Blueblood stomped his hoof on the ground. "I order you as the prince of Equestira, and as your superior, to stop this farce right now." ordered Blueblood.

"7...6....5....4....3" Continued Mal.

"Your only proving me right, all dragons are brutes-That's where your wrong Blue, look around you, notice those dragons having a friendly conversation with Celestia and the other ponies. Your in the wrong here, and should of started running by now." Said Mal.

Blueblood got the point and scrambled for a few moments, but he was able to ran as his legs could go, all while screaming like a little girl.

Mal laughed. "Operation Blueprick is a success, good job everyone." Said Mal.

The balcony was filled with happy cheers. They completed one of their most anticipated missions, flawlessly. All of the non ammo creatures turned around and were confused when they saw all of the ammo still there. Rainbow groaned. "What the hell, I thought they were supposed to chase Blueblood around, why are they still here?"

"Simple my dear prismatic pegasus, no where in my statement did I ever say I was going to hurt Blueblood. Spike on the other hand is in time out, he wanting to rip his spine out. He still has another few minutes." Said Mal as all the ammo returned to their tubes.

"Wait, Spike wanted to rip Bluebloods spine out, but isn't that your thing and all?" Asked Starlight.

Mal nodded. "Normally yes, but even I don't insult friends and family so blatantly. As where as I see everyone here as my treasures that I need to protect. Spike see's you all as his family." Mal then looked at Garble and the little orange dragoness with the magenta fin behind him. "Garble, is that the Smolder, Ember mentioned a few days ago?"

Garble nodded slowly. "She is."

"And what would you do to anyone if they tried to hurt her, physically or emotionally?"

"I would rip off their limbs and shove them down their throat." Said Garble without a moments hesitation.

"My point exactly." Said Mal. "Uh oh, Spikes coming back, make sure he doesn't go on a rampage." Chuckled Mal. "Good luck." The area went back to normal as Spike returned.

"Where is he, I need a new rug for my room." Said Spike in a calm but eerie tone as he cracked his knuckles.

Everyone looked at the evil side of Spike, that he was showing. For the first time in forever, they actually felt bad for the would be prince. "Spike, Blueblood has learned his lesson, so calm down and lets forget about him." said Cadence.

Spike huffed but nodded. "Fine, but I still want to burn his wardrobe with Mal. To really get my point across." Said Spike as he started to calm down.

"Better yet, lets donate it all to the ponies around the empire and watch his reaction of letting 'commoners' wear his high fashion." Suggested Cadence.

Spike grinned at the plan. "That will work, its more humiliating that way, but he could always just buy more clothes, so to make it funnier, lets make him wear rags while he watches, or maybe ban him from his favorite clothing stores, or make him only wear plaid for a year?"

"Ew, I like this side of Spike, fun and mischievous, but not all murdery." Said Cadence. "Lets go with all of the above."

"And that is why your the best cousin ever." Said Spike as he hugged Cadence. Spike then turned to see everyone staring at the two. "Um...lets pretend the last five or so minutes never happened, ok?"

Everyone nodded. Spike smiled. "Cool, and like Mal said. I'll explain everything to everyone tonight at the bar, so back to introductions." Said Spike as he returned to meeting the small changeling next to Thorax. "I'm sorry you had to see that, normally I have better control, and who might you be?"

"I....I'm Ocellus." Said The small changeling looking at Spike nervously. "I'm King Thorax's personal student."

Spike smiled at the changling and noticed that she was almost as shy as Fluttershy. Spike nodded. "Well you couldn't have a better teacher. Thorax is a great guy, and I know you will make him proud."

Thorax came up besides Ocellus and smiled at her. "She already has, she's compassionate, smart, and kind. I'm planning on letting her attend the new school." Said Thorax not noticing that behind Spike, Twilight was shaking her head and crossing her arms in a attempt to stop him from talking.

Thorax noticed the alicorns actions but was too late. Spike turned around to see Twilight doing the 'Shut up actions' and looked at her questioningly. "What did he mean by new school?" Asked Spike.

"Well I think you misheard him, what he actually said was letting her attend the new pool." Said Twilight.

Spike facepalmed and looked at the alicorn. "You forget dragons have great hearing. Right now, there's a Flugelhorn stand about 7 blocks away with a colt trying to play, he's actually pretty good, but I know that he said 'New School' so I want the honest truth."

Twilight sighed. "I was planning on starting a friendship school this year in honor of you. 'The Spike Solaris School of Friendship.' Where no matter what you are you can learn about friendship." She then glared at Thorax. "I was going to surprise you with the news after we got back, by showing you the location of the school, but thanks to Thorax, that's out the window."

Thorax chuckled and scratched the back of his head sheepishly. "Sorry."

"It's fine, I just wanted to surprise him is all." She turned her attention to Spike. "So what do you think?"

Spike smiled. "I think it is a wonderful idea, and I'm honored you would name it after me."

"Well duh, who else could it be? You were my first friend, you became friends with both dragons and changelings and your friends with all the teachers."

"Wait, teachers?"

"Hi." said all the girls

"Oh, that actually makes a lot of sense, but who else is going to be attending?"

"Well, aside from Ocellus is she agrees to, of course. Yona, a griffin named Gallus, a pony named Sand Bar, and the dragoness standing by Garble, Smolder. Among other ponies who have already started sending in applications."

"Wow, you actually have this all planed out. I'm impressed that you haven't gone crazy yet." Joked Spike.

"Shut up, I am a mare of many talents." Said Twilight.

Spike laughed. "That you are, that you are." Said Spike as he hugged Twilight.

Cadence cleared her throat and announced that it was almost time for the announcement. "All right, we are about to start, everyone get to your places." Said Cadence.

Everyone nodded as they all took their spots at the edge of the balcony, but Spike was pulled back by Cadence when he tried to take a spot. "Except for you Spike, you will be the last to approach as we announce the arrival of the guest of honor. Then you will take off your helmet, show your face, and pray to Celestia that we aren't mobbed."

Spike nodded as all five Princesses approached the front of the balcony. With Cadence in the middle, Celestia and Shining who was holding Flurry heart on her left and Luna and Twilight on her right. "Attention." Yelled Cadence in the royal Canterlot voice. The load voice caught the attention of all the creatures who were enjoying the fair. "Ponies, Yaks, Changelings and Dragons. Today is the day all creatures come together in a sign of love and friendship. On this day, nearly 4 years ago, this land was only filled with sadness and despair, then came the hero of the empire, Spike Solaris, along with the aid of the Elements of Harmony. With their help we were able to free ourselves from the iron grip of Sombra." Said Cadence.

"Today we celebrate the unity of your ancestors who persevered and thrived in this hostile environment." Said Luna.

"Today we honor the continuation and creation of Friendships." Said Twilight.

"We honor all those who are no longer with us." Said Celestia.

"And strengthen all the bonds that we hold dear." Finished Shining in place of Flurry.

"Today, we are joined by Prince Rutherford of the Yaks, and his niece, Yona." Said Cadence as both Yaks walked to the edge of the balcony. "Dragon Lord Ember, her advisor Garble, and his sister Smolder, among other dragons who are in the crowd enjoying the fair." Ember, Garble, and smolder walked to the edge and gave a quick roar, which was followed by a few scattered roars from the crowd. "King Thorax of the Changelings, and his student Ocellus." Thorax and Ocellus walked to the edge. "The bearers of the Elements of Harmony. The element of Laughter Pinkie Pie. The element of Kindness Fluttershy. The element of Honesty Apple Jack. The element of Generosity Rarity. The element of Loyalty Rainbow Dash, accompanied by their little sisters Applebloom, Sweetie Belle, and Scootoloo, as well as the personal student of Princess Twilight. Starlight Glimmer. We also planned for Prince Blueblood to attend but he is currently unable to make an appearance." This was met by loud cheering. Everyone started to giggle. "But in his place, we have the god of chaos, Discord." who actually didn't do anything weird, logic defying, or obnoxious. "Here we stand together as friends and family. All of us may of met at different times or under strange circumstances but all of our connections were made possible by a certain dragon. Spike Solaris, Prince of Equestria, who disappeared 2 years ago. The day he was lost to us was the saddest day any of us had seen, and we soon lost hope of his return. for that reason, in his honor we had memorialized his life in the Spike museum and his memorial, along side the two statues in his image. I know you all are wondering why both the museum and memorial are closed. To be honest, that was a lie, 'the renovations' are not real, the real reason for the closure is so we can change them, for our most honored guest." Said Cadence as she nodded to Spike.

Spike walked to the edge and using his own Canterlot voice addressed the crowd, all of whom were getting angry as to why this guest would have the sway to close the memorial and museum of their hero. "Everycreature!" Started Spike. "I am sorry for the lies and secrets that your ruler had to make. But I asked her to, not out of spite, but just as a simple promise. In a moment I will share my identity to you all. But first let me tell you a story. I was jerked away from my home, trained for years under a harsh but kind master who trained me how to survive in his world. I traveled across a unknown land in search of a way home. There I went through many hardships, I have been injured countless times, I have been shot, bitten, kidnapped, held hostage, drowned, and I have died around 9 times in total, but here I stand before you all once again. I may look different from what I once was, plus the wings are a new addition from just this week." Laughed Spike. "But I have only been back for 6 days so far, and I have enjoyed every moment of it. Just standing here again brings back so many memories of that day 4 years ago. But with out any further delays, I think its time to take my rightful place in this world, I hope to make up for missing 2 years of being with my friends and family." Said Spike as he reached for his helmet, all of the rulers bowed to Spike in respect. "It's an honor to returned after 10 years to such a warm reception. But the truth is, Spike Solaris is alive." Said Spike as he revealed his face to the masses.

The sound of thousands of jaws dropping could be heard.

Celestia then stood up and walked over to Spike. She gave him a hug. She then turned to address the crowd. "I am proud and honored to announce the return of the lost prince, Spike Solaris."

The crowd was filled with cheers, roars, and cries of happiness, as a chant started. 'Long live the prince, long live the prince, long live the prince.'

Spike smiled. "Please stop for a moment!" Said Spike holding out his hands. The cheering stopped, everyone was waiting to hear what Spike wanted to say. "As your prince, I promise to protect all creatures no matter what they are, and let it be known that anyone who dare's to threaten my kingdom, and it's allies, will know the full wrath of my fury." Said Spike.

The cheering erupted again at Spikes declaration. Spike smiled even wider. "One last thing." Yelled Spike. The crowd fell silent once again. Spike smirked. "And as my first order as prince, I order all in attendance to have fun, today is a fair is it not, and your all just standing there." Said Spike as he watched the crowed slowly disperse and return to the fair. Spike turned to look at every one behind him. He smiled as he wiped his brow in exhaustion. "For the record, if I die and come back, someone else is in charge of giving my return speech, that was the most stressful thing I ever did." Said Spike exhausted, but still smiling.

Everyone laughed at the pile of scales about to collapse to the ground. "Well then, I guess you aren't interested in checking out all of the food stalls then?" Asked Twilight. She was smirking at the fact, the moment the word food was mentioned he seemed to have the same level of energy as Pinkie.

"Well, if your offering, who am I to deny the hospitality." Said Spike. He then looked at all the creatures on the balcony. "Who's up for some food?"

Everyone shrugged or nodded showing that they could go for some food. Spike smiled. "I'll take all the non flyers with me." Said Spike as he used his arms to grab Rarity, and Applejack. Spike looked at Yona and smiled. "Want to see what its like to fly on a dragon?"

Yona gasped and nodded excitedly. Spike smiled and lowered his back to allow for the Yak to climb on. "Yona ready, Yona be best at flying with dragon."

Spike nodded as he used his tail and wrapped it around Rutherford as he lifted the Yak like it was nothing. This earned a yelp from him. Spike chuckled as he looked at the yak. He was about to take off. But he was stopped when he felt a tapping on his side. Spike turned his head and saw the CMC standing there, looking at him with puppy dog eyes. "Spike... Can we get on as well?" asked all three at once.

Spike sighed but nodded. "Just be careful of the spines on my tail."

All three cheered. "Yes, Cutie Mark Crusaders Dragon Riders!" as they high fived and climbed on to Spike.

Spike smiled as he looked at everyone but then he noticed that Pinkie was already gone. "Um...where's Pinkie?"

Twilight pointed down. "She is already down stairs."

Spike shrugged. "Cool." Spike then looked at his passengers and smiled. "Welcome to the first passenger flight of Spike Air, we are happy to announce only one crash on record, weather conditions are perfect today, the sun is bright, and no clouds in sight. Todays flight will not be long but it will be very fun. Please keep all arms, legs, heads, tails, and other appendages inside the aircraft to ensure our safety, and thank you for choosing Spike Air." Said Spike.

"Wait, we had a choice?" Asked Rarity, who would of been able to teleport to the ground.

Spike looked down at the unicorn and shook his head. "Not really, just always wanted to say that." Said Spike as he unfurled his wings. He started to flap them, and soon Spike as flying in the sky, carrying a group of cheering ponies and yaks, while one of them was screaming her head off.

Spike decided to make the most of this flight, instead of flying straight down to the ground, Spike instead used his wings and flew to the top of the palace. There he circled it for a moment and then started to spiral down the outside of the structure. All while the sounds of cheering was blasting back to Spike.

Spike soon arrived to the ground. One by one he let his passengers disembark. "Thank you for choosing Spike Air, I know there are a lot of other methods of flying, and I'm happy you choose me." Said Spike.

Once Spike was passenger free he smiled for a moment as his stomach rumbled. The sound was so loud that it caught the attention of a few passing crystal ponies. They all started to mob the dragon, asking for autographs, giving praise, hell one even tried to steal a scale for his Spike shrine. Spikes stomach growled again and the mob gasped and dispersed only to return with all manner of food stuffs, there was crystal corn on the cob, heart shaped crystal fruit, frozen north ice cream, crystal wheat bread, and even just a large plate of crystals. Spike thought for a moment but decided against just taking the hand out. "Thank you everyone, but I'm not going to be like Blueblood, I appreciate the free food, I really do, but all the same, I would like to actually walk to a stand, pay for some food, and enjoy it." Said Spike. He saw the saddened look on the ponies faces, then he smiled. "But, who am I to tell you all, that you couldn't just offer the food up to our visiting royal dignitaries. All of whom, must be starving, especially after having to travel such a long distance to join the celebration." Said Spike.

All the crystal ponies nodded and started to offer the food to everyone else. Spike just laughed as he watched all the ponies trying to push the food onto everyone else. But Spike was still hungry, so he snuck away from the others and made his way to a small food stall that was being run by a yellow crystal mare with her mane done up in a bun. Spike smiled as he approached. "Hello." Greeted Spike.

The out of nowhere greeting scared the mare for a moment, but when she looked back, she smiled at Spike. "Oh, hello what can I get for you?" Asked the mare.

Spike smiled as he thought about what he wanted. "How about a slice of crystal berry pie?"

The mare nodded and pulled a piece of the pie from under the counter. "Here you go sir, that will be 2 bits." Said the mare smiling.

Spike started to laugh, his laughter grew louder and louder, but then it stopped abruptly. Spike looked at the confused mare. "Is there something wrong?" Asked the mare.

Spike nodded. "Yes there is." Said Spike as he pulled the mare out of her booth and threw her to the ground. Everyone watching gasped in horror at Spike hurting somepony. Spike took a step closer. "Your cover is blown by the way."

"I don't know what you mean." Said the mare scared.

Cadence saw the commotion and became worried as she started to run to Spike, followed by all the others.

"Also drop the act. I noticed that something was wrong the moment I greeted you. Instead of gasping at the sight of me, the normal reaction for a crystal pony who sees me, all you did was say 'hello and what can I get for you'."

"And what's wrong with that?"

"Not five minutes ago did I announced my return, do you know how much money a crystal pony would spend to just talk to me for a moment?" Asked Spike.

The mare shook her head. "Cadence told me it was 4783 bits just to spend 10 minutes with me, and do you know how much restraunts bid for me to just eat there once?"

Again the mare shook her head.

"the last winner got me for 10458 bits. Of course I ate there because they asked me to. But when I insisted I pay for the meal, I had to tackle the waiter just to see the check and it was only 8 bits in total, and you just casually asked for 2 bits, from the dragon who saved this empire twice, that was your second mistake."

The mare was starting to sweat, Spike took another step towards her. "So here's the deal, you could either drop the act and be taken in for questioning, or and I really hope you don't choice this option, you could try to attack me, triggering a hostile attack on this kingdom, and getting to be the first one who dies, what's your choice?" asked Spike.

The mare then started to hiss at Spike as her body was engulfed in green fire, her fur was replaced with black chitin and her eyes changed to all blue. "How dear you intervene with the queens plans." Said the old changeling.

Spike sighed and took a shot in the dark. "Let me guess, Chrysalis is planning on taking control of the empire by feeding on all the love that the crystal heart stores, which can only be channeled by Flurry Heart... One second." Said Spike as he readied his crossbow and equipped Char. He then shot her at a crystal pony that was near Shining and Flurry, the only one who was completely ignoring the confrontation that stopped the fair. Char then tied the pony up as it changed back into a changeling as it fell unconscious. Spike returned his attention to the first changeling. "Sorry about that, over protective uncle. As I was saying, you plan on kidnapping Flurry Heart and making her channel all the love that the empire has into Chrysalis, so she could grow in power and take over Equestria. Am I right, oh please tell me I'm right." Said Spike as he equipped Queen and aimed her at the changelings head.

The changeling was stunned seeing as the whole plan was deduced so quickly. It attacked Spike hoping to get rid of the obstacle, it tried to bite him and drain him of his love. But it broke all of its fangs when it tried to bite Spikes scales. The changeling was on the floor grabbing at its mouth in pain. Spike laughed at the changeling. "Sorry should of mentioned the fact that almost noting can puncture my scales."

The changeling used its magic to shoot Spike. He was about to defend from the attack, but instead of blasting Spike the changeling shot up a flare. "Well, shit." Said Spike as he watched hundreds of changelings dropped their disguises and revealed themselves. They all flew away to regroup with the main force. Spike then looked at the changeling still in front of him who was just smirking.

"It's all over now, the queen is coming and its only a matter of time till- Not going to happen." Said Spike as he shot the drone in the head with Queen, killing the drone.

Spike was calm. He looked at his friends and family, as he started to give orders. "Mom, your the highest ranking pony here, take Flurry and start gathering all the civilians, tell them to head to the palace. Luna, Cadence, and Shining are on shield spells, make sure the palace is safe. Rutherford, Yona, Ocellus, Smolder, Applebloom, Scootaloo, and Sweetie Belle are to go to the palace and stay there. Rutherford, make Yak's proud to be yak's by protecting your allies. Thorax your in charge of spotting any changeling who thinks they can pass off as a normal pony and sneak in. Twi, you, the girls, Ember, and Garble are going to stay out side of the shield and protect everyone."

"Not going to happen." Said Rainbow Dash. "I want to be on the front lines."

"I'm with her, why am I sent to defend when I can help?" asked Ember.

"Because, Chrysalis has pissed us off." Said Spike and Mal at the same time. Their scales changed colors to be all gold, shocking everyone. "Trying to take Flurry, tryin to hurt my subjects, trying to take over my home." Said Spike as he unfurled his wings and in one mighty flap, he was sent into the sky. "SHE WILL PAY!" Yelled Spike.

Everyone looked at the fast, golden dragon, flying off. Then they looked at Celestia, wanting to know what to do. "Um... don't just look at me, you heard him, everyone get to the palace." Said Celestia as she took Flurry heart from Shining and teleported everyone back to the palace.

As instructed. Luna, Cadence, and Shining immediately put up three layers of shields around the whole palace. Celestia was using her royal voice to order all creatures to head to the palace. Thorax was making sure all the creatures were really them, and those who weren't, were thrown to Twilight, the girls, Ember, or Garble.

Spike was waiting until all of the streets were clear. He knew full well that this was going to be a war zone. Spike sighed and yelled at his crossbow. "Its go time!"

"Yes sir!" Yelled Alvin from his tube.

Spike started to hear buzzing from the west, he pulled out his binoculars. When he looked to the west, for the first time he actually was worried. In front of him was Chrysalis and behind her was a massive army of drones. "Well, fuck." Said Spike, as he hovered in the sky, waiting for Chrysalis's arrival.

He didn't have to wait long. "Greetings, I am Queen Chrysalis of the Changeling Hive, your new master. Might I ask the name of the pest in front of me?"

Spike laughed. "God not even Queen Chrysalis can recognize me, that's just sad." Said Spike, he looked at Chrysalis. "Here's a hint, I was at your wedding, hell I was part of that wedding, I helped Thorax become king..."

"That grub is not King!" yelled Chrysalis in anger.

"Hey, its rude to interrupt." Said Spike

Chrysalis snarled in anger. "Enough of these games, drones, kill him." ordered Chrysalis.

Spike sighed. "Well your no fun." Said Spike. He used his fire which was being enhanced by Mal, who enlarged his flame glandes, and eradicate most of the drones. Chrysalis was shocked at the power of the dragon. "Well, let me tell you who I am then. I am the son of Tiamat, and the first dragon lord Bahamut, adopted son of the embodiment of the sun, Princess Celestia, nephew to her sister. Luna, cousin to the princess of love, brother to the princess of magic, friend to both dragons and true changelings, and right now, I'm the very pissed off long lost prince of Equestria, Spike Solaris. but I'm still a nice dragon, so I'm going to give you an out, you can turn around with what's left of your army and we can try to find a peaceful compromise, or we fight until only one of us can still stand. And to make sure you know what your getting into." Said Spike as he closed his wings and stared to fall to the ground, picking up speed as he fell. Once he was near the ground, Spike did a 'superhero landing' and the shock wave was so powerful that it made the whole empire shake.

Once the shaking stopped, Spike returned to the sky and waited for Chrysalis's reaction. "Also, I promise not to kill you." Said Spike.

Chrysalis laughed at the display. "Is that the best you can do?"

Spike smirked. "No!" Said Spike as he rushed Chrysalis and tackled her, sending the two to the ground, causing a massive crater to form. Spike started to punch Chrysalis's face in hope to end the fight quickly, but he was kicked off of her and sent flying out of the crater, and through a few homes.

Chrysalis looked at her still remaining changelings and yelled. "I want that dragons head, kill him."

The drones nodded and started to fly towards the dragon.

Spike groaned. "Mal, did you get the number of that train that just hit us?"

"No you idiot, now get back in the fight."

Spike shook his head to refocus and nodded. Spike was about to speed back to Chrysalis, but he was stopped when the remaining drones surrounded him. Spike sighed as he looked at the group of changelings approaching him. This was not the first time he was completely surrounded. Spike pulled out the Fuzzle tube and equipped the Zappflys, and the Stunkz. Spike smirked as he released all of his Fuzzles, who in turn also surrounded Spike in a protective line. All the drones took a step back in hesitation, not knowing what Fuzzles are. Fang hopped to Spike and gave him a nuzzle. "Hey Fang." Said Spike as he pointed to a random changeling. "See that creature over there?"

Fang turned and noticed that Spike was surrounded by a lot of them. He nodded. "Good, were doing the Block, Belch, Bang." Said Spike. He placed Fang on the ground, and watched as Fang and the other Fuzzles hopped towards the changelings. they acted all harmless. Spike looked at Belch and Sparks. "We got ourselves a triple B, you know what to do." Said Spike.

The changelings looked at the Fuzzles in confusion. A dumb drone decided to get closer thinking that they were harmless, the poor bastard didn't even make it a step before he was attacked by two fuzzles and killed. This triggered a chain reaction as all the fuzzles started to attack the first group of changelings. Spike meanwhile was shooting a large number of Stunkz into the crowd of changelings. Once all the Stunkzs were out, they filled the area with their gas, and retreated back past the small wall of dead changeling bodies and Fuzzle line. They took cover for the last part of the play.

Spike smiled as he pointed his crossbow into the air and launched Sparks. Spike then dropped to the ground and waited for the- *BANG* was what happened when Sparks ignited the massive cloud of highly flammable gas. The heat of the explosion was so powerful that all of the changelings were instantly cremated.

Chrysalis arrived soon after to see if her drones had gotten their job done. When she saw only Spike and his ammo standing there, she became furious. "HOW DARE YOU STAND BETWEEN ME AND MY GOALS!" Yelled Chrysalis as she charged at Spike. Catching him off guard, sending him through another set of building, and the rubble knocked his crossbow off of its mounting. Spike landed in front of the buildings, now with a new doorway through all the walls, on the ground.

Spike coughed up some blood. "Yep, at least one of my ribs are broken." Said Spike as he fought through the pain and stood up. But that didn't last long as he was tackled by Chrysalis and pinned to the ground.

"THIS ENDS NOW!" Yelled Chrysalis as she charged her horn. She aimed it at Spike. But before she fired, Spike used his tail and tossed Chrysalis off of him, sending her through a store.

Spike coughed up more blood, as he got up from the ground again. "Yep definitely broken." Said Spike as he stumbled to where Chrysalis landed. The only problem was, she wasn't there. Spike turned around and was instantly shot by a magical blast right in the leg, sending him to the ground again.

Chrysalis laughed in triumph. "You only delayed the inevitable." Said Chrysalis, as she got closer to Spike.

"Hey would you hear out a dying dragons last request?" Said Spike as he coughed up more blood.

Chrysalis thought for a moment.' He's defeated, and he is unable to move, might as well, it's not like I was actually going to honor it.' "Fine. Lets hear it."

"Look behind you." Smiled Spike.

Chrysalis laughed at the silly request. "And why would I do that?"

Spike smirked. "You should at least know who knocked you out. Bitch."

Chrysalis laughed again. "Your delirious from all the blood loss." Said Chrysalis as she charged her horn to strike the final blow to Spike. "Let me end this little..." Was all she said, before she was hit in the back of the head by Wallop, making her launch her final attack into the sky.

Spike groaned as he tried to get to his feet, but collapsed the moment he took a step. "Well shit, I can't move." Said Spike.

"Statement of the year, we have about 20 seconds till we lose consciousness, what do we do about her?" asked Mal.

Spike looked at Wallop, who was worried about Spike. "Wallop I need you to get back to the bow, pop open the Bolamite tube, and get them back here to tie Chrysalis up. Once that's done, get to the palace and get Celestia." Said Spike as he passed out and his scales turned back to normal.

Wallop nodded. He flew as fast as he could back to the crossbow and as instructed, he opened the Bolamite tube, releasing all the Bolamites. He informed them all of what has happened, and he led them back to Spike. But Chrysalis was gone. Worried, Wallop decided to send out the Bolamites to search for Celestia, not wanting to take the chance of the enemy trying to kill Spike now that he's knocked out.

Spike was in a place of all white, a place that was familiar to him. Spike facepalmed. "Well fuck my life, I'm dead aren't I?" Said Spike.

"Yep, seems like it." Said a voice from behind Spike.

Spike Smiled at hearing the voice and turned around. In front of Spike was a massive green and purple dragon, next to the dragon was a smaller black dragoness with five different colored horns, one was black as her scales, one was blue, another was red, next was green, and last was white. "Good to see you son." Said Bahamut.

Tiamat sighed, as she rubbed her eyes in annoyance. "What happened this time?"

"Chrysalis attacked the crystal empire, we fought, I lost a lot of blood from my broken ribs and a broken leg."

"Awe, that sounds like the night me and your father-NOPE!" Said Tiamat but before she could finish Spike stopped her.

"Please for all that is holy, never ever mention what you did that resulted in me, ever!" Said Spike.

This made both Bahamut and Tiamat laugh. "Fine, but I was going to say, the first night we became mates. you were had when me and Bahamut were..." continued Tiamat, as Spike covered his ears in an attempt to not listen.

"Send me back, send me back, send me back. "Said Spike as he pounded his head on the non existent floor.

"...And that's when I knew your egg was alive." concluded Tiamat, but when she looked at her son repeatedly headbutting the after life she started to laugh. "Oh sweetie it wasn't that bad of a story." She looked at her mate. "Was it?" asked Tiamat.

Bahamut shrugged. "I wasn't listening, I was watching Spike the whole time."

"Seriously, between the two of you." Said Tiamat shaking her head. When she stopped looking so disappointed in her mate and son, she noticed that Spike had stopped headbutting the floor. It was time for the awkward part of the conversation. "So, Dragon Lord Ember told you about your origins?"

Spike nodded. "Why didn't you guys tell me before, your my parents."

"We wanted to, but the first time we saw you, we wanted to get to know you, hear about what you were doing, and just spend time with the son we never got to meet." Said Bahamut.

"Yes, these moments we get to see you Spike, are wonderful, and through them we are able to see what has happened to our little Garyx."

"Garyx?"

"Yes, Garyx was the name we wanted to give you when you hatched, no offense to Twilight, but Spike is the name of a dog, not a dragon."

"Hey, its not my fault that dragons didn't want to stay allies over the millennium, if they did, I'm pretty sure that he would not be called Spike." Said a tall white alicorn with a red mane.

Everyone looked at the alicorn. Then Bahamut sighed. "I get it, don't let a boulder brain take control after you, but how was I supposes to know, this was where they were going to end up?"

"I don't know, maybe ask Fate. She doesn't have problem telling us the future, now that we cant influence it." The alicorn turned her head and looked at Spike who was confused to as who this was. She then sqweed and ran up to Spike. "SO YOUR SPIKE!?" Said the Alicorn as she kissed Spikes face.

Spike looked at his parents and looked scared. "Mom, dad, help, stranger danger." Yelled Spike, but all they did was laugh.

The alicorn stopped kissing Spikes face and looked saddened. "Hey I'm not a stranger, I'm your godmother and your grandma."

Spike gasped. "Your Lilith?"

She nodded. Spike sighed and looked at Lilith. "Ok, I'm sorry for the stranger comment, but knowing your name before jumping into doting grandma mode is important."

Lilith nodded. "Sorry, but yes I am Lilith, mother of Celestia and Luna, and your grandma."

Spike smiled. "See, now I know who you are, and its not strange for me to do this." Said Spike as he pulled Lilith into a hug. "Hi grandma."

Lilith laughed at Spike. "You remind me so much of Tia when she was young."

"Thanks." Said Spike, he then looked at his father. "So dad what was with the whole gold scale thing?"

"Aw, I was wondering when you were going to unlock your Valiant Mode."

"Valiant Mode?"

"Yes, a mode that is only available to dragons who have merged personalities. But since you and Mal still worked together to protect your family, you two activated the mode."

"Oh, cool." Said Spike.

Bahamut sputtered for a moment. "Wait that's all I get, no 'what does it do', or 'how long does it last', no nothing?"

"Nope, if you told me it would ruin the surprise."

"Oh, now your like Luna."

Spike started to fade out meaning it was time to head back to the world of the living. "Whelp, looks like its time for me to go. Mom, Dad, as always I love you guys." Said Spike.

"And we're so proud of you. We love you Spike."

Spike then looked at Lilith. "So anything you want to say to mom and Luna?"

Lilith nodded. "Celestia needs to eat less cake, and Luna needs to find a date."

Spike laughed. "I'll tell them, but if I show up in the next few minutes its on you. It was great to finally meet you grandma."

"It was nice to hold my grandchild for the first time as well, take care of yourself, and tell the girls mama is proud of who they are."

"Will do."

"Spike, before you go, I need to tell you something." Said Bahamut.

Spike looked at his father. "The Bloodstone was suppose to be yours, upon my passing. I know you don't want to be Dragon Lord, but if Dragon Lord Ember ever uses it to summon you or give you an order, all you have to do, to stop the itching and glowing is say the phrase. 'As the son of your creator, I deny your call' and it will stop.

Spike nodded. "And there is the required Bloodstone user guide lesson." Said Spike. "I'll try it soon, might freak Ember out though." Spike looked at his everyone. "I got to go. Love you guys." Said Spike as he finished disappearing.

Wallop was still with Spike. Everyone ran up to the dragon with tears in their eyes. "SPIKE!" Cried Celestia. She held her son and shook her head. "No,no no no no no no no, I'm not losing you again." Cried Celesta even harder.

"Then make sure he gets all the Power Pony comics that he missed."

Celestia looked at her son and she cried even more when she saw him giving his goofy grin. "Of course."

Spike smiled. "Sweet. Mom and Dad say hi by the way. Turns out Lilith was going to be my godmother from the start, she also says she's proud of who you and Luna are."

"You saw her?" asked Luna.

Spike nodded but then regretted doing it when he groaned. "Yep, tall alicorn with a red mane, very affectionate, I call her grandma." laughed Spike.

"What else did she tell you?" Asked Celestia.

"For Luna to find a date, and for you to eat less cake."

Both princess sighed "That's her."

Spike then coughed up some blood, scaring everyone. "Well shit, I'm still bleeding, would you mind getting me some where comfy for a while so Mal can keep us alive?"

Celestia nodded. "Of course." Said Celestia as she kissed Spikes forehead. He passed out again with a smile on his face.

The End of The Beginning, But Not The Beginning of The End pt.1

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Spike groaned as he opened his eyes, he tried to move his body, but every muscle was screaming at him to stop. "Ugh, what the hell happened?"

"We passed out due to blood loss, then we died. I was smart enough to keep us going, so we were brought back, and you passed out again after you talked to Celestia ." Said Mal.

Spike groaned again. "Right. How long this time?"

"We were dead for about 5 minutes and knocked out for about 6 hours. A new record."

Spike sighed. He looked at his surroundings, Spike was in a large room with all sorts of medical equipment attached to him. A heart beat monitor was beeping steadily, on his arm was an I.V tube, and for some reason he was attached to a machine that only goes 'Ping'. Spike looked his body, his chest was wrapped in bandages, and his leg was in a cast. Spike groaned. "That's right, Chrysalis threw me through some buildings, breaking some ribs, then she shot me with her magic, and it must have broken my leg."

"Yep, and I've been making sure we don't bleed out for the last 5 hours, thank you very much."

"Sorry, thanks." Said Spike. "So, where are we?"

"You’re in the medical wing of the palace." Said a voice.

Spike tried to turn and see who was talking to him, but when he did, he groaned in pain. "I wouldn't do that if I were you." Said the voice.

"A little warning would have been greatly appreciated." Said Spike slightly annoyed, but then he sighed. "Sorry, I get a little angry when I wake up in a hospital. Who are you ?"

"My name is Dr. Glass." Said the voice. Dr. Glass, an older red crystal stallion with a long straight green mane, glasses on his face, and dressed in a lab coat. "So how are you feeling?"

"Aside from my everything hurting, just peachy, where is my mom?"

"She's waiting outside, would you like me to get her?" Asked Dr. Glass. Spike nodded.

"Of course." Said Dr. Glass as he walked away.

A few moments later Celestia's voice was heard by Spike. "Hey sweetie, how are you feeling?"

"Like I was trampled by a herd of buffalo, run over by a train, then punched in the nuts by a jacked minotaur forty times. So pretty good compared to some of the other times I woken up in a hospital. What about you?"

"Tired, you have any idea how many creatures are outside of the palace wanting to thank Prince Spike Solaris the Gold Scaled Hero of Equestria?"

Spike groaned. "I swear that's even worse than 'The Brave and Glorious'."

Celestia giggled. "I know, but at least this time it’s true, you did fight off a whole changeling invasion alone."

"Nope, I had..." Spike started, but groaned in annoyance when he realized that he lost his crossbow. "Mom, where's my crossbow?"

Celestia smirked. "It’s with Twilight, but a few some one's wanted to see you." Said Celestia as she revealed all the heads who were hiding inside of her mane. "Don't tell Dr. Glass."

Spike nodded, he then looked at all the heads. "Hey guys, sorry for worrying you." Said Spike as all the heads pounced on to Spike to snuggle him. This knocked the wind out of him and caused him to groan. Which stopped the snuggling from continuing?

All the heads had a sheepish look on their faces. "Sorry, but you scared us real bad Sir." Said Alvin.

"I know, and I'm sorry, but thanks to all of you we were able to capture Queen Chrysalis."

Celestia took a sharp inhale through her teeth. Spike sighed. "I know that sound, something happened didn't it?"

"Yes, Chrysalis escaped before we arrived."

Spike sighed. H0e used all his strength to turn his head, powering through the very painful protest from his muscles, and looked at his mother. "I'm sorry mom, if I only wa- No, you risked your life for all of us, you fought to your limit, and thanks to you no one was hurt, some buildings were destroyed sure, but all the rubble is now priceless because it was destroyed by you, and the crystal ponies are shoveling out the bits to just get a pebble, so repairs are going to be covered and then some. So, I don't want to hear any 'Sorry I wasn't strong enough' shit." Said Celestia as she cupped Spikes cheek. "You did your best, saved the day, and somehow made me even more proud of you."

Spike smiled slowly. "Thanks. Hey, would you mind, propping me up?" Asked Spike.

Celestia nodded. She used her magic to levitate Spike a few feet off his bed, where she placed some pillows on the bed for support. She lowered Spike back down once it was ready. "There you go, need anything else?" Asked Celestia.

"Yeah, can I see everyone?" Asked Spike.

"Of course." Said Celestia as she walked off to get everyone.

Once she was gone, Spike started to use his claws to remove the cast on his leg.

Five minutes later. Spike was about half way through cutting the cast off. But he was stopped when he heard a gasp and his hand was incased in a lavender magical aura. He looked over to the side, and Spike saw Twilight standing there, looking very not happy at him. Her look was mirrored by everyone else that was behind her.

"Um.... it’s not what it looks like?" Said Spike, hoping she would buy it.

Twilight raised a brow. "Well it doesn't look like Discord doing the macarena, now does it?"

"Um...Um... Yeah I got nothing." Said Spike as he shrugged.

Twilight sighed "Why were you trying to take off your cast?"

"Because it doesn't hurt anymore." Said Spike as he continued to take off his cast.

Everyone sighed. Ember was fed up with this nonsense, she used the power of the Bloodstone Scepter to command Spike to lay down. "As Dragon Lord, I order you to lay down." Said Ember as she pointed the Bloodstone straight at Spike, making his body glow.

"As the son of your creator, I deny your call." Said Spike not even looking at Ember, as his body stopped glowing. Everyone dropped their jaws and looked between Spike and Ember.

Ember looked at the scepter, confused, then she looked at Spike, and back to the scepter. She got angry and tried to use the power of the scepter again. "As your Dragon Lord, I order you to lay down and rest this instant!" Said Ember with a little more force, and again Spikes body started to glow.

Again, Spike responded. "As the son of your creator, I deny your call." Said Spike as his body stopped glowing. By this point Spike's cast was fully cut off and he was wiggling his toes. Spike looked at Ember. "Sorry to tell you this, but right now I have just as much control of the Bloodstone as you."

Ember looked between the Bloodstone and Spike a few times until she broke down. "What?"

Spike shrugged. "It’s called the Bloodstone for a reason, since I am Bahamut’s son, his blood runs through my vein's, meaning I am also its creator, to a degree at least." Said Spike as he just sat in his hospital bed.

"How?" Asked Ember as she scratched her head thoroughly confused.

"Well It turns out that the Bloodstone scepter was going to be passed down through Bahamut's blood line, but since my egg was stolen, he had no choice but to start a competition to determine who could be the next dragon lord. But over the few times I have had a chance to talk to him. He taught me a few cool tricks." Said Spike as he pictured the Bloodstone flying towards him.

The Bloodstone scepter started to pull away from Ember's grasp. She tried to fight it, but the pull was too strong, and it was forced out of her grip. The scepter flew straight towards Spike, but it slowed down when it entered Spikes personal space. Once it was within Spikes reach, it began to hover next to the bed. Everyone looked at the hovering scepter in shock.

"How?" Asked Ember.

Spike shrugged. "Well, aside from me being able to deny the call, every Dragon lord, and since I was technically Dragon Lord for a few moments, we can do a lot of stuff with it. Watch." Said Spike as the Scepter started to change size. "We all know it can change its size." Said Spike as the bloodstone changed its shape and turned into a cane with the bloodstone turning into a pommel. "But it can also change its shape as well." Said Spike as he willed the bloodstone cane to change into a bloodstone red sword. "Pretty cool right?"

Ember nodded. "But why?"

"Dad was a dragon sure, but that didn't make him invincible, so he mostly used the Bloodstone in this form." Said Spike as he waved the sword. But it was still a sword, so Spike decided it was dangerous and restored it to its original form. "Oh, there's one last party piece he mentioned." Spike then blew some fire onto the stone. "Locate Garble." Said Spike, the Bloodstone then began to glow brightly and a picture of Garble in real time was displaying.

Garble waved and the image copied the movements. "This is used to keep track of any one that the wielder has a connection to." Said Spike as he blew another gout of fire on the stone. "Locate Owlicious." Said Spike as an image of the owl appeared in the room. "See?"

Everyone nodded, as they watched the image of the owl sleeping back in Ponyville. Spike ended the spell, and everyone was back in reality. Spike smiled at Ember. "Here, give it a try." Said Spike as he held the scepter out for Ember to control it back to her side.

"Ember, just focus on having the scepter by your side, and it will come to you." Said Spike. Ember followed his instructions and imagined the scepter being by her side. Slowly, Spike could feel the scepter being pulled out of his grasp, then it left his hand and flew to Ember. She grabbed the scepter and looked at it in amazement. Ember looked at Spike who explained. "Think about it, a Dragon Lord is usually still alive when the next one is selected, right?"

Ember nodded. "And what happens if the new Dragon Lord is unworthy of doing the job or becomes consumed by greed, do you just wait for it to die and whoever gets the scepter first is the next Dragon Lord?"

Ember shook her head. "No, it’s the responsibility of the previous Dragon Lord to reassume control of the scepter, until another candidate is selected."

"Exactly, if that ever happens again the previous Dragon Lord can easily regain control, without risking their life." Said Spike.

"That's actually a smart idea, but why would Bahamut add this feature?"

"He didn't, it was added by the 16th Dragon Lord, Scales, because the 17th Dragon Lord was a sneaky piece of shit, who tried to steal the scepter before the gauntlet. So, Scales added his blood to the stone and created his new ability."

"Wait, you can add abilities to it?" Asked Ember shocked.

Spike nodded. "Yes, but only once, and in total there is about 14 different abilities right now. We have only seen 7 in total, The Call, which is what every Dragon Lord can do to summon all dragons. The Eye, to allow for viewing a single creature that the wielder has a connection to. Change Form, which allows for it to change the size and shape. Retrieval, which was the ability that Scales added. Transfer, the ability that allows the scepter to transfer all the power it wields to the next Dragon Lord. Levitation, self-explanatory. And lastly, Command, which allows the dragon Lord to order dragons to do anything. But in total 10 of its abilities were created by my father, who is the foundation of the stone. But to make sure no one dragon could create the ultimate weapon, he limited the addition to one per Dragon Lord. So only 4 other dragon lords have added their blood."

Spike then willed the Bloodstone to him, grabbed the scepter, and looked at Fang, "And I'm been dying to add one since I learned about this thing." Said Spike as he pointed a finger at the Fuzzle. "Fang, one small nip please?" Asked Spike.

Fang looked hesitant at biting his master. But he nodded and gave the underside of the finger a nibble, only barely able to break the scales. There was a small drop of red dotting out of Spikes finger, Spike smiled. "Thanks boy." Spike moved the bloodstone to make sure it would catch the drop of blood.

Once the drop of blood hit the stone, it started to glow a bright green light. Spikes eyes glowed the same green color. "As the 74th dragon lord to wield you, I offer my blood to expand upon the power of dragons." Said Spike, then he closed his eyes, and the green light disappeared.

Spike opened his eyes and smiled. He tapped the remains of his cast and it was engulfed in a blood red fire. The cast was turned into smoke, then the smoke traveled around the room. It stopped in front of Celestia. Now that the smoke was in front of the target, the smoke condensed and, in its place, dropped the same cast. Everyone looked at the cast in Celestia's arms, then to Spike who was smiling, then back to the cast. "And now I'm the 5th to add his blood, and I call it delivery. I based it off the messenger spell mom put on me when I was young so we could always stay in contact, but I turned it up to 11." Spike then thought for a moment. "Pinkie can you come here?" Asked Spike.

Pinkie was by his side in a nanosecond with a big smile on her face. "What you need Spikey?" Asked the party pony.

"I need you to just stand there, no logic defying hyperspace movement, just stand there." Said Spike. Pinkie nodded and became very rigid not moving a muscle. Spike whispered something to the still mare as she blinked to show she understood. Spike smiled. "Watch this." Said Spike as he tapped the bloodstone on to the party pony, who was engulfed in the same red fire as the cast.

Everyone watched in horror as Pinkie was burning alive and watched as she was nothing but dust. "PINKIE!" Yelled all the girls.

"Pink Pony Gone?" Asked Rutherford, who was glaring at Spike with anger. "Why dragon do that?"

Spike shrugged. "I was hungry, and Pinkie knows what I like." Said Spike as the burning pinkie was turned into smoke and sent out of the room. Spike started to laugh. "Oh man, poor Serving Platter is going to have a heart attack when a random pony just drops in out of nowhere and starts baking a cupcake."

Everyone looked at the hysterical dragon confused. Spike noticed the odd looks, sighed, and blew a flame of his fire at the stone. "Locate Pinkie Pie." Said Spike. The Scepter showed a pink blur moving around the castle at super speed. Spike smirked and ended the spell as a perfectly fine and happy Pinkie burst through the doors. She walked over to Spike and handed him a cupcake. "Thanks Pinks." Said Spike as he ate the cupcake whole.

"Not a problem, it was actually fun. I was all whoosh and spinnie for a moment then I popped back in front of a little old mare making a salad for dinner." Said Pinkie.

Spike smiled and looked at everyone. "With this Dragon Lords will be able to send living and nonliving things across large distances and hold on for one second." Said Spike as he grabbed the Bloodstone with both hands. He watched red wisps of the Bloodstones magic transferred over to him.

Once the energy stopped. Spike smiled, as gave the scepter to Ember. "Here you go, I don't need it anymore." Said Spike as he used the retrieval ability and pushed it towards Ember.

Ember was starting to get angry. "Ok, stop all this. First off what did you do, how did you do that, and why do you look so happy?" Said Ember.

Spike smiled." Well, I used the ability called Transfer, to transfer my ability to myself, as for the how, I think it’s part of my connection to both the spell and the scepter, and because I can do this now." Said Spike as he looked at Garble. "Garble hold out your arms."

Garble shrugged and held out his arms. "Um, why am I doing this exactly?"

"Wait for it." Said Spike. He used his green fire to set himself on fire. He laughed like a maniac as he slowly started to turn into smoke.

Everyone watched in shock as Spike was completely gone from his bed and turned into smoke. The smoke flew around the room for a few moments but then stopped above Garble. It condensed into the shape of Spike. The smoke flashed and out pops Spike, who was dropped into Garbles arms. "Hi." Said Spike. He then looked at Pinkie. "Your right that is fun."

Pinkie nodded. Everyone looked at the dragon in Garble's arms and their jaws dropped. Celestia stammered. "How...You...Smoke....There....How?"

Spike chuckled. He got off Garble and stood on the ground. "Simple my dear all-powerful mother. The transfer ability can transfer all the authority it wields between Dragon Lords, but I made it transfer one ability to me. Since I never was interested in being Dragon Lord. I had no reason to care, but after I met my dad for the 3rd time he started to tell me all about the scepter. With it, I was able to create a more powerful version of our communication spell. Through it, I transferred the ability to me, and now I'm able to teleport to anyone I have a connection to." Said Spike. Now that the long-winded explanation was over, Spike remembered that he was overdue for some booze. "So, who's up for that drink?" Asked Spike.

Everyone just looked exhausted and raised their hands. Spike smiled. "Sweet." Said Spike as he tried to walk out of the medical ward towards the closest bar. But he was stopped when he noticed that he was walking in midair. Spike turned and noticed that Twilight was levitating him in the air. "What the hell Twi?"

"Don't what the hell me, your still injured and should be resting."

Spike chuckled, shook his head, and smiled. "No, I'm good, I can even walk on my own again." Said Spike.

Twilight smirked, and placed Spike on the ground. "Prove it then, walk back to me without stumbling." Said Twilight confident that she was going to win.

Spike shrugged. "Ok." Said Spike as he walked over to Twilight without any difficulties, shocking the young princess. "So?"

"How?" asked Twilight.

"Mal has been fixing me up since I was brought back, add my natural dragon healing, and what I assume to be a rapid healing effect of 'Valiant Mode'. A broken leg and some ribs can be healed in a few hours. Don't get me wrong, my muscles still hurt like hell, but I've been through worse." Spike then looked to Cadence. "So, where's the closest bar from here? I need a stiff drink and I promised Sunburst a story." Said Spike as he smiled.

"A few blocks north of the palace, a place called 'The Crystal Goblet'." Said Cadence.

Spike nodded as he cracked his neck, walked over to Twilight, and grabbed his crossbow from her. He then walked back to his bed, gathered all the heads, who returned to their tubes, and walked past everyone in the room. Spike was about half way through the door. But he was stopped when he was again levitated off the ground. Spike sighed, turned around to look who stopped him, and was about to yell at who he assumed to be the cause of the stalling, Twilight. But his yelling was stuck in his throat when he noticed the only magic user, who was currently using their magic was Rarity. Who looked mortified at Spike? "Um... Rare's, why are you levitating me?" Asked Spike.

Rarity looked at the dragon in her magic and slowly walked over to him. As she got closer her face changed from mortified to angry, which made Spike feel scared. "Spike." Said Rarity with a smile but with an underlined tone of anger.

"Y...Yes, Rar….Rarity?" Stammered Spike.

Rarity brought Spike into her reach and Spike could tell she was serious. "I will not let you leave..."

"What! Why?"

Rarity then grabbed the collar of Spikes hospital gown, and with one swift and very forceful yank, tore it off his body leaving the dragon completely exposed. Spike became embarrassed at his sudden nudity and moved his tail and hands to cover himself. "WHAT THE HELL RARITY!?" Screamed Spike.

"I refuse to let you be seen out in public in nothing but a hospital gown. I don't care if you’re a prince or not, I don't care if you just fought for your life or not, and I don't care if you walk around in nothing or not, but I absolutely refuse to let you walk around in this monstrosity of fashion." Said Rarity as she showed the albeit functional piece of medical garb to Spike. "It is fuchsia for Celestia's sake, fuchsia, its hideous and clashes with your scales." Said Rarity as she looked at Ember. "Ember would you be a dear and burn it for me, please?" Asked Rarity as she tossed the gown to Ember.

Ember shrugged and blew some fire straight at the gown, setting it on fire. "Thank you." Said Rarity satisfied that the hospital gown was now nothing more than ashes in the wind. She then turned her attention back to the dragon and let him back on the ground. "There, crisis everted. So, to the bar we go?" Asked Rarity.

Spike sighed as he removed his hands and tail from his body. He then looked at her. "Sure." Said Spike, but this time he stopped himself. "Hey, wait what happened to my bag?"

Cadence looked at Spike. "Oh, um... how do I put this?"

Spike sighed. "It's destroyed, isn't it?"

Cadence nodded. "Utterly, along with your hat and a pair of binoculars, but we were able to recover your old boots, poncho, and what Celestia said was your old crossbow mounting strap. Would you like me to send a guard to retrieve them for you?"

Spike shook his head. "Nah, I'm good, I'll just put....on....my...." Said Spike as he looked around the room for his new gear but didn't see it anywhere. Spike sighed, facepalmed, and groaned. "Where is my armor set?" Asked Spike.

"Um..." Said Twilight.

Spike sighed again. "How badly damaged?"

"Well it turns out that my magical reinforcements are not stronger than crystal." Said Rarity. "But I have already sent them to my shop back in Ponyville, and I'm making it my top priority when we get back."

Spike became saddened, he then looked at Rarity. "I'm sorry Rarity, I ruined all of your hard work, can you forgive me?"

Rarity walked over to the sad dragon and gave him a hug to help calm him down. "Of course, I forgive you, we were not ready for this to happen but all we can do is improve on its design. This time I might get Twilight and Celestia to help me strengthen the enchantment. Maybe if we do it together, we can make it stronger than titanium." Rarity then looked at the two alicorns. "If they don't mind, that is."

"I would do anything to help Spike, so of course I don't mind." Said Twilight.

"Do you really have to ask, I'm his mother." Said Celestia.

Spike smiled. "Thank you, I bet that with the new armor my next hunt will be a breeze."

"YOUR NEXT WHAT!!!!?" Yelled Celestia.

"I said that out, loud didn't I?" asked Spike.

Everyone nodded.

"KENBROATH KILSPOTTEN HEATHSPIKE SOLARIS, YOU HAVE 10 SECONDES TO EXPLAIN YOURSELF!"

"Um... I was going to continue my job as a bounty hunter and make a difference in both the throne room and in the world." Said Spike scared of his mother, she only uses his full name when she is mad at him.

"Oh, well alright, just make sure to stay safe and do a good job." Said Celestia completely calm.

Spike dropped his jaw at hearing this revelation. "So, you’re not mad?"

"Oh no I'm upset that you didn't think of telling me you wanted to continue being a bounty hunter. But you’re a grown-up dragon and can make your own decisions, and as your mother it is my job to support your decisions, for better or worse."

"Oh, wow that's pretty cool mom, thanks for understanding."

"Of course, but your still in trouble for keeping this from me." Said Celestia as she thought of a fitting punishment for Spike. Spike knew from experience that the look on his mother’s face was never good, he tried to run for it but was stopped by his mother’s magic. "So, for not telling me, you have to sit through a lecture about the morals and ethics of withholding information, given by Twilight." Said Celestia.

Spike went pale at the thought of sitting through a Twilight lecture. He then dropped to his knees and started to beg for his life. "Please anything but that, I'll cut off my arm, I'll give you my multimillion moolah estate at the edge of Feather Falls..."

"Wait, you own an estate?" Asked Celestia surprised.

"Yeah, only cost me 46 million, it came with a 40 bed room, 53 bathroom, 422532 sq. foot mansion, 7800 acers of forest and its own waterfall that feeds into a beautiful crystal blue lake, but I'll sell off my collection of vintage power ponies comics, hell I'll be nice to Blueblood." Pleaded Spike.

Celestia looked at Twilight for a moment in shock. "What did you do to him, I have seen him beg before, but never this desperately."

Twilight looked sheepish. "I might have gone on a rant about Pinkie and how she should and should not exist for 3 whole days."

"And that's where the term 'Its Pinkie Pie, don't question it.' came into existence. " Added Pinkie.

Celestia tried to process all this new information, as she looked between her son and her student. "Ok, first off, Twilight is as of this moment banned from ever giving a lecture again, it is now deemed to be considered cruel and unusual punishment." Spike smiled at the news and was about to jump in joy. "But Spike is going to have to reorganize the royal library." Declared Celestia.

"Deal." Said Spike. "That will be a breeze, I can still remember all the times I had to reorganize the library after Twilight went through a study binge."

"Very well. Now that everything is settled..." Celestia Looked at Discord. " I need to know, what's the strongest thing you got, it’s been one hell of a day."

Discord Smirked, changed into a waiter’s outfit with a small pencil mustache, and pulled out a wine list full of what he has in stock. "Well, I have a Brandy that will make a crazy man sane, and a sane man crazy. A red wine with the ability to make you less drunk or pass out depending on what sip you’re on. We have a 752-year-old whisky that I'm not even sure is legal to own. Vodka that will burn straight through to the core of the planet. And a margarita that's ok. Sadly, we ran out of the tequila that makes you see the day you die last week. But if your bold, we have a beer that is rumored to make you so drunk that you will be drunk for a week, but I don't recommend that, because the hangover will last a month."

Celestia looked at Cadence. "How good the bar tender at mixing drinks?"

Cadence shrugged. "Good enough that I had to be told what happened the day Spike saved the empire, and before you judge. I was there to help a stallion get over his marefriend breaking up with him. She fell in love with Spike, and she fell hard, that's for sure."

"Um... should I be worried?" asked Spike.

Cadence shook her head. "No, not really. They got back together, got married, and are now expecting their third foal."

Spike sighed in relief. "But, that's only one mare, there's a veritable army of mares across the world that want to date you, and I use the word date loosely."

"Well at least I know. I'll keep an eye out and do my best to turn them down gently." Said Spike, just then Spike's stomach growled. He looked at his stomach and grew embarrassed as he chuckled. "Um... Do they have a kitchen? I was hungry before the fight, and Mal used a lot of my bodies energy to keep us alive, so I'm starving."

Cadence nodded. "Yeah and their cheesy jalapeno chili fries are to die for." Said Cadence as she went off into her own world at the thought of the chilly fries. She stayed in her world for a few moments but was brought out of it when she felt a finger tapping her arm. She looked at who was tapping her arm and noticed that it was Shining. "Um... sorry, I was lost in my own little world." said Cadence as she looked at the now empty medical ward. "Where'd everyone go?"

"You were stuck like that for like 5 minutes, Spike was hungry, so he walked out of the room and made his way to the bar, with everyone else following behind." Said Shining as he held a giggling Flurry heart who was trying to wiggle out of her father’s arms.

"Daddy, let me go, I want to talk to Uncle Spike." Said Flurry.

Shining looked down at his daughter. "Sorry sweetie, but Daddy needs to talk to Uncle Spike first. You can spend all day with Spike tomorrow. But for tonight, it’s grown up time. Why don't you spend some time with Mommy?"

Flurry looked at her father and nodded. "Ok Daddy." She then looked at cadence and smiled an adorable smile. "So, what do you want to do Mommy?" Asked Flurry.

Cadence shot Shining a glare but then smiled at Flurry. "How about we have dinner first, then we can watch your favorite movie?" Asked Cadence.

Flurry gasped, wiggled free from her father’s grasp, and once she was on the ground ran straight for the kitchen, while cheering. "YAAAAAAAAAY."

Once Flurry was gone Cadence looked at Shining. "If I have that song stuck in my head tonight you are sleeping on the couch." She then kissed Shining on the cheek and added. "Have fun but remember 12 o'clock."

Shining pulled his wife around the waist and smiled at her. "You’re the best."

"I know." Said Cadence giggling with bed room eyes.

Just then Flurry Heart ran back into the room and interrupted her parents. "Mommy, come on Serving Platter is waiting for us, where are you?" Said Flurry as she noticed her parents. "Um, Mommy, Daddy, what are you doing?" Asked Flurry innocently.

The two looked at the little filly. "Um... I was just telling you father to have fun tonight." Said Cadence.

"And I was telling your mother to have a good time with you sweet heart." Said Shining letting go of his wife's waist.

"OH. Well I hope you have fun to Daddy, come on Mommy." Said Flurry as she ran out of the room singing her favorite song from her favorite movie. "Hakuna Matata! What a wonderful phrase, Hakuna Matata! Ain't no passing craze...."

Cadence sighed as she listened to her daughter singing. "It’s going to be a long night." Said Cadence as she walked to catch up to Flurry. Shining nodded and made his way to the bar.

Spike, Celestia, Luna, Twilight, Rarity, AJ, RD, Pinkie, Fluttershy, Thorax, Starlight, Trixie, Sunburst, Discord, Ember, Garble, and Rutherford were next to the crystal heart waiting for Shining to catch up with them. Spike looked around at all the destroyed buildings and rubble. He whistled. "Damn, I really did a number on this place." Said Spike feeling a little sad at the fact that he ruined the fair and some pony’s homes and livelihoods.

"Yeah, but don't worry I have sent for the best architects to be hired, transported, and compensated for expediting the repairs. With magic it should all be fixed by this time tomorrow, so the worst anypony is out is one night in a hotel. Which we are planning to reimburse." Said Celestia.

"But what about the Crystal Heart? Won't it run out of power if it’s not charged by love?"

Luna giggled. "Spike do you really think that this was the first time the fair was interrupted. It’s not, in truth the crystal heart can go about 5 years without needing a charge. Cadence just holds the fair to make sure it topped off."

"Oh. That makes me feel a little better." Spike then looked at RD, AJ, Thorax, Garble, Rutherford, And Rarity. "Speaking of little, where are the CMC, Yona, Ocellus, and Smolder?" Asked Spike.

"Oh, you know kids, they became friends when they were evacuated to the palace. And once they knew you were going to be ok, decided to show Yona, Ocellus, and Smolder around the empire to make up for the invasion interrupting the fair. They’re probably running around causing more damage then you could ever do." Said Rarity.

Spike chuckled, as he thought about the possibility of that being true. "Yeah, your probably right, but as long as we don't hear explosions in the distance, they should be ok." Said Spike.

Everyone giggled.

"Hey, what's so funny?" Asked Shining as he walked to the group.

Everyone stopped laughing and looked at the stallion. "Just agreeing that even on my best day, 3 fillies, a yak, changeling, and a dragoness are more destructive than me. What took you so long?"

Shining shrugged. "Married stuff, you wouldn't understand."

"Your probably right, so let’s get to the bar I'm running on empty." Said Spike.

Shining laughed. "Ok, follow me, I know where to go." Said Shining as he led the group to the bar.

As the group was walking some of the fair goer's noticed the group, more specifically the tall dragon walking in the middle. A crystal pony mare gasped as she ran in the opposite direction of the group. It only took as much time, for the group of creatures looking for the bar to take a few steps, for a mob to gather around the group and hinder their progress. The mob cheered loudly for their 3-time hero. "Prince Spike, the Gold Scaled hero of Equestria." Cheered the mob as they got closer to Spike.

Spike sighed, used his royal Canterlot voice, and addressed the mob. "Hello, citizens of the Crystal Empire. I'm sorry for making this short, but I'm in the middle of spending time with my friends and family, and tomorrow I will be spending time with them as well. If you’re interested in attending a Q&A event about what happened to me while I was gone, please be in Ponyville on Wednesday morning. There, I'll answer all your questions." Said Spike as he smiled at the mob.

The mob looked saddened, but they nodded in understanding.

Soon the mob dispersed, and the group was free to continue to the bar freely. Spike smiled at the mobs understanding as they continued to the bar.

A few minutes later Spike and company arrived in front of a large crystal building with a green door. The door had an image of a white crystal goblet with silver leaves on the cup. "This is the place." Said Shining as he walked in the establishment, followed by the others.

"Greetings, and welcome to... PRINCE ARMOR!" Said the bartender, a jade green stallion with black jet crystal mane and moustache, he has an apron on and a bar rag in his hand. The bartender made his way around the bar and greeted his royal customer. "Forgive me my prince, I was not expecting to have many customers today. Since the hero Spike being injured and all. Please let me escort you to the royal booth on the second floor."

Shining laughed at the stallion. "No need Crystal Goblet, I don't think Spike would like to be treated differently." Said Shining as he looked behind him. "Would you, Spike?" Asked Shining.

"Depends, can I get a bowl of those chilly fries down here?" Asked Spike as he walked into the establishment with all the others, shocking Crystal Goblet. "Hello, it’s nice to meet you." Said Spike.

Goblet dropped his jaw at the sight of the savior of the empire, who was now standing in his little bar. Goblet bowed to the hero. "Thank you, Prince Spike, for deciding to come to my little hole in the wall."

Spike smiled at the bartender. "Not a problem, but it’s going to be hard for you to serve drinks to us if you keep bowing. How about you stop bowing, pour me the strongest thing you have, and start an order of chilly fries." Said Spike.

Goblet looked sheepish but nodded. He walked back to the bar and opened a hidden cabinet. "This is a special drink that I have saved for a special occasion, and I can’t think of a more special occasion then hosting the hero of the empire and the crowned prince." Said Goblet as he placed a massive bottle of liquor on the bar. "This is an ancient brew that has been passed down from my father’s great grandfather, and I have held onto it even before the empire was banished because of Sombra. it is 98% pure alcohol and is guaranteed to make any pony or dragon drunk with only one drink. They call it Absolute." Said Goblet.

Spike smirked. "Pour it!"

Goblet looked to Princess Celestia. "Is it alright, this stuff could kill him?"

Celestia shrugged. "It’s not my call."

Goblet sighed and looked at Spike. He got a whiskey glass out from under the bar, filled it with ice. Goblet broke off the wax seal on the cork, popped the cork off, and poured a single of the drink for the dragon. "It's your funeral."

Spike smiled. "Wouldn't be my first."

Spike looked at the drink in his hand and marveled at the almost black color of the liquor. He took a sniff of the drink to make sure it was at least drinkable. Taking a shot in the dark, Spike took a sip of the liquid. Once the first drop hit his tongue, Spike started to cough wildly, shocking everyone. Celestia ran to Spike and started to hit his back to help him expel the liquid, but she was stopped when the coughing changed to laughter.

Celestia looked at her son wondering what was happening to him. Spike stopped laughing and looked at Goblet as he placed the drink back on the counter. "This taste like someone mixed swamp water, piss, and liquid rainbow in a bottle, then let it sit in the hot sun for 2 years, then added poison joke, manticore venom, and lightning." Said Spike, as he grabbed the drink, drank it in one gulp, slammed it back on the bar, and smirked at Goblet. "It reminds me of my first drink, Feather Fest. Give me another."

Goblet looked between the bottle of Absolute and Spike a few times, and on the last look at Spike he looked at him questioningly. "What are you?" Asked Goblet.

Spike laughed. "A very heavy drinker, with the worlds hardest working liver." Said Spike.

Goblet sighed, poured Spike another drink, and looked at the others, who were shocked to see the dragon drink almost pure alcohol like it was nothing. He cleared his throat, catching the attention of everyone else. "And what can I get for everyone else?"

"I'll have a glass of red wine." Said Rarity.

"Cider." Said AJ and Rainbow Dash.

"Shirley Temple." Said Fluttershy.

"Bloody Mary." Said Thorax.

"Long Island." Said Pinkie.

"Sangria." Said Starlight.

"Gin." Said Twilight.

"Dirty martini, with 2 fingers." Said Luna.

"A Zombie for me." Said Ember.

"Rusty Nail." Said Garble.

"Vodka cranberry." Said Trixie.

"Shoot the hoof." Said Sunburst.

"Rum Runner." Said Rutherford.

"Whisky neat." Said Shining.

"And I'll have a TKO." Said Celestia.

Goblet nodded and looked at Discord. "What about you?"

"I got some stuff at home; do you mind if I get it?" Asked Discord.

Goblet shrugged. "Will it stop you?"

Discord shook his head. Goblet sighed. "It's fine with me, but you have to order something first."

Discord shrugged. "Fair enough, I'll take a margarita, and I'll buy your salt shaker, I lost mine last millennium." Said Discord as he snapped his fingers and popped out of the bar.

Goblet walked over to a door that led to the kitchen and placed Spikes chilly fries order. Once the order was placed, he returned to the bar, where he started to gather all the necessary booze bottles and started to make the drinks for everyone.

It took Goblet a few minutes to finish all the drink orders, but once they were done, he distributed them out to everyone.

With everyone having a drink in hand. Spike started to tell everyone about his time on Mudos and his week to catch everyone up.

One story and 6 drinks later.

"... And that's how my life has been for the past week." Said Spike as he finished his story and his 3rd order of fries. "So..." asked Spike waiting for a reaction from everyone, but when he looked, he noticed that he was talking to himself. Spike facepalmed. "Really, everyone is drunk." Said Spike as he looked over the drunken messes of his family and friends. Spike looked at the only other conscious being in the bar, Crystal Goblet, who was wide eyed with jaw firmly planted on the bar counter from hearing Spikes story. "Well at least I have someone's attention, what did you think?" Asked Spike.

"What are you?" asked Goblet.

Spike laughed. "A lot of things, but right now I'm just a taxi service. Shining has to be home by 12...." said Spike as he looked at the clock. "...and its almost 1 in the morning." Spike sighed. "Welp, Shining is going to be on the couch for a week." Said Spike as he got off his seat and walked over to the limp body of his older brother. Spike looked at Goblet, "So what can you tell me about what happened to them?"

Goblet looked nervous but told Spike what he saw. "Well let’s start out with your mother. Princess Celestia, she was listening up until her 3 TKO, she is a sad drunk, saying things like 'I'm a horrible mother, I should have been with him'. Your Aunt Luna. She is the exact opposite, after her 5th martini, she was very happy and giggly. Princess Twilight is a light weight, she only had 1 more drink before she became an overconfident drunk. Your friends, Fluttershy, and Rarity were out after 2 more drinks. Pinkie Pie was moppy after her 4th Long Island. Rainbow Dash, lasted for a while but accidentally took a sip of your drink, that had been watered down by the ice. But unlike you who is not even buzzed, she's currently in the rafters." Said Goblet.

Spike looked up and sure enough Rainbow dash was passed out drunk, on a rafter. "Applejack lasted the longest at 8 mugs of cider, but she became a flirty drunk, and started to hit on you. Dragon Lord Ember made it half way through her 3rd Zombie before she showed her drunk self, and that's a jealous drunk. She and Applejack started arguing over you, so I cut them off before it got out of hand. Prince Rutherford ran me dry on the rum, which he wasn't happy about that, but by that point he was more of a foal then a yak, being a baby drunk and all. The tall red dragon is a violent drunk, that was until he tried to pick a fight with your friend, Starlight who after her 6th drink became a blabbering drunk. She somehow turned the red dragon into a sobbing mess. Trixie became, what we call in the bartending business a 'Naked Drunk', she and your friend Sunburst are both upstairs passed out drunk, in each other’s arms."

Spike shivered at the thought. "King Thorax was actually doing pretty good, but then he started to become a nostalgic drunk, telling a passed out Fluttershy about what it was like as a grub living under Chrysalis's rule. Prince Armor actually was ready to head home at like 11:30 but he was stopped by Discord, who offered him one more drink, but that one drink was one to many." Said Goblet.

Spike sighed, but at least he could get Shining a lighter sentence. "What about Discord?"

"What about me?" Said Discord as he walked through the bar doors followed by a platoon of guards.

Spike looked at Discord. "Where have you been?"

Discord shrugged. "Sorry, I got a call from my sister about 20 minutes ago."

"You have a sister?"

Discord shrugged as he rocked his hand. "More like I see her as a sister, her names Fate, and she wanted to check in on me."

"YOUR SISTER IS FATE?" Yelled Spike in shock.

Discord shrugged. "We both work in the universal department of creation. She's the head of destiny, and I run the chaos department."

"So, then the 'Jackalope Incident'?"

"That was like my first week on the job. I got drunk, snuck into the life department and cobbled together a rabbit with a pair of deer horns. The big man was not happy, but Fate kinda lied, saying that it was fate that jackalopes would exist."

"Then how does mom know her?" Asked Spike.

"Well my boy, I wasn't always that villain who got turned to stone, I actually was a good guy for a long while. But when I was turned to stone, Fate wanted to see me, and she, your mother, and Luna became great friends."

"wait, Lilith said that she knew Fate, in the afterlife."

"Awe, you must be talking about Deaths department."

"Deaths department?"

"Yes, great woman, very sentimental, loves families. She oversees running the afterlife and guiding souls there. We actually talk every so often over a coffee in the brake room."

"Wait... So, you can just pop into Deaths department whenever you wish?" Asked Spike.

Discord nodded. "Yep, but I need to first get a visitor pass from her receptionist, Grim. And yes, I'm talking about the Grim Reaper."

Spike smiled widely at hearing this news. "YAAAAAHOOOOOOOOOO!" Cheered Spike.

Both Goblet and Discord looked at the cheering dragon confused. "Um, Spike what's so great?" Asked Discord.

"Aside from the fact that I'm going to be able to see my parents without dying, nothing." Said Spike.

Quickly Discord pieced together what Spike was going on about and smiled with him. "Yeah, your right. Good on you my dragon. But...." Said Discord.

"But what?"

"But only department heads can visit other departments, which means you got at least a good 3 millennium until that happens."

Spike looked saddened. "But I have saved enough in my retirement account that I could in theory retire in 1026.3 years or so. But I wouldn't want to pressure you into shall we say such a position of authority. Only a creature with years of experience shall we say, running a kingdom can have any hope of taking over. But..." Said Discord.

Spike smirked and looked at Goblet. "Goblet what kind of drunk is Discord?"

"He's a sentimental drunk. The moment you said you met your parents; he did a few things. First, he pulled out a bank statement out of nowhere. He then made a file cabinet appear where he pulled out a long ass piece of paper and started to read it. Whatever he was looking for, he found it because he smiled, and made the cabinet and the paper disappear. Then he walked out of the bar and called his sister not the other way around." Said Goblet as he cleaned a cup with his rag.

Discord glared at Goblet but then turned back to Spike. "But... Since I am the god of Chaos it’s in my nature to be spiritic and unpredictable, so Fate is putting a good word in for you with the big man, and it’s likely that she will get you a visitors pass for Death's department." Said Discord.

Spike smirked. "You’re the best, Discord." Spike then looked around at the platoon of guards who were starting to carry all the passed-out creatures out of the bar. "So, was this you’re doing or was Cadence getting upset?" Asked Spike.

"Oh, this is all her." Said Discord.

"Cool." Said Spike as he turned to Goblet. "So, what's the damage?"

Goblet walked over to a register and started adding up the total. "So, we have...." Said Goblet as he started to punch in the numbers."....2753 bits." Said Goblet.

Spike whistled. "Damn." Said Spike as he reached over the bar and pulled an order slip and a pencil, he started to write a note. Once he was finished, Spike handed it to Goblet. "This is the name of Treasury Chest, he is the head of the crystal empire's funds, just tell him the amount and show him this note, and you will get the money." Said Spike. He got up and smiled at Crystal Goblet. "Thanks for listening, Goblet, have a good night, and if anyone asks, tell them that this place is my bar of choice in the empire." Said Spike as he walked out of the bar, followed by Discord, and most of the guards carrying all the passed-out creatures.

Spike arrived at the palace with Discord, and the guards, only to be stopped by a very unhappy looking Cadence. Everyone gulped in fear of the alicorn. "Cad-Stop, all of you are to be quite until I tell you to speak. Nod if you understand." Started Spike but was interrupted by Cadence.

Everyone nodded. "Dragon may speak."

"Cadence first off, it’s not my fault, Crystal Goblet told me that Shining was ready to go home at 11:30 or so, but Discord handed him one more drink and that was what threw him over the top."

"Ok." Said Cadence as she looked at Discord. "Pain in the ass, it’s your turn."

Discord shrugged. "I thought it would be funny."

Cadence sighed at Discord, as she looked at all the passed-out creatures. "Dragon again, what happened to them?"

"They're drunk and passed out."

Cadence rubbed her eyes in annoyance. "Guards, take everyone to their guest rooms but make sure the children don't see them in this state."

"Yes Ma'am!" Saluted the guards, as they left the group and carried the passed-out creatures to their rooms.

Cadence then looked at Spike. "How much did it cost the empire?"

"2753 bits."

Cadence sighed. "It could have been worse. You go to bed, your taking Flurry out tomorrow to enjoy the fair with her uncle Spike." Said Cadence as she looked at Discord. "And you are going to the time out corner in the morning for getting my husband drunk, No ifs ands or buts. Now both of you go to bed." Said Cadence as she pointed to the entrance of the palace.

"Yes ma'am." Said Spike and Discord as they both looked down and made their way into the palace, and into their bedrooms.

The End of The Beginning, But Not The Beginning of The End pt.2

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Spike was asleep in his guest room. But unbeknownst to him, the door to his room was opened and a small creature entered. The creature closed the door as quietly as it could, in hopes of not waking the dragon before its plan was complete. The creature walked to the bed, used its wings to fly up to the top, and landed right by the slumbering dragon. The creature smiled; it was time to execute its plan. It jumped into the air and screamed. "UNCLE SPIKE!" But before the little alicorn landed on the dragon, Spike used his tail to catch the falling alicorn filly. Flurry pouted a little annoyed as she hung upside down. "No fair, how did you know I was here?"

With his eyes still closed, Spike started to chuckle. "First off, you forgot to account for the door latching, that woke me up. Then the sound of your wings flapping told me that it was someone with feathery wings, that left only 7 ponies in this castle. Auntie Twilight doesn't try to surprise me in the morning, after I accidentally burned her mane when I was 8. Celestia and Luna are cool with me sleeping in. Cadence knows what I did to Twilight and she learned from Twilights mistakes. That leaves you, Rainbow, and Fluttershy, but Rainbow is lazy and won't be up for at least a few hours, and Fluttershy is too kind to wake me up in this manner. That only leaves the little filly in my tail." Said Spike leaving out that aside from Cadence, Discord and himself, everyone else was going to be hungover.

Flurry pouted even more. "No fair, I planned this out last night."

Spike opened his eyes, moved his tail, rolled over to his back and sat up on the bed, as he dropped Flurry into his lap. "Well, life's not fair, mainly because only happy fillies can spend time with their Uncle Spike." Said Spike as he tickled Flurry to make the filly smile.

Flurry laughed uncontrollably as Spike continued to tickle her. "Uncle... Uncle." Said Flurry to stop the tickle assault.

"Yes?" Said Spike as he continued. "I'll only stop if I see you smile." Said Spike as he slowed his assault.

Flurry smiled at Spike. He giggled as he pulled the filly into a little hug. "There's the little filly I know and love, you look weird when you pout."

Flurry giggled at her uncle and blew a raspberry at him, but she tried her best to hug Spike. "I missed you Uncle Spike."

"Yeah, I missed you to Sweetie." Said Spike as he let the filly go. "So, what do you want to do today?" Asked Spike, even though he already knew what she wanted to do today.

Flurry stuck out her tongue, cocked her head, rubbed her chin, and hummed in thought. "How about.... You spend the whole day with me at the fair?" Asked Flurry.

Spike smiled. "Ok." Said Spike, Flurry smiled at hearing this. "But, only on one condition."

Flurry pouted at hearing this as she looked away from Spike. "What?"

Spike chuckled. "You have to have a great day with me, that means no more pouting."

Flurry looked at Spike and smiled widely as she nodded her head rapidly. "YAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!" Cheered Flurry loudly, but then she covered her mouth with her hands. "I forgot; Mommy told me I need to be quiet this morning to let everyone sleep off adult time." She then looked at Spike confused. "Uncle Spike, what's adult time and why aren't you like Grandma Celestia or Daddy?"

Spike went pale for a moment; he was worried for both Flurry's innocence and his life if Cadence finds out. "Uh...Well...Oh, Flurry, what's your favorite drink?"

"Apple juice."

"Well have you ever drunk too much and had a tummy ache?"

Flurry nodded.

"Well Shining and Celestia drank too much last night, and unlike you who only got a tummy ache, all the grownups got more than a tummy ache they also got a headache, and when your loud it hurts their head, so it's best to stay quiet."

Flurry nodded. "Ok, but why aren't you like them then?"

"Well do you know how long dragons live?"

Flurry nodded. "A long time."

"Exactly, so I only drank a little, that means I'm not like the others."

"But what about Ms. Ember and the big red dragon? They are like Daddy."

"Um, they drank grape juice last night and it didn't agree with them."

"Oh, ok." Said Flurry as she hopped off the bed. "Come on Uncle Spike Serving Platter has breakfast ready." Said Flurry.

Spike nodded and got out of bed. He walked to the door and picked up Flurry. Spike looked Flurry in the eyes and smirked. "Hey Flurry, you want the best seat in the world?" Asked Spike.

Flurry nodded. Spike smiled and tossed her in the air, changed his tail into the shape of a small chair, caught her with his tail, and looked at the smile on her face. "Hold on tight sweetie, Uncle Spike is hungry." Said Spike as he started to run down the halls and once he reached his top speed, Spike dropped to all fours and sped up.

While Spike was running. Flurry was screaming at the top of her lungs. "WEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!"

Spike and Flurry reached the dining hall moments later, Cadence was the only one in the room as she sipped her coffee and looked at the newspaper. "Mommy!" Yelled Flurry. Cadence looked away from her paper and smiled at her daughter and her cousin.

"Hi, Sweetie." Said Cadence. She used her magic to levitate the running filly into her arms. Cadence kissed Flurry's forehead. "Did you surprise Uncle Spike?" Asked Cadence.

Flurry shook her head. "No, Uncle Spike heard me walk into his room, but he said he would like to spend time with me today at the fair. Then he told me that Daddy, Grandma and the others are not feeling good because they drank too much apple juice and now they all have tummy and headaches. Then he tossed me in the air and caught me with his tail. Then we ran super-fast to the table." Said Flurry.

Cadence shot Spike a quick glare but smiled at Flurry. "He did, that's so cool." Said Cadence as she placed Flurry in her booster seat and gave her a plate of pancakes with syrup. "Sweetie, Mommy needs to talk to Uncle Spike for a moment, now be a good girl and eat your breakfast, and then you and him can go to the fair and have fun." Said Cadence as she smiled at Flurry.

"Ok Mommy." Said Flurry through a mouth full of pancakes, only half paying attention to what her mother said.

Cadence smiled at Flurry as she teleported Spike and herself to outside of the dining hall doors. Cadence then glared at Spike. "What did you tell her?"

Spike looked scared at Cadences tone. "Um... that Shining and Celestia just drank too much apple juice and I told her a kid version of what a hangover is, while not calling it a hangover. Then she asked why I wasn't like the others and I told her that I was the responsible one and only drank a little. That's it I swear." Said Spike flinching in fear of what Cadence will do to him.

Cadence sighed. "That's like the second hardest thing that a child ever asks an adult. I'm waiting for the moment she asks where foals come from."

Spike winced. "Yeah that's going to be a hard one, pun not intended." Said Spike as he chuckled. "So, how was Shining this morning?"

"On the verge of death, with a trashcan in his arms. Same goes for everyone else, it was so bad that I was the one who had to raise the sun this morning."

"Wait, you can do that?"

Cadence nodded. "Yeah, Celestia taught me how not long after she took Twilight under her wing, saying to only use it only in case of emergencies. The fact the Celestia is still passed out right now, I say that counts, what the hell did she drink?"

"She downed 3 TKO's and as you can see the drink is aptly named."

Cadence sighed. "Fine, I'll deal with the drunks, you deal with Flurry."

"Not a problem, what about the CMC, Yona, Smolder, and Ocellus?"

"What about them, one of them literally knows how to make cider, it's not like they haven't seen a hangover before. But I'll just tell them to go around the empire to explore a little more, until their families are at least able to talk in complete sentences without throwing up."

Spike nodded. Cadence smiled and teleported both her and Spike back to the dining table to resume breakfast. She levitated a plate of pancakes to Spike with a cup of coffee. Spikes mouth watered at the smell of the pancakes. "Thanks, Cus." Said Spike as he started to rip into the pancakes.

It only took a few moments until Spike was finished eating. He licked his muzzle clean of syrup and small bits of pancakes. Spike looked over at Cadence, she was reading the paper, he noticed a picture of him on the other side of the page she was reading. "Cadence, can I see that for a moment?" Asked Spike.

"In a second, I'm trying to think of a 10-letter word for unusual."

"Aberration." Said Spike.

Cadence huffed in annoyance. "I would have gotten it sooner or later." Said Cadence as she handed Spike the paper.

"Sure, but when you live with a literal walking dictionary for most of your life, crosswords are just easy." Said Spike as he turned to the front page. He looked at Cadence. "Cadence did you look at the front page?"

Cadence shook her head. "Nope, I always go straight for the crossword puzzles first and then the rest of the paper. Why?"

Spike handed the paper back to Cadence as she read the headline. "Prince Spike, long thought to be dead, is in fact alive and in the Crystal Empire, where he stopped the invasion attempt by Queen Chrysalis single handed." read Cadence as she looked at the large picture of Spike when his scales turned gold with his wings flared out. Cadence continued to read. "Nearly 2 years ago the assistant of Princess Twilight Sparkle, Spike Drake as he was at the time, went missing due to unknown magical effects. After 3 months of searching it was declared that the at the time Spike Drake was considered dead, with the funeral to be held in the Crystal Empire, where Spike was considered a hero. All in attendance were either close friends or family. There it was revealed during the eulogy, given by Princess Celestia, that Spike Drake was in fact the crown prince, Prince Spike Solaris. Now 2 years later, rumors of an emergency gathering of all the princesses, Dragon Lord Ember, and King Thorax, all of which who were connected to Prince Spike in some way, gathered at Princess Twilight's castle in Ponyville, for unknown reasons. The next day after the gathering, the capital city of Canterlot was sent into a scare when an ear-piercing high-pitched sound echoed through the city and the same with Ponyville. This reporter was unable to gather any leads from the citizens of Ponyville about the cause of the sound, but I was interrupted by the sound of a monstrous roar emanating from the notorious Everfree Forest. 5 days later, during coverage of the annual Crystal Fair, it was revealed that Prince Spike was in fact alive. Later that day it was revealed that amongst the crowds, were non reformed changelings in disguise. But Prince Spike was not fooled by a single drones poor acting and uncovered the plan to kidnap the young Princess Flurry Heart, in an attempt to use her connection to the Crystal Heart. The magical object that houses all the love generated by the citizens of the Empire. Using Princess Flurry Hearts connection, the changelings planned to drain the heart and store all the love into Queen Chrysalis. But Thanks to Prince Spike the plot was foiled, that was until the main invasion force, led by Queen Chrysalis approached. Prince Spike then somehow changed his natural scale color of green and purple to all gold, and flew off to face the invasion single handedly, as all the princesses and foreign emissaries were tasked with protecting the citizens. After a long-fought battle, both Prince Spike and Queen Chrysalis were badly hurt, but at the last second Prince Spike was victorious, unfortunately he was unable to ensure the capture of the changeling queen, as due to his injuries he passed out. During this time Chrysalis was able to escape thanks to a few remaining changelings fleeing with her. Prince Spike was found in the middle of the battle grounds with a broken leg and multiple broken ribs. It was important that the prince be sent to the closest medical professional and thus he was sent to the medical ward of the palace. Finally, Prince Spike was seen walking down the streets of the Crystal Empire later that day, stating that he was 'Spending time with friends and family.' and that this Wednesday he and Princess Twilight will be holding a Q&A event about where prince Spike was the last 2 years. See complete article Thursday morning for the inside scoop." Finished Cadence. She looked at Spike. "Well that's very detailed."

Spike sighed. "Well, great." Said Spike as he looked saddened.

Flurry noticed the change in her uncle's mood. She hopped out of her booster seat and walked over to Spike. She raised her arms towards Spike wanting to be picked up by him. Spike picked her up and she gave him a hug around his neck as she pouted. "Hey, you said today will be a great day, and you’re already breaking your promise, so I'm going to pout until you are happy." Said Flurry pouting.

Spike sighed as he gently hugged Flurry as his mood brightened. Spike looked at the pouting filly. "Can you forgive me for breaking our deal?" Said Spike as he smiled at the little filly around his neck.

Flurry nodded as she looked at the smiling face of her uncle. "Promise me you won't be sad anymore Uncle Spike." Said Flurry.

Spike nodded. "I promise." Said Spike. Flurry nodded and let go of his neck. The two looked at each other and they both nodded.

Spike looked at Cadence and nodded. "Ok we're going to head out now." Said Spike.

Cadence nodded and smiled at her cousin and her daughter as the two walked out of the dining hall. Once they were alone Spike placed Flurry into his tail chair and the two made their way out to the fairgrounds.

Spike was just walking out of the palace with Flurry sitting in his tail. He looked back at the filly in his tail. "So, what would you like to see first?"

"Jousting." Said Flurry excitedly.

"Then the jousting area is our destination." Said Spike as he and Flurry made their way to the attraction.

As Spike was walking with Flurry, Spike noticed that some of the crystal ponies were following them. Spike sighed but remembered that he was supposed to make today great for Flurry, so he ignored them.

Once the dragon and alicorn arrived at the arena, Spike placed Flurry on his shoulders so she could have a better view of the bout that was about to start. Just then an announcer introduced the combatants. "Mares, gentle colts, and visiting creatures. Welcome to the Crystal Fair Jousting Competition, an annual event that determines the strongest pony in the empire. On the left we have last year's champion, A wild young mare named Shimmering Steel, and on my right, we have a newcomer to the competition..." The announcer then looked across the crowd and noticed the dragon and alicorn filly. "PRINCE SPIKE!" Yelled the announcer in surprise, completely ignoring the other jouster. Everyone turned to the pair as Flurry looked down at Spike.

"You’re going to Joust! That's so awesome!" Smiled Flurry.

Spike sighed, as he thought. `Why is my life complicated?'

Mal responded. "You live in a world with magical talking horses, dragons, griffins, and you’re having a conversation with the other half of yourself in your mind."

'rhetorical Mal, rhetorical.' Thought Spike. He then looked at the filly and gave her a smile. "I guess so." Said Spike. Flurry cheered.

"People of the empire, I hereby challenge the jousting champion Shimmering Steel, on behalf of princess Flurry Heart. But before that is to happen would someone please bring the nearest guard to me at once." Said Spike.

Not 3 seconds later a crystal guard was standing at attention in front of Spike. "Sargent Spot Light reporting, and awaiting your orders." Said the white crystal stallion guard.

"So, your Spot Light?"

Spot Light gasped in shock. "You know me?"

"More or less, if what Discord said was true. tell me do you know the name Sentinel Flame?"

Spot light nodded. "I do, but how do you know that name, I thought it was only a dream."

Spike smirked. "Sargent, I need you to execute the final step in phase 3." Said Spike.

Spot light dropped his jaw as he pointed to the dragon. "So, your?"

Spike nodded. "You did good work by the way."

Spot light saluted. "Thank you, sir. What do you need me to do for you?"

"I need you to protect the princess in my stead for a few moments."

"Yes sir!" Said Spot Light.

Spike looked at Flurry. "Flurry, Uncle Spike needs you to behave for Sargent Spot Light, and don't worry he's an old friend that actually saved Grandma Celestia not too long ago." Said Spike as he lifted Flurry off his shoulders and placed her in the arms of Spot Light.

Flurry nodded. "Good luck, I know you'll win." Cheered Flurry as Spike made is way to the arena.

Spike waved at the cheering masses. "You heard it right here folks, Prince Spike Solaris, hero of the Crystal Empire 3 times over has just challenged the jousting champion Shimmering Steel. This is going to be interesting." Said the announcer.

Once Spike made it to the arenas field, he jumped off the stands and made his way to where the jouster who was supposed to joust was waiting to hand over his gear to Spike. "Prince Spike, it's an honor to be able to give up my opportunity to joust to you." Said a young red stallion, with a blue mane. "My name is Strong Shield."

Spike chuckled. "Thank you Shield, and I'm sorry for taking your spotlight, but you try saying no to Flurry, it's impossible." Said Spike as he looked at the chariot behind the stallion. "So, how does this work, I'm guessing by magic?"

Shield nodded. "Yes, each jouster has an unbiased unicorn that will propel the chariots forward using their magic. The rider wields a lance and shield in their hands and tries to knock their opponent off their chariot or make them submit. That's pretty much the basics." Said Shield, as he handed Spike a lance and shield.

Spike nodded as he took Shields equipment and took his place on the chariot. Spike nodded to the announcer. "Get ready every creature, the match is about to begin. Jousters are you ready?" Both nodded again. "Then on my signal, 3...2...1...0!" counted the announcer.

Both chariots started to move at high speed, towards each other. Spike placed his shield over his chest as he held his lance with his right arm and pointed it at Steels shield. Once the two jousters were in range of each other, Spike thrust his lance straight for Steels shield, as Steel did the same with her lance. For a moment, all was silent. But then the sound of the wooden lances shattering into splinters was heard, as the two passed each other.

Spike returned to his side and talked to Shield. "So now what?"

"You get another lance and you go again." Said Shield as he handed Spike another lance.

Spike and Steel approached each other again but Spike had a strategy this time, Spike readied his shield and lance like before, but when they made contact, he waited for a moment after Steels lance met his shield. Spike then blocked the lance upwards, at the same time while Steel was trying to readjust her stance Spike took the opportunity to land a blow on the unsteady mare, knocking her off her chariot.

The crowd cheered at the dragon’s victory. "We have a victor, Prince Spike has defeated Shimmering Steel." Screamed the announcer.

Spike smiled at his victory as his chariot made its way back to its side. Spike handed Shield's lance and shield back to the stallion and smiled. "Thanks for letting me borrow your stuff." Said Spike.

Shield Smiled at Spike. "Not a problem. You did great by the way." Said Shield as he walked away to store the equipment.

Spike nodded. He opened his wings and flew back to Spot Light and Flurry. The guard was using all his strength to hold back the little alicorn filly from barreling straight into her uncle. Spike laughed at the struggling stallion as he nodded. Spot Light released the filly and as predicted she flew straight towards Spike, and she embedded herself right into his chest, as she smiled in excitement. "THAT WAS SO COOL!" Cheered Flurry.

Spike laughed at the filly’s excitement. "Well what did you expect from your cool Uncle Spike?" Asked Spike. "So, what do you want to do now?"

"Let’s go to the petting zoo!" Said Flurry.

Spike nodded as he placed Flurry back on his shoulders and the two walked out of the arena. As they walked some of the crystal ponies from the jousting match followed behind the two, and again Spike just ignored them. Thankfully the petting zoo was not too far from the jousting arena, so it didn't take them long to get there.

Once they arrived at the petting zoo, Flurry flew off Spikes shoulders and headed straight for a pen with one large pig and a lot of piglets around their mother. She grabbed onto the fence as she watched the piglets playing with each other. Flurry looked at the dragon behind her as she jumped up and down in excitement. "Come on Uncle Spike, you gotta see this." Said Flurry.

Spike laughed at the excitement of the little filly as he remembered when his mother took him to the royal gardens. he was so excited to see all the cool animals, and this was no different, aside from the fact that there were no exotic animals like Bruce the Toucan, or Deeann the Buzzing Buzzard. Spike made his way to the little filly as she waited for Spike to take her into the pen. Spike noticed the sign on the fence.

"No child is allowed to enter this pen without being accompanied by an adult. "

Spike nodded. He picked up Flurry and took her to the pens gate. They waited for the pigs owner to open the pen, and once he did, the two entered the pen. Spike placed Flurry down on the ground, Spike crossed his legs on the straw and watched as instantly most of the piglets flocked to Flurry thinking that she was a new playmate. Flurry giggled as she was almost tackled by a mass of very undercooked bacon. But a few trotted to Spike and started to nudge his leg to get some attention. Spike looked at the little piglets near him and started to lightly scratch them. Soon the large mother pig made her way to Spike and gave the side of his head a lick. Spike tried to push her away. "Hey Stop that." But the large pig didn't listen.

The pig continued to lick Spike. "Seriously, what's your deal?" Asked Spike, but then he remembered meeting a small little piglet during the first fair, she was a small little thing back then, and she was very affectionate with Spike once he gave the piglet a name.

Spike looked at the mother pig still trying to lick him. "Donna?" Asked Spike. The pig squealed and nodded, as she licked Spikes face again. Spike smiled at Donna. "Hey girl, long time no see. So, I'm guessing that those are your piglets playing with my niece?" Donna nodded again as she lay down next to Spike, as he lovingly rubbed her stomach. "Sorry I couldn't visit more, but disappearing for 2 years kinda makes that hard." Joked Spike. Donna snorted and nudged Spikes leg with her head. Spike continued to rub Donnas stomach for a while as Flurry kept playing with the piglets.

About 20 minutes later Flurry ran up to Spike, holding a piglet in her arms. "Uncle Spike, this little guy hasn't left my side, can I keep him?" Asked Flurry.

Spike frowned and shook his head. "I'm sorry Sweetie, but you can't, he's too young to be separated from his mother, and where did you plan to keep him?" Asked Spike.

"Well, I was planning on keeping him in my room, until I had him moved to the royal garden behind the house." Said Flurry as she put the piglet down. "But I understand, a baby needs to stay by his mother, like mommy does with me, right?"

Spike smiled and nodded. "Exactly, but that doesn't mean that you can't still play with him." Said Spike as he scratched Donna's ear.

Flurry looked at the large pig next to Spike. "Who's this?" Asked Flurry.

"This is Donna, she is that piglet’s mother, and actually an old friend of mine. I met her during the first fair four years ago, she was only a piglet back then, and she was very affectionate towards me. I asked Twilight is we could take her home, and she gave me the exact same talk as I gave you. But look at us now, I have been gone for 2 years and she is still the same little pig as when I met her, albeit with a few extra pounds added." Said Spike as he scratched Donnas side. He looked at the piglet still by Flurry. "So instead of taking him home, how about you give him a name and become friends?"

Flurry gasped as she picked up the piggy and looked it in the eyes. "Wallis." Said Flurry. Wallis squealed happily and started licking Flurry's face, this made Flurry laugh. "Wallis stop, that tickles." Said Flurry as she placed Wallis on the ground. Wallis then ran to his mother and began to eat lunch.

Spike and Donna smiled at the newfound friendship that was forged today. Spike then gave Donna one last rub as he got up. "Donna, it's time for me and Flurry to go, it was great to see you again." Said Spike as he picked up Flurry Heart, and the two made their way out of the pen. Spike looked at Flurry. "So are there anymore animals you want to see?" Asked Spike.

They spent the next 2 hours in the petting zoo. Aside from the pigs, Flurry played with the sheep's ewes, and baby calf with the permission from the mother first of course. But it was not all giggles, Spike decided to buy a small little bit of feed for Flurry to feed the emus. At first it went well, but then the overgrown chicken stole the feed cup from Flurry and then it bit her when she tried to get it back. Spike got mad at the bird, as some of his dragon side showed, scaring all the animals in the zoo. Spike grabbed the bird’s neck and brought its face to his. "I will give you one chance, and only one chance to return her cup, and say you’re sorry for hurting my niece, if you don't, let’s just say I have never had over grown chicken before." Said Spike. Flurry got her cup back and the emu bowed its head at her. Spike smiled at the bird as Flurry gave the large bird a loving pat on the head.

"It’s ok, it only hurt a little." Said Flurry as she was picked up by Spike and the two walked out of the petting zoo.

Spike looked at the filly in his arms, he was about to ask her what she wanted to do next, but he was interrupted by the small growl of her stomach. "Well I think that answers my question, how about we get some lunch, I never got my crystal berry pie from yesterday." Said Spike as his own stomach growled in emptiness. Flurry nodded.

The two found a nearby food stall, and after a long winded argument that may or may not of ended with a broken table over a 12-bit lunch, that a very annoying cook refused to let the dragon pay for, they got their food and started to scarf it down like starving wolves.

Once the food was mauled into nothing, Spike looked at the mess of food on Flurry's face, and chuckled. "You are definitely a Sparkle." Said Spike as he grabbed a napkin and wiped all the left-over ketchup, and bits of fry batter off the little girl’s face. "But, then again a pack of Timberwolves have better manners than Twilight."

Once Flurry was cleaned Spike picked her up and looked at the sun. "Ok kiddo, I have something planned for the end of the fair tonight and it will take me a few hours to get it ready, so we only have enough time to do one more thing. Whatever it is, we'll do it, all you need to do is ask?"

Flurry thought for a moment and then her eyes went wide. "Let's go see the Spike memorial." Said Flurry.

Spike nodded. "On it." Said Spike, but he began to think. 'Well, never thought I would be visiting my own grave.'

Spike placed Flurry in his tail, he looked at her. "Flurry, where is the memorial, it's not like I was actually here when they built it." Said Spike.

Flurry pointed in the direction she thought the memorial was, but then she pointed in another direction, then another, until she sighed "I don't know, normally Mommy or Daddy would take me there, and I always fell asleep when we started to walk home." Said Flurry.

Spike sighed. "Well that's a slight problem." Said Spike. Just then a group of crystal fillies and colts saw Spike. They gasped loudly, and ran up to Spike and Flurry. A light blue crystal filly walked up to the dragon and tapped his arm. Spike looked down at the filly. "Yes, how can I help you?" Asked Spike smiling as he bent his knees to look the filly in her green eyes.

"Ar....are...you.... Pr....Prince...Spike?" Asked the filly shaking.

Spike smiled. "Yep that's me, what's your name?"

"I'm... Crystal...Lake." responded the filly.

Spike smiled, but inwardly sighed. 'Poor kid, thank god that movie doesn't exist here.' "What a lovely name." Said Spike.

The filly blushed making her face look more purple than blue. "So, was there something you needed?" Asked Spike.

"Um... You see... my teacher, Miss. Golden Heart, was going to take us on a field trip today to the Spike museum and the memorial, but then they both got closed by Princess Cadence, and now we can't go." Said Crystal Lake.

"Hmmm." hummed Spike as he thought of a way to kill two birds with one stone. "Do any of you know where your teacher is?" Asked Spike to all the colts and fillies in the group. One colt raised his hand.

Spike looked at the silver colored colt and nodded showing he was paying attention.

"She's my mom, and she's right over there." Said the colt pointing towards a golden color crystal mare with a silver heart cutie mark.

"And what's your name?" Asked Spike.

"Silver Heart." Said the colt.

"Thanks." Spike then motioned for all the fillies and colts to gather around him. Once they were all together Spike divulged his plan. "So, I have a feeling they the guards will let me in, and maybe I'll just have to bring an eager group of fillies and colts with their teacher. If that works then maybe I can give them special information about stuff in the museum. How does that sound?" Asked Spike.

Suddenly Spikes eardrums were destroyed by a massive 'YAY!' That caught the attention of all the surrounding ponies. Spike laughed as he tried to dig out his ears, just then Miss Golden Heart ran at super speed up to the dragon looking very sorry. When she reached the dragon she was panting heavily, as she bowed to Spike. "Please Prince Spike, I'm sorry for whatever my students said. Whatever they said please ignore it." She then looked at the group of kids. "All of you say you’re sorry for disturbing his highness right this instant."

All the children looked sad but listened to their teacher. "Yes ma'am." They all looked at Spike and bowed to Spike. "Please forgive us for interrupting your day, your highness." Said all the kids.

"No." Said Spike simply. All the kids and Golden Heart looked at Spike confused. He and Flurry started to giggle. "You all did nothing wrong." Spike then looked at Golden Heart. "In fact it was my idea that they join me and my niece on our trip to the memorial, and they told me that you had planned a field trip to the museum as well today. It was my fault that the museum and memorial was closed, so to make it up to you all, how about I give you all a private tour of both?" Suggested Spike.

Golden Heart was shocked at the kindness of the prince. Spike laughed. "I'll take your silence as a yes." Said Spike. Golden nodded slowly. Spike quickly covered his ears before the inevitable-'YAY!'. This snapped Golden out of her shock.

Golden bowed to Spike. "Thank you, Prince Spike, how can I ever repay you?" Asked Golden.

Spike thought for a moment then decided to play a little joke. "Well, create a holiday in honor of me." Said Spike clearly making sure the request sounded like a joke.

"Can't do that, Spike Day is coming up next month and it would just be weird to have to Spike centric holidays in a month." Said Golden responding honestly but playing along.

"Wait, there's actually a holiday named Spike Day?" asked Spike surprised.

"Yep, there is a parade with floats, all the little kids dress up as you for the day, as the adults dress up as Sombra and his army as everyone reenacts the final battle right by the crystal heart. Then once the battle is over, Princess Cadence gathers all the little colts and fillies and tells them the story of Spike, Hero of the Crystal Empire." Said Golden.

"Wow, when's the movie coming out?" Joked Spike.

"It was released to critical acclaim two months ago, and is currently on Broadway in Manehattan, too much singing if you ask me, but they get the point across all the same."

"Wait. Seriously?"

"No." Said Golden as she giggled. "But the stuff about the holiday is true."

Spike just got played, he pointed at the mare. "Your good." Said Spike impressed.

Golden smirked. "I know." The two adults laughed as all the little ones looked confused at the adults.

"What's so funny?" Asked all the kids and Flurry.

The adults looked at each other than at the kids. "We'll tell you when you’re older." Said the two.

Spike smiled at the teacher. "So, shall we?" asked Spike holding out his arm for the mare.

Golden giggled. "Why prince Spike if I didn't know any better, I would think that...ummah, sorry got lost in my own thoughts for a second." Golden wrapped her arm around his, then looked at the kids. "Everyone in front of us, and no running off." Said Golden. All the kids nodded as they started on their way to the museum.

But Spike was stopped when he felt a tap on his tail. He looked behind him and saw Flurry Heart. "What's up kiddo?"

"Uncle Spike would you mind if I walk and talk with the others for a while?" Asked Flurry.

Spike smiled. "Of course not, just be on your best behavior." Said Spike as he lowered his tail and let the little filly catch up to the group.

As Flurry was running towards the other kids she smiled back at Spike. "Thanks uncle Spike, and I promise I'll be good."

Golden looked at Spike in amazement. "Where have you been all my life, it takes me an hour to get my kid under control and you did it in ten seconds." Asked Golden.

Spike laughed. "You want the truth, the fact, or the unbelievable?" joked Spike.

Golden thought for a moment. "Start with the unbelievable, then the truth, and end it all with the fact."

Spike shrugged. "Well, I'm actually from what my parents say, 9476 and three months old."

Golden looked at Spike not buying it. "Really?"

"Really, I'm older then both princesses and this empire." Said Spike trying to prove it. "I am the son of the first Dragon Lord Bahamut and his mate Tiamat. Long ago there was an evil necromancer named Grogar that wanted to take over the world, but both my parents along with Queen Lilith created items of power that would keep Grogar imprisoned. Queen Lilith had the tree of harmony and the elements. My father, Bahamut used his blood and the force of all the volcanoes in the world to create the Bloodstone Scepter. And my mother decided that my egg would be her item, so she imbued it with her power. But before the final battle Grogar stole my egg and hid it somewhere in the world, thinking that without it he would have the advantage. My mother lost her life during the battle, and my father activated his Valiant Mode in anger. With the help of Lilith they were able to seal Grogar in a limbo dimension. So long as all three items are still working, he is unable to escape."

Golden hummed. "Eh, sounds made up, you got any hard proof?"

Spike shrugged. "You willing to die and talk to my parents; god knows mom would like to talk about me bringing someone home." Said Spike, Golden looked at him like he was crazy. Spike sighed. "See this big scar on my chest?" Golden nodded. "I was shot with a thing called a bullet. A solid piece of metal that can reach over mach 3. It hit me, and it damaged my lung and my ribs. I bled out on an alien world because of it, that day I died from it and I met my parents, and the first thing my mother did was complain that I didn't find a mate." Said Spike.

Golden giggled. "Ok, whatever you say, now tell me the truth."

"I was hatched by my sister Twilight 14 years ago."

"And the fact?"

"I'm actually 22, and about to be 23 in two months. If you read today's paper, it said I disappeared due to magical effects, well that's true, I was sent to another world, where I spent 10 years there, even though it was only 2 years for everyone here."

"I find that very hard to believe." Said Golden.

"Trust me you're probably not the only one who feels that way, but I assure you it's all true. But we can argue over the validity of my past another time, I feel like I'm monopolizing the conversation, tell me about yourself." Said Spike.

"Well, I'm 35, a schoolteacher, with a wonderful kid."

"Don't believe it." Said Spike.

Golden turned her head. "What don't you believe?"

"You’re too beautiful for somepony in her thirties. Everything else sounds legit." Said Spike, this earned him a light slap to his arm.

"You charmer you, but I would stop before my husband hears you."

"So, your married?"

"I am, he's a wonderful stallion, a great father, and a great royal guard."

"So, he's in the guard, any chance I met him?"

"Probably not, he's only a Sargent, you probably only ever meet officers."

"I wouldn't say that, I know a few enlisted, Flash sentry is a cool guy, private Dawn Stone helped me navigate the palace when I first visited, and just recently I met a guy for the second time, a Sargent named Spot Light."

Golden started to laugh. Spike face palmed. "I'm guessing that's the hubby?"

"Yep, he was stationed near the jousting arena today as added security. How do you know him?"

"Would you believe me if I told you that I met him during a game my friend Discord created, that used random ponies and gave them fake life's, where he helped save Princess Celestia as part of a revolution led by yours truly?"

Golden facepalmed. "I guess he didn't eat that piece of cake before bed a few nights ago. So, I take it your Sentinel Flame?"

Spike nodded. “Yep, but not really, the real Sentinel Flame is still on his world. But Discord just let me take control of him for a while, that's where I met Spot Light.”

Golden sighed. "Hold on one moment." Said Golden as she let go of Spike and walked a head to talk to her son.

A few minutes later. Golden returned to Spikes side. "Sorry you had to see that, turns out my son took the last piece of cake and ate it right before bedtime. So now he's grounded starting tomorrow, and what makes it worse, I'm his teacher so there's no escaping me."

"Poor kid, I was home schooled by my mother and Twilight."

Both laughed but were brought out of it by a stallion shouting an order. "Halt! By order of Princess Cadence no one is allowed inside of the museum until it has been approved by a member of the royal family." Said the guard, as he blocked the main entrance of the museum to the group of kids.

Flurry then walked up to the guard. "All right then, I approve of it, can we go in?" Asked Flurry as she gave the guard puppy dog eyes.

The guard Saluted. "I'm sorry, your highness, but until you are 18 your title is only that, a title."

Spike was impressed, as he leaned to Golden. "That guard deserves a raise; I would have fallen to pieces if she gave me that look." Said Spike.

"So, Spike the Gold Scaled hero of Equestria has a weakness, does he?" Smirked Golden.

"Yes, I'm powerless against cute little fillies that have mastered the power of the puppy dog eyes, sue me. It’s at least better then, Celestia's, Twilights, and Luna's."

"I'll be the judge of that."

"Cake, books, games." Said Spike.

"...Again, I'm sorry to ruin your day, your highness, but unless you are accompanied by a member of the royal family that is at least 18, I cannot let you or your friends enter, I have my orders." Said the guard.

Spike sighed, as he looked at Golden. "Let me handle this before Flurry blows up a building because of a temper tantrum." Said Spike, Golden nodded as he made his way through the crowd of foals to talk to the guard. "What seems to be the problem?" Asked Spike.

The guard went straight back to attention. "Nothing Prince Spike, it's just that your niece is requesting entry to the museum without the permission of- I grant her entry along with all of the foals with her and their teacher." Said Spike.

"Yes sir, is there anything else?"

Spike nodded, "We are planning on going to the memorial next so informed the guards stationed there."

The guard nodded and quickly informed the guards around the museum and the memorial, using a communication spell. "Anything else?"

"One more, what's your name and rank?"

"CPL Dawn Stone, sir."

"Dawn, is that really you?"

"Yes sir."

"Glad to see you made Corporal, it's been a while, sorry for not recognizing you sooner."

"It's fine Spike, I’m glad to see your alive. But I can't stop and chat, I'm on duty."

"I get it, but before we go in, for acts against the power of unrelenting cuteness and as Prince of Equestria I hereby promote you to the rank of Sargent. Good work soldier, keep it up." Said Spike as he gave Dawn Stone a salute.

"Thank you, sir." Saluted Dawn Stone as he opened the door to the museum. All the foals rushed past Dawn and Spike the moment the door was open enough. Golden sighed and followed the group of students leaving Spike and Dawn outside.

Spike sighed. "Thanks Dawn." Said Spike as he placed his hand on the guard’s shoulder and walked in.

Four hours later. Spike was carrying a passed-out Flurry heart in his arms, as Golden and her class were walking back to the palace. "Sorry we didn't make it to the memorial Golden, but at least the kids had fun." Said Spike as he watched some of the kids playing with Spike merch from the gift shop.

Golden smiled at Spike. "Its fine, I didn't expect the tour to take 4 hours. I have a feeling I'm going to get a lot of 'Why wasn't my kid home sooner?' from a lot of parents, but I can't wait until I tell them that we got a personal tour from Prince Spike himself."

Spike laughed. "That'll shut them up, but I'm going to upset them even more. I have something special planned for the closing ceremony tonight that I think will be amazing, you and your class are welcome to stay until then. I'll even pull some strings and get Spot off duty a little early. And before you say 'No' I have a feeling that you won't have a say in the matter."

"What do you-Spike, there you are!" Started Golden but was interrupted by an approaching Celestia.

Spike laughed as all the others bowed at the princess of the sun. "Hi Mom, I see you got over your tummy ache." Said Spike trying to spare the kids from the truth.

Celestia nodded. "Yes, it took a while and I still have some trouble, but I'm at least doing better than the others, did you have a good day with Flurry?"

Spike nodded. "I did. We went to the jousting arena, met Spot Light the guard that teleported you out of the castle during game night, and became the new champion jouster. Then we went to the petting zoo where I met my old pig friend Donna and her piglets, while Flurry found a little pig that she named Wallis. After we said our goodbyes, Flurry got to pat some sheep and played with a calf. But then I bought her a small cup of feed so she could feed an emu, it stole her cup and then bit her, so I got angry and threatened to make it dinner, and it said it was sorry. Then we had lunch where I might or might not have thrown a table over a 12-bit bill all because the stall owner refused to let me pay. That's when this group of foals found me and Flurry, and informed me of the canceled planned field trip to the museum, so I had to use my authority as prince to get everyone in side, but we weren't able to make it to the memorial because Flurry fell asleep." Said Spike. "So, who else is up?"

"Well me, Luna, Twilight, and Discord are up and around, AJ is still having headaches, Pinkie is somehow bouncing off the walls, Ember and Garble are grounded for the day but still moving, and everyone else is still in bed."

Flurry yawed and opened her eyes. "Grandma?" Asked Flurry while rubbing her eyes.

Celestia smiled and levitated the still sleepy filly over to her. "Good morning sleepy head, did you and Uncle Spike have a great day?"

Flurry pouted. "No."

"No? What happened?"

"I fell asleep before we could go to the memorial, all my new friends must hate me."

"Hey, that's not true!" Yelled Silver heart. "We had fun with you, and sure it stunk that we couldn't go to the memorial with you, we still got to get a personal tour from Prince Spike. Your funny, cool, and we could never hate you." Everyone nodded at the colt’s words.

"Really?"

"Really!" Said the class.

Flurry giggled. "Do you guys want to go play in the royal garden with me?" Asked Flurry.

"Yeah!" responded the class.

Flurry looked at Celestia. "Can they Grandma?"

"I don't see why not, just make sure to behave or no more play time."

Spike cover his ears. "YAY!" cheered Flurry as she flew out of Celestia’s grasp and smiled at all her new friends. "Come on everyone follow me." Said Flurry as she landed, and started running to the royal garden, with everyone following her. Golden laughed, while Spike and Celestia smiled.

Celestia looked at the mare next to Spike. "So, who is this beautiful mare?" asked Celestia smirking.

Spike looked at his mother. "First off lose the smirk, she's married."

"Oh."

"Secondly, she is that group of foals teacher and the mother of the one who spoke to Flurry."

"Oh."

"And thirdly, her husband is Spot Light, so I'm not going to go there."

"Oh." Said Celestia, she then looked at Golden. "Sorry for making this whole talk awkward."

Golden laughed. "It's no trouble your highness, but would you mind doing me a favor?"

"Not a problem."

"Could you have a few notes for the parents of my students saying that they were out longer then I said they would be because of royal intervention? I rather not get my ear chewed out by all those parents’ tomorrow."

Celestia laughed. "Sure."

Golden smiled. She then looked to Spike. "So, what are you planning on doing tonight for the closing ceremony?"

Spike smirked. "I'm planning on putting on a little show."

"A show, what kind of show?"

"Awe, that would ruin the surprise. So, until then why don't you and my mother get acquainted, I need to get ready." Said Spike as he took a few steps back.

Golden looked at Spike confused, but Spike smiled. "Hey mom, is anyone in the main throne room right now?"

"Cadence is in there right now."

"Cool." Said Spike as he set himself on fire, turned to smoke, and was sent to Cadence.

Golden looked at Celestia. "So how old is he really, I think he lied to me saying that he was almost 10000 years old, but that can't be true." Said Golden.

Celestia sighed. "Follow me, and I'll explain everything."

Cadence was sitting in the main throne room, listening to her other cousin Blueblood complain about Spike. "Why don't you see it? That monstrosity is a menace to society." Said Blueblood.

Cadence sighed. "This is just sad Blue, not only did he single handedly save my daughter, but he also saved this empire from Chrysalis. What is your deal with him?"

"My deal, is that he is an inferior being that doesn't deserve to be anything more than...-Than what Blue?" Said Blueblood before getting interrupted by the smoke that is Spike.

Spike then popped into his real form right in front of Cadence, and he was not very happy as he glared at the white unicorn. "I'll ask again. Then what Blue?"

Blueblood was terrified. "Anything more than a prince and hero of the kingdom." Said Blue out of fear.

Spike smirked as he walked to the unicorn. " Well thanks for the kind words Blue, but we both know that you are lying to both of us just so you don't get punished. So I'm going to send you on a little trip, I promise it won't hurt, but it will show you where you belong, also if you hurt Donna or any of her kids, not even my mother will be able to stop me." Said Spike as he blew a jet of fire at Blueblood.

Blue screamed in fear of dying but was quickly turned into smoke and sent off to the pig pen. Cadence thought for a moment. "Wait isn't Donna the name of that pig that you wanted to bring home with you?"

"It is, I thought, if he likes to throw mud at other races, then he must like to play in the mud as well, so I tossed him straight at the source." Said Spike.

Cadence laughed as she nearly fell out of her throne. "What happened to Flurry?"

"She is playing with some new friends in the royal gardens right now."

Cadence smiled. " Well that's great to know that she made some new friends. I can't wait to hear all about it later, but I doubt that you just randomly decided to interrupt Blueblood for the hell of it, so what did you want to talk about?" asked Cadence.

Twenty minutes later.

"...And I think that would be a great way to close the fair, give the ponies a show they will never forget." Finished Spike.

Cadence looked so excited. "YES! YES! A MILLION TIMES YES! DO IT." Said Cadence.

Spike smiled. "All I need is permission to stand at the top of the palace so I can direct them, the rest is up to you." Said Spike.

"Oh, it's not hard to gather all of the citizens together, just leave it to me, everything will be ready by 7."

Spike smiled. "Great, also could you get a sergeant named Spot Light off duty so he can spend some time with his wife and kid, I kinda owe him one?"

Cadence nodded. "Sure, I'll send out an order to the guard and he should be relieved in 20."

"Great. I'll get ready for the show, but I'm going to go see everyone and make sure they’re not dead." Said Spike as he set himself on fire again and sent himself to his first stop, Twilight.

Spike arrived in the royal library, as he popped out right in front of twilight, startling her. "Aww! oh it's just you Spike, how are you doing?"

"Good enough, just thought I check on my sister, and make sure she wasn't dead." Said Spike as he started to laugh. "From only having two drinks."

Twilight blushed in embarrassment. "Shut up."

"No. Also head to cadence to hear the plan for tonight, I still got a lot of stops to make." Said Spike as he sent himself to Luna.

Spike continuously sent himself to all his friends to make sure they knew about the show tonight, and to make sure they were getting over their hangovers.

Everyone was informed on the show tonight by Cadence.

A few hours later Cadence had gathered everyone as they retook their positions on the balcony. Cadence started the announcement. "Everycreature, please gather near the palace, I am about to start the closing ceremony!" said Cadence.

It took a few minutes for most of the citizens to gather. "Citizens of the Crystal Empire, this year's fair has been an interesting one to say the least, but it is one we will never forget. The return of Prince Spike, the failed invasion attempt from Chrysalis, and I have been informed by my daughter, that we have a new jousting champion, and it's none other than Prince Spike himself." Said Cadence, this led to a round of cheering for Spike. "But the final event of the fair has yet to be started, and this year it's going to be something special, but we are missing a critical part, so please everyone send the heart your love."

All the creatures followed the princess’s order. Everyone sent their love to the heart and this boost in power resulted in everyone changing into crystal creatures. "Thank you all, now Princess Celestia will lower the sun, creating a perfect backdrop." Said Cadence.

Celestia smiled and used her magic to lower the sun, turning the sky almost pitch black. "Thank you." Said Cadence. She then looked back over the crowd. "Tonight, we have instore something never before seen, and gracefully brought to us by the hero of our empire." Cadence then turned her head and pointed to the top of the palace. "Prince Spike Solaris."

Spike smiled. "You ready Mal?"

Mal sighed. " Not really, but I agree that this was a great idea." Said Mal.

Spikes scales changed to a gold color which was illuminating him thanks to the crystal mode. All the crowd cheered at the sight of the gold dragon as he jumped down from the tower and dive bombed towards the ground. But he pulled up right above the crowd and flew to the edge of the empire so everyone could have a great view of the show.

It didn't take Spike long to reach the edge of the empire. He landed, and pulled out the Zappfly tube. Spike released them all, as Sparks took his spot on Spikes shoulder. Spike looked at Sparks. "Ok little buddy, its show time." Said Spike as he could hear music. Sparkes nodded and flashed the signal as all the Zappflys went dark and got into position for the show.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5RkC0dTNfx8

(Best I could find.)

Once the light show was over Spike gave the signal to return for phase two. All the flies blinked a single light. They flew back to Spike and returned to their tube. Spike sighed as he pulled a small pouch of gems from his tail and started to pop them into his mouth one my one, crushing them with his teeth into a fine powder. Just then a massive amount of smoke turned into red fire and in front of Spike deposited a set of large crates. Spike smiled and used his claws to open the crate. inside of the crates were hundreds of fireworks. "Thanks Pinkie, this is exactly what I needed." Said Spike as he popped open the Bolamite tube. Char took her position. "Char, phase 2 is a go, start stringing them together." Char nodded as all the Bolamite's started to produce very thin but very flammable thread.

A few minutes later, all the Bolamites returned to their tube. Spike smirked as he lit the long fuse and waited for the show to start.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CNjggrxUQ78

(Don't own any of the music.)

As the fireworks show was wrapping up, Spike knew it was time to head back so he popped the last of his gems and added them to the large amount of powder in his mouth. He took flight and once he entered the city he started to use his fire and the finely crushed gems to create a glowing trail of aqua colored embers over the crowd. Spike flew so the ember trail would be in the shape of a heart.

Once his mouth was empty, Spike made his way to the balcony. He made it right as the show ended and the last of the embers died out, he then walked to the front of the balcony as the crowd erupted in a massive cheer at the display. "Ponies of the Empire, Creatures of Equestria and beyond, this was made possible thanks to the friendship shared between all of our races, and the power that comes from it. We stand before you all, not as creatures of different races, but as friends." Said Spike. The crowd cheered even louder as Spike took a bow as his scales changed back to normal and the balcony went dark.

The crowd cheered for a few minutes longer, but it was clear that the show was over, so they started to make their way to their homes. Spike looked at everyone on the balcony and sighed in relief. " So?"

"IT WAS AWESOME!" cheered Rainbow. Everyone nodded and murmured in agreement.

"Good, now don't wake me up till next week, I just figured out that it takes a lot of practice to run Valiant Mode for so long, and I just stayed in it for like 20 minutes." Said Spike as he smiled and tried to walk to his room. But he stumbled and was about to faceplant on the balcony, but Spike was saved by Ember.

"Have you always been an idiot?" Asked Ember.

"Probably, but I'm a lovable one." Said Spike.

"Shut up and rest." Said Ember as she used the bloodstone to make Spike fall asleep.

"As the son of your...." Said Spike but it was replaced with snoring.

Ember Smirked and looked at Celestia. "You want to take this pile of scales to his bed or do you want me to?" Asked Ember, trying to steady the dragon in her grasp.

"How about this." Said Celestia as she got on the other side of Spike and propped him up more. The two nodded and carried the sleeping dragon to his room.

Spike woke up the next morning but instead of finding himself in a bed, he was on a train seat. Spike groaned and tried to block the sunlight from entering his eyes. "Ugh, what happened, and where's my bed?" Asked Spike not really expecting an answer.

"Well, seeing as it's almost 2 in the afternoon, and nothing we did woke you up, we decided to just carry you onto the train so we could go home sometime today." Said Twilight, who was reading a book.

"Cool, bet the crystal ponies weren't happy though. But seeing as were actually moving means they let us go."

"Yeah it was a struggle, but when we told them that you had other plans today, they let us go."

"Ok. So where are mom and Luna?"

"They both teleported back to Canterlot to get back to work."

"And the others?"

"All the girls are in the other cabins, Ember, Garble and Smolder are flying back to the dragon lands. Rutherford and Yona are walking back home because 'Yak's best at walking', and Thorax and Ocellus are flying back to their hive." Said Twilight.

Spike sat up and stretched his body. "How much longer till we get home?"

"About an hour."

"Cool. So, to the human world tomorrow then?"

"Yep."

"Got it." Said Spike as he closed his eyes.

Oddworld Spike's Wrath

by TAD2

Sweet Moolah I'm Home (Edit)

It's Good to be Back

Im Home

Stranger comes to town

New Yoke or Bust

Day to day on the journy home

Time For A Update

A Stranger Walkes Into Town

Time for lunch

Night Under The Stars Pt.1

Night Under The Stars Pt.2

Thank God Your Princesses Are In Another Castle

Stabbed Through The Heart And You're To Blame, You Give Chaos A Good Name.

Game Night pt.1

Game Night pt.2

Game Night pt.3

Game Night pt.4

Game Night pt.5 (Final part)

An Apple a Day Doesn't Keep The Roc Away.

New Suit, New Wings, New Sweetes

Spike The Brave and Glorious Returns

The End of The Beginning, But Not The Beginning of The End pt.1

The End of The Beginning, But Not The Beginning of The End pt.2

Sequel