Spike is alone on Hearths Warming. Strange things happen. What will he do about it
Twilight and her friends were invited to celebrate Hearths Warming at the Crystal Empire, abandoning Spike in the process. Spike is sad and wonders what he should do. Then, bad things start to happen around Ponyville and the Everfree Forest. Can spike with the help of a new friend of his stop these bad things before it hurts everyone in Equestria?
Spike yawned as he woke up one morning. He rubbed his eyes and got out of bed. He went over to his bedroom window and saw a sea of white on the grounds of Ponyville. He also saw many ponies out and about getting ready for Hearths Warming.
"Wow, we really got a lot of snow last night. I wonder how much snow as a whole we're gonna get." Spike said
Spike then walked out of his room and into the rest of the castle, heading to the kitchen to make breakfast for himself. He looked into one of the cabinets and found what he was looking for, which was a bowl of ruby and sapphire gems. After he was finished eating breakfast, he looked around to find that Twilight wasn't there and neither were her friends. Spike just assumed that they were somewhere in Ponyville spending time together before the big Hearths Warming party at the castle later in the week.
It was then that Spike got an idea that Twilight and her friends would surely love. "How about I get everything ready for Hearths Warming all by myself. I'll get the tree, I'll hang the ornaments and the lights on the tree and make everything festive and comforting for when they get back. I bet they'll love everything I'll do for them." Spike said while smiling and imagining him enjoying Hearths Warming with his friends. With that, Spike went to the study to get some paper, a quill and some ink to make a checklist for what to do today.
When he got there, it was a mess. Papers were scattered everywhere and it looked like a ghost was in here to mess things up. "Tsk Tsk Twilight, you can't even clean up your own mess. Guess I have to clean up this mess since you're gone." he sighed frustrated. He got to work cleaning up the study. He started with organizing the papers from the blank sheets to the ones that already have stuff written on them and he kept one of the blank papers for himself to make his checklist. He then started checking the ink to see if they needed more. Luckily, they had a lot so that wasn't a problem. Finally, he put the quills back in the places the needed to be. Once the study was clean, neat and organized, he grabbed some ink and a quill to make the checklist, went over to his paper and stated making the checklist.
"Well, that was tiresome, but now I'm finally ready to make my checklist. Now let's see, I need to get a tree, set up the ornaments and lights and decorate the castle." He started writing things down on the paper.
Get a tree for the castle Hang up the ornaments Setting up lights Decorate the castle a little
"That should be it for now, and maybe afterward, I can have some fun outside in the snow." Spike declared. With that set and done, he walked back to his room to put his coat and hat on, not before putting the checklist underneath his hat, then he went to the entrance door before venturing out into Ponyville to find a perfect tree.
As Spike was looking for a tree, he looked around the town and saw that it was quite busy today. He saw various fillies and colts playing in the snow whether it be a snowball fight or just pulling one another an a sled, he saw adults running around getting ready to spend the holidays with their families, but he also saw something else. In the direction of the Everfree Forest, he saw what looked like the silhouette of a baby dragon that looked a lot like him but had pure white eyes and Spike grew curious about it.
"Hey you, You near the forest." Spike called
The creature turned around and saw the purple dragon calling for him. It growled at him from a distance and then disappeared in a bout of dark flames, leaving just ashes behind.
"Ho- How did he do that? Well that was weird. I might have to tell twilight about it when she comes back tonight." Spike said to himself before continuing onward to get a tree.
He walked around Ponyville for a while trying to find a place to buy a tree when he accidentally bumped into a brown stallion with a green tie.
"Oh I'm sorry about that young lad. I was just running around trying to get ready to spend Hearths Warming with my wife Ms. Derpy Whooves." The stallion said.
"It's alright sir. I wasn't looking where I was going either so it wasn't entirely your fault." He looked up at the stallion and saw that he looked quite familiar. "Wait a minute, are you the Doctor? The one who invents things?"
"Indeed I am young lad, and may I ask who you are?"
"My name is Spike, Spike the Dragon, an assistant to Princess Twilight"
"Nice to meet you Spike." The doctor said while shaking his hoof with spikes claw. "Hmm, now that I think about it, you actually remind me of 2 creatures I met before."
"Really? Who might those be?"
One of them was a dragon named Jot. He was an assistant to an important figure just like you are. He used to write things down and was quite useful."
"He sounds pretty cool. Who is the other?" Spike asked
"The other was a dragon named Ace. He looked a lot like you and he was a warrior. He had the spirit of one too. It's a shame that he went missing quite a while ago."
"Both of them sound really cool. I now kind of wish to meet them one day."
"I bet you'd get along with both of them." The doctor laughed
"Doctor sir, do you know where I can buy a Hearths Warming tree? I want to surprise my friends." Spike asked
"Actually I have a better idea then buying an old worn tree. Follow me and I will show you something better." The doctor said. So Spike followed the doctor to a building and when they got inside said building, Spike looked around and saw that it looked like a lab. The doctor motioned Spike to come near him and they were looking at a small box. "This is an invention I made to save all the hustle and bustle of trying to buy a regular tree. It's easy to carry, it doesn't hurt to pick up and there's also no allergens in it. You just open it up and a tree will appear." The doctor said happily.
"This is exactly what I need Doctor. Um, can I have it sir?" Spike asked sheepishly.
"Yes you can Spike. I was actually thinking of getting rid of it because my wife says that regular non-invented trees are superior. She's actually out looking for a tree right now. I'll gladly give it to you for 10 bits."
"Deal." Spike said while opening up his coat jacket and giving the doctor 10 bits. After the exchange, Spike waved goodbye to the doctor and started to head back to the castle.
As he was walking back, a black and yellow blur zoomed right into him, knocking him back and making his body hit a building. His eyes went blurry for a second before the pony that zoomed into him ran up to him and hugged him.
"Sweet Celestia, I am so sorry. I didn't mean to hit you that hard, I wasn't looking where I was going, It was my fault, I am so so sorry." The pony said while tearing up, thinking she really hurt the dragon.
Spike hugged back and said "Hey hey, It's ok. You don't have to worry about me. I'm just fine, I promise you."
The pony released the hug but wasn't convinced. "I'm still sorry."
"Like I said, I forgive you. It was just an accident, no need to hold grudged over an accident." Spike said. Spike also got a better look of the pony. She was a pegasus that was shorter than the average adult mare but taller than a filly. Spike assumed that she was a teenage pony. She also had black fur with an orange and yellow mane and tail that looked a lot like Rainbow Dash's mane and tail. She also had a cutie mark that looked a lot like a meteor. "Oh, I'm Spike by the way, what's your name?"
"Hi Spike, I'm Shooting Star. It's nice to meet you." Shooting Star said while shaking her hoof with his claw.
"Anyway, I better go. I want to surprise my friends with a decorated place when they get back." Spike told her. Shooting Star's smile faltered a bit at the mention of friends but she didn't show it.
"Alright Spike. Have a good day." She said. Spike and Shooting Star said their goodbyes to each other and Spike continued his way back to the castle.
Spike made his way to the main hall which was still empty. He started wondering where Twilight and her friends could be but he shook that thought aside for now.
"Time to try this portable tree out." He said to himself before opening the box which then started folding a lot before ultimately turning into a tree large enough to make it look like an actual tree but small enough to fit the room appropriately.
"This was definitely worth my time." He cheered as he took out his checklist and crossed out 'get a tree' from the checklist. "Now we have to hang up the ornaments and set up the lights." He went to the storage room to find the ornaments and lights. He turned on the light to the room and lo and behold, he found the ornaments and lights on one of the shelves to his left. He grabbed them and made it back to where the tree was. He put ornament after ornament on the tree until all the ornaments were on the tree.
"Now that the ornaments are taken care of, let's start putting the lights on the tree now." He then started taking out the lights to put onto the tree. After a few minutes of putting the lights on the tree, he plugged the lights into an energy source and the tree lit up in red, green, blue, gold and white colors. He smiled at the sight before taking out his checklist and crossed out 'Hang up the ornaments' and 'Setting up lights' from the checklist.
"Now the last thing I need to do is decorate the castle a little bit. I can't wait for Twilight to see what I did, she'll love it."
Spike then decorated the castle for the next few hours. He made and put a soft carpet on the floor next to the fireplace, he put wood in the fireplace and lit it and he also made his own homemade eggnog with a cinnamon stick in it and also a surprise twist in it too. After a while, it was about sunset and Spike became a bit tuckered out so he sat down on a chair and looked at his work. "I can't wait to them to walk in and see what I did."
2 hours later, Spike was still waiting and Twilight wasn't home yet. He was starting to grow really worried. Normally, Twilight would come home around an hour ago but she still isn't here. He started hyperventilating while pacing worrying that she's in danger and can't do anything. Then, he felt something in his stomach and made its way up to the mouth before burping out a scroll. He picked it up, unraveled it and read it. As he read it, he felt tears coming out of his eyes
Dear Spike
Princess Cadence and Shining Armor invited me, Rainbow, Applejack, Pinkie, Rarity and Fluttershy to the Crystal Empire to spend Hearths Warming there with them. They also invited my parents, Princess Celestia and Princess Luna. I want you to look over the castle until we get back in a few days.
Thanks, Twilight Sparkle P.S. The study is also a mess so I want you to clean and organize the room before I get back.
"Sh... She abandoned me on Hearths Warming." Spike said in tears. "Why would she do that? After everything I did for them."
Spike could only look on at the letter Twilight gave him in tears. He was abandoned and the evidence was right in front of him.
"Why would everyone do that to me?" he cried to himself. "I thought I was part of their family." He then started reminiscing about his friends and all the times he was bullied or forgotten by them.
Spike first thought about Twilight, who is the Element of Magic and the Princess of Friendship. She preaches what friendship is all about and how you can be a good friend. Although to Spike, he never felt like she was showing him any friendship. Day in and day out, she always left to be with her friends, always leaving Spike in absolute solitude with a bunch of chores for her to do or to always watch the place while she had fun at Celestia knows where. He then remembered back in Canterlot where he and Twilight were near inseperable. Twilight would almost always work on her studies when she was younger, but then she would almost always make time for Spike and play with him.
"What happened to those days where Twilight showed her care for me?" he asked. His brain gave him the answer not long after, Twilights friends and family.
Spike then thought about Pinkie Pie, who is the element of laughter. Her lifelong goal and everything she lives for is to make other people laugh and smile. She even wrote a song about how much fun she has when making others smile. Spike was always impressed about how far she would go to make somepony smile. But why, why has she never made Spike laugh? Looking back now, watching Pinkie make others smile back then makes him feel really unhappy and sick to his stomach now. She never invited him to any of the parties she threw like Rainbow Dash's party, Maud's visitation, her own birthday party, and she never even threw a birthday party for him since that one where he grew giant and greedy which caused him to destroy Ponyville, which now that he thinks about it, it's kind of understandable that she never threw him a party since. But still, she hasn't been considerate of Spike whenever she throws a party.
"I wanted to be part of those parties. I wanted to be with my friends having fun." Spike cried with tears.
After Pinkie Pie, he thought of Rainbow Dash next, who is the element of loyalty. She works hard everyday to be a good friend to Twilight and her other friends while also training harder to be a wonderbolt one day. Spike sees her fly around every day with friends or to train and he always liked her tricks. She's loyal to all her friends, but never Spike. She was never around to see if Spike was ok or wanted to come along. And whenever he does come along, they barely ever talk. Sometimes, she goes out of her way to bully him like that time she called him a lame dragon just because he wasn't tough like the other dragons, or maybe it was because of his apron. Even most recently, when her pet was going into hibernation, she insulted him by saying, "Well what would you know? You're a dragon." She basically told him to his face that he was stupid and dumb because he was a different creature, and she never apologized to him for being racist.
"Is that why I was left behind and abandoned on Hearths Warming, because I'm stupid and dumb or because I'm a different creature?" Spike asked to himself, feeling more and more sick with each thought.
Spike then thought about Rarity, who is the element of generosity and use to be the love of his life. The moment Spike's eyes laid on her, he instantly fell in love with her. After the defeat of Nightmare Moon, he would always see if Rarity needed any help and if she did, he helped her. Although he helped her, doing so much work for her that he would be sore for days, carried all of her 19 bags on multiple occasions, and even stopped her from being mad with power after she found a relic that turns everything into precious gems, he also never got anything worthwhile in return. Sure she would give him a kiss on the cheek sometimes, but she never gave him anything more than that. Rarity also never invites spike to have any fun with her, only to work for her.
"Heh, makes me think that I should be the element of generosity and not her." Spike scoffed while anger mixed with his sadness and sorrow.
Applejack was next to come to his mind. She is the element of honesty and the hardest worker in all of Equestria. In actuality, Spike couldn't think of too many bad things about her. Most times she and Spike interacted, it was mostly good stuff. She saved his life from being eaten by timberwolves and was mostly nice to him when they interacted. But there are some bad sides to Applejack. She went against everything he's known about her and lied just so she could get him off her back, which is understandable looking back, seeing as how he could've gotten himself killed, but that doesn't excuse her joining in with Rainbow Dash in bullying him and calling him lame, and that certainly doesn't excuse her forgetting Spike and abandoning him.
"Maybe if she never forgot about me, I would actually think I was a friend to her." Spike smiled sadly.
Spike then thought about Fluttershy, who is the element of kindness and in Spike's opinion, has the healthiest relationship to him. He remembered the first time he met her, she was all over him, calling him cute and wanting to know "Absolutely everything" about him and he loved it. But over time, they drifted further and further apart to be with Twilight more.
"I should probably talk to her about how I feel about her and her friends after they get back. She's the only one of them I partially trust." Spike thought to himself
Spike started walking to his room, still sad and still had tears. When he got there, he got into bed and looked at the framed photo of him, Twilight, Shining, Cadence and their parents when they were younger. Tears started coming back strong.
"I just wanted to be a friend, to be part of their friend group. Cadence used to always call me her special dragon. It was like she loved me like her own son." Spike started sobbing. "Why did it have to end? I helped save the empire she rules over today, even if I had to almost fall to my death." Spike is remembering the time he jumped off the top of the castle to get the crystal heart to Cadence. "But I never got invited back just to have fun with her, Shining or my friends. I nearly died trying to save the Crystal Empire, but I only gotten invited back only once and that was only because it was mandatory to be there for the Equestria games. Am I even a friend to them? Was everything Cadence said to him when they were younger a lie? DO ANY OF THEM LOVE ME AT ALL?!" Spike yelled out sobbing. He couldn't take it anymore, and he buried his face into his pillow and started bawling his eyes out. He continues bawling, crying and sobbing until he fell asleep
Outside though, the storm is getting worse
In his dream
His dream started in the center of Ponyville. He was looking for the castle after picking things up for Twilight. He found the castle and started walking towards it, but then he felt himself being hugged. He turned around and saw the pegasus pony he saw earlier in the day, Shooting Star.
"Hello Spike. it's so nice to see you again."
Spike was confused but played along. "Uhh, hi Shooting Star. What are you doing?"
"I'm hugging you. I love hugging others. I heard it helps creatures feel better and relaxes tensed muscles, so how about you enjoy the hug."
Shooting Star continued hugging Spike and rubbing his scales. He felt himself feel warmer and his face started becoming red. He melted into the hug and hugged back. But as he was enjoying the hug, the place got darker and darker until it was just a black void. Shooting Star, everypony and everything disappeared until it was just Spike in the void
Spike started worrying. "Where... Where did everyone go? What's going on?" Spike asked scared
"Hello Spike"
Spike jumped startled at the sudden voice. He turned around and saw a creature that looked like him but with a pitch black color and pure white eyes
"Hey, I think I saw you earlier today near the Everfree Forest. Who are you?" Spike asked
"I'm you Spike, but from a different universe/timeline. I'm actually quite a big fan of you."
Spike was even more perplexed than before. "Really? What makes you want to be a fan of me beside the obvious?"
"Are you kidding me? Of course I would be a fan of you. You saved an entire empire for Faust sake"
"Faust? I heard of Celestia's sake but not Faust sake. What's that?" Spike asked
"She's the great being that watches us and created us" Spike nodded in understanding.
"Wait, didn't you save the Crystal Empire in your universe/timeline? What happened to you, and why are you like this?" Spike asked.
"That's something I'd rather not talk about" Spike also nodded in understanding at that. "But let's talk about you, Spike the Brave and Glorious, Hero of the Crystal Empire. You were abandoned again, weren't you?"
Spike looked down and sighed sadly. "Yeah, Princess Cadence invited all of her family over except for me. She's the princess of love, but recently, she had made me feel more unloved than loved."
"That's rough buddy." He then felt something tingle around him, signaling that it was time to go and leave Spikes dream.
"I best be going now, but solve the riddle I will give you over the next few days. I am a glue, but I don't stick. 2 different creatures will create me. I am 6 gems, but I can't eat them. When all hope seems lost, I rise up and defeat evil. What am I?." And with that, he disappeared and left the dragon's dream.
Shortly after he left, the dream turned back to normal. Everything and everypony returned back to the way they were and Shooting Star was still hugging him. He got out of the hug and started walking.
"Is everything ok Spike? Did you not like my hug?" Shooting Star asked. "Do you not like my hugs?"
Spike turned around and told her, "Of course I liked your hugs Shooting Star, and sorry for getting out of it so abruptly, but I need to get back to the castle. It's really important that I go there now."
"Oh, ok then" She smiled. "Have a good day Spike."
They waved goodbye and Spike continued onward to the castle. After a few minutes, he got to the steps of the castle, He opened up the big golden doors and woke up from his dream.
After that dream, and the next morning, Spike woke up and rubbed his eyes, which were still red from crying himself to sleep last night. He was still hurting from the revelation that Twilight and her friends abandoned him to celebrate Hearths Warming at the Crystal empire
"Maybe I should leave them for good. They clearly don't appreciate me or the things I do for them. Either that or they're afraid of either me as a dragon or they're afraid that if I'm with them all the time, others will hate them." Spike bitterly thought. Although he was pondering this thought, it wasn't the only thing on his mind as he looked back on the dream he just had the previous night.
"So that creature I saw yesterday can visit dreams, and he said that he was me from a different universe/timeline. Something feels weird about him. I hope that he isn't evil." he said to himself.
He walked out of his room and to the kitchen and made himself breakfast. As he was eating his breakfast of gems though, he saw a small square piece of paper resting on the counter. He walked over to it and saw that the paper consisted of six small circles which was around one big circle and lines that connected the small circles to the big circle. Another thing Spike noted that one of the small circles was already filled out with a K.
"What is this paper doing here? I didn't write this, so somepony else must have sent this to me, but who?" he asked. He flipped it over and saw some writing that said,
Keep this safe
"So the only clue I have is that ominous message on the back saying that I should keep it safe. Well that's just great, I'm no closer to finding who left this here and why they were here in the first place." Spike sighed and was confused, but he still decided to keep the paper as he thought it was important that he had it if it said he should keep it safe.
"Maybe I should bring this over to the Doctor. He's smart, so he should be able to help me with this." Spike thought as he went to put his coat and hat on, while sticking the piece of paper underneath his hat. He opened the front doors to go outside and he was greeted with a strong breeze along with a bunch of falling snow to his face.
"Looks like the weather team is setting up a snowstorm before Hearths Warming. I hope it doesn't get too bad." Spike said as he walked down the steps of the castle and into the city.
As he walked, he realized that a lot less ponies were out and about today than yesterday, mostly because of the intensifying snowstorm, but that didn't stop him from heading to his destination and after a few minutes of walking, he arrived at his destination, the Doctor's house.
Spike started knocking on the door hoping he would answer. "Doctor sir, can I come in? There's something weird I want to show you." After a few seconds, the door opened to find a grey mare with a blond mane and some bubbles for her cutie mark. She looked at Spike and smiled.
"Hello little dragon. My name is Ditzy Doo, but my close friends and my husband call me Derpy Whooves." she started happily but her tone turning serious and concerned after. "But what are you doing out there in the snow and cold weather? You could have gotten hypothermia or frostbite."
"Hi Ditzy, my name is Spike, but I need to see the doctor as soon as possible. I have something that he might want to take a look at. May I come in?" Spike asked.
"I was gonna make you come in anyway because of the weather. Come in and get yourself warm." Ditzy said while making way for the dragon to come in. Spike sat on the couch while Ditzy gave him a blanket. "I'm gonna go make some hot chocolate for you to warm you up. Stay there and the Doctor will come in shortly to talk to you."
"Thanks for doing this Ditzy. It means a lot."
"You're welcome Spike. Oh, and you can just call me Derpy. I see you enough as a friend for you to call me that."
"Oh, ok then Derpy. Thanks again." Derpy nodded while smiling and headed to the kitchen. Now that Spike was alone on the couch, he took out the piece of paper from underneath his hat and took another good look at it as he got more questions in his head.
"Now, what could the K on this piece of paper possibly mean? And why did it get sent here if Twilight and her friends and family are in the Crystal Empire? Was it sent specifically to me? If so, then I don't know how to react to this. I usually never get anything from others." These questions lingered in his head, but were interrupted when the door opened and the doctor walked in.
"Oh hello young Spike. How are you doing on this snowy day? And I thought you were decorating the castle for you and your friends to celebrate Hearth's Warming." The Doctor asked. Spikes face fell at that.
"I could honestly be better Doctor. Twilight and her friends and family were invited to celebrate Hearths Warming at the Crystal Empire, and they left me here to celebrate it alone in the process, so I'm not doing really good right now." Spike said with a sad look on his face
"Oh... I'm sorry you have to go through that Spike. And I'm sorry I asked and brought up bad stuff." said the Doctor
"It's ok Doctor. It wasn't your fault I was like this, It's theirs. Although I don't really know what to do for Hearths Warming, which is troublesome."
"Well, I can give you an option right now. This is your choice, but since you'll be alone on that day, would you like to come over and spend Hearths Warming with us? I'm pretty sure my wife Derpy won't mind."
As if on cue, Derpy came in with two hot chocolates, one for Spike and One for the Doctor. "I overheard what you guys were talking about, and Spike, I'm so sorry that you got abandoned by your friends. I would love it if you stayed with us for Hearths Warming. No one deserves to be alone on Hearths Warming, especially not you."
"Thanks guys, you're the best. I might just take you guys up on that offer." Spike said happily
Derpy and the Doctor smiled. "You're welcome Spike. Now, what is it that you traveled all the way here in the snow to see me?" The Doctor asked.
"Oh right, need to get back on track." Spike took out the piece of paper from underneath his hat and showed it to the Doctor. "I found this paper on the kitchen counter this morning as I was making myself some breakfast, but I don't know who wrote this or sent this to me, but they did tell me to keep it safe as it is written on the back. I was wondering if you can use something to help me with this." Spike said while he handed the piece of paper to the Doctor to get a good look at it too.
The Doctor looked back at Spike and said, "Spike, this is just a piece of paper. What do you want me to do with it?"
"I know it's just a piece of paper but somepony must have sent me this and I don't even know what the K in one of the circles could possibly mean. I know you're smart with all of these inventions of yours, so I thought you might be able to help me."
"Well the K could mean many many things, like king or kangaroo or keyboard. The abbreviation for potassium is even K." the Doctor rambled.
"How can K be an abbreviation for a word that doesn't even have that letter in it?" Spike asked
"Don't ask me, Ask Clophrey Davy. He's the one that named it. Either way we're getting off topic. I'll try to do what I can but it's still a piece of paper."
"That's all I ask of you, is to try something." Just then, they heard a blood curdling scream coming from outside. The 3 creatures ran out of the house and saw that some wild creatures they never seen before attacking.
"What are those things?" Spike asked.
"I don't know, but they look terrifying." Derpy said scared while hugging the Doctor, to which the Doctor hugged her back to make her feel safe.
"Don't worry Derpy, I'll make sure that those beasts won't hurt you, but to answer your question Spike, I don't know what those creatures are. I never seen them before."
Spike got a better look at them after looking at them again. They looked like wild boars or warthogs, except they were blue and black. Spike guessed that the black parts of the beasts looked like coal or a dark gem of some kind, while the blue part looked like ocean blue diamonds.
"We need to get back inside, quick." Spike told Derpy and the Doctor. The two of them ran back inside and Spike was about to do the same but then he heard a faint "help" come from the town. Spike looked to where the cry for help came from and saw that the teenage pegasus he met yesterday, Shooting Star, was backing away from one of the beasts, clearly scared for her life. Spike couldn't leave her alone when one of those beasts was clearly trying to eat her, so spike ran and sprang into action.
"SPIKE!! WHAT THE HELL ARE YOU DOING?!?!" Derpy yelled.
But the question went on to deaf ears as Spike was focused on saving Shooting Star. Spike arrived at the scene and when the beast was about to pounce on her, Spike blew a big breath of fire at the beast to deter it from attacking.
"You stay away from her you wild beast. Don't you dare attack her." Spike yelled at the beast, but when he didn't hear any cries or scurries of it, and the fire dissipated, the two creatures found nothing but a few black crystals on the ground unmoving.
"You saved me. Thank you so much." Shooting Star said while tightly hugging Spike. The hug was so tight that it could give Pinkie Pie's tight hugs a run for their bits. Spike's face started to get blue after a while.
"Y... You... You're welcome, Shoo... Shooting Star." Spike said about to pass out from the lack of air from the hug. "But you're hug...hugging me too t...tight"
Shooting Star immediately let go of him him while Spike tried to catch his breath. "I'm sorry about that. I guess I got a little overboard with that hug right there."
"It's ok Shooting Star, just not so tight next time. Now I thought that these mysterious creatures were made of diamonds and black crystal, but that isn't diamonds. It's ice, so I can use my fire breath to help defeat these beasts." With that, Spike set out in search of more of these beasts to defeat them and save the town.
Spike went to the marketplace and saw a lot of the beasts destroying all of the stands. All of them were empty due to the snow and wind, much to Spikes relief. The beasts saw Spike and began charging at him, but when they were close enough, Spike blew an even bigger breath of fire than before and incinerated the beasts and just as before, when the fire dissipated, there was nothing but the unmoving black crystals. The other beasts saw this and seeing as they could easily defeated by a baby dragon, ran away from the town, scared that they might be beaten by Spike. Spike gave chase until the beasts were out of town in which, he turned around and went back to the Doctor and Derpy.
When he got there, Derpy was quick to run over to him worriedly. "Spike! Are you ok?" She asked while checking him for any injuries. "You didn't get hurt, did you?"
Spike smiled at her saying, "You don't have to worry about me Derpy, I'm fine. Although I do still feel a little tender in the back from getting hugged by Shooting Star." It was at this moment that the Doctor walked up the the two of them smirking.
"Who is this Shooting Star fellow Spike? Is she gonna be the one you marry someday?" the Doctor asked jokingly
"Doctor." Derpy said, hoofing him in the side. Meanwhile Spike blushed and was embarrassed.
"I only just met her yesterday. I don't even know her really well."
"I'm just teasing, I'm just teasing. However, something happened to that piece of paper while you were away saving the town." Spike grew worried after the Doctor said this.
"Oh don't worry lad, it's still safe but there was a light and, well, I think you should just take a look." The Doctor went over to get it and then gave it to Spike upon returning. Spike took a look at it and saw that along with the K, another circle was filled in with an M. Still, Spike a a bit skeptical.
"Are you sure you didn't just write this M on the paper Doctor?" Spike asked, believing it was a bit of a prank.
"No no Spike. I saw everything along with him." Derpy said. "There was this beam of light and it just filled the circle in with an M. Now that I think about it, that looked like the same kind of beam that hit me and the Doctor when we were swapped between two different universes." She said while looking at the Doctor.
Spike was in awe at the mention of the adventure the two had. "Wow, but in any case, I'll believe you. So a beam of light just filled the circle in with an M?"
"Yes, so there is something more going on here. I want to do some experiments on it, but it's your choice Spike. Do you want me to do experiments that are safe on it or would you like to keep it for safe keeping?" The Doctor asked him.
"I would rather keep it to myself. If the paper has magic, then I should keep it with me if it was meant for me." Spike told him, the Doctor nodded in understanding. "Anyways, since you told me that you two were swapped between universes, can you tell me about it?" he asked hopefully.
The Doctor and Derpy looked at each other smiling and then looked back at Spike nodding. "Sure we can Spike, but the story may last for more than two and a half hours."
"I have nothing to do for the rest of the day so I have all the time in Equestria. Also I forgot to mention this when I first got here, but you have a nice place you 2, it so snug." Spike told them.
"Why thank you Spike. You are quite the gentleman." Derpy told him. "Now then, get comfortable and me and the Doctor will tell you all about the adventure we had." So the three of them got comfortable and the Doctor and Derpy started telling them the story. Meanwhile, outside the Everfree Forest, a figure stood by the edge of Ponyville and watched as the battle between Spike and the beasts ended.
"The dragon is quite strong. My plans will surely be fulfilled soon." The figure said while smirking evilly. The figure then teleported away in a bout of flames.
After 2 and a half hours, Derpy and the Doctor were finished with their universe swapping story. Spike was in awe about everything the story was about, including the giant universe eating monster, the 2 cats and the alternate universe doctor and his assistant, who was apparently Twilight. Spike inwardly frowned at the thought that even in an alternate universe, Twilight still abandoned him, but this time permanantly to go with the doctor. He was pretty lonely now, so he couldn't imagine how lonely the alternate universe Spike must feel over there. Although he was a little bit sad, he certainly didn't show it.
"And that was the story where we got swapped from different universes. Pretty cool huh." the Doctor told him. Spike just nodded, not knowing what to say. He didn't want them to see that he was a bit sad for mentioning that Twilight was still able to go on fun adventures in other universes while she abandoned Spike, but even though he didn't want to show it, it still wasn't lost on either the Doctor or Derpy.
"Spike? You're seeming awfully quiet. Are you ok?" Derpy asked a bit concerned for the dragon.
Spike snapped out of his trance and said, "Oh I'm ok Derpy, you don't have to worry about me." he said in a confident tone. Although he sounded confident, Derpy and the Doctor still weren't convinced."
"Are you sure you're ok Spike?" the Doctor asked him. "We both see you as a friend, and as our friend, we want to be sure that you're ok."
"I promise you guys, I'm fine. Trust me." Derpy and the Doctor decided to back off for a while after Spike said this. They didn't want to pry into him or put pressure onto him, because that would only cause him to make him feel worse.
"If you say so Spike. Anyway, it's about lunch time. Me and Derpy are going to go to the Hayburger cafe to get some lunch, so I think it's time you head home. The blizzard is getting a little bit better so I believe you can go out there safe." the Doctor said. Spike quickly looked at the clock and saw that it was already almost around noon, so Spike said goodbye to the Doctor and Derpy and headed out into town.
As he was walking, he saw that more ponies were out and about than there were this morning, mostly because of the blizzard that died down a little bit and also because of those boar beasts made of ice and black crystal. He saw other friend groups playing with each other and having fun and it made him think about how much fun Twilight, her friends, Princesses Celestia, Luna and Cadence and Twilights family (Which he is apparently not a part of) were having at the Crystal Empire without him.
He could bet that the Crystal Empire had a whole party every Hearths Warming with fun, games, food and a happy atmosphere. He could imagine them all laughing with each other while enjoying the treats and desserts Pinkie made for them. He could imagine Rainbow Dash playing some of the hardest games and sports and dominating them, Rarity and Fluttershy working together to make nests and clothing for the critters there, Applejack showing off her lasso and doing a special Hearths Warming rodeo, and Twilight, her parents, brother and the princesses chatting about whatever they chat about. These thoughts about them having all the fun in Equestria started to make Spike feel frustrated and angry with them because while they have fun, he has to wander around Ponyville looking to find something fun and happy to do for Hearths Warming.
His thoughts were interrupted by a loud groaning sound. Spike looked to where the sound came from and he saw a unicorn mare with a fur coat the color of mint green and a lyre harp as a cutie mark. Spike instantly recognized the mare to be Lyra which was one of Twilight's friends in Canterlot before she moved here. He went over to her and saw that she was irritated, like something was bothering her.
"Lyra, is everything ok?" Spike asked the mint green unicorn. She turned around and saw Spike looking at her curiously.
She sighed and told him, "I'm not doing well Spike. I had to deal with a snowstorm this morning and then some strange wild boars. Now to top it all off, I don't have enough bits to buy my very special somepony a very special Hearths Warming gift. I don't know what I'm gonna do and I'm a bit irritated right now." She said to him. Deep down inside, Spike was a little bit irritated because not only he had to go out endure the snowstorm and fight off those wild boars while she stayed in her own house, but she gets to spend Hearths Warming with somepony while his own family left him alone. Despite this however, he was determined to help her out.
"I think I have an idea to help you, but first I need to know. Can gems be pawned off and traded for bits somewhere?" Spike asked Lyra
"Yeah they can, but only a chosen few, like a blue garnet or a diamond." Spike became shocked at that. Those are the rarest gems in Equestria. Spike doesn't have any blue garnets as they're too hard to find, and he also only has one diamond which he was saving for another day. But he knew Lyra was in dire need of bits so he was happy to give his diamond away to somepony who needed it more than him.
"Wait here Lyra, I have a diamond, but it's back at the castle and I only have one ." Spike said before making a beeline for the castle.
Once he was there, he went up to his room and moved his drawer that was next to the bed. Behind the drawer was a safe, so he did the code, opened it and lo and behold, a shiny diamond was there. He grabbed it, put it in his coat pocket, closed the safe, put the drawer back and left his room before going down to the front doors and left the castle.
Upon arriving back with Lyra, he had to sit down to catch his breath and because of the cold and dry air, it was hard for him to do so.
"Are you ok Spike? You didn't have to run." Lyra told him while slightly giggling.
"I'm ok Lyra, and I also was able to get the diamond for you to buy your special somepony a Hearths Warming gift." Spike took the diamond out of his coat pocket and gave it to Lyra. She was dumbfounded when she saw the diamond and she didn't want to take it. "Are you ok Lyra? I got the diamond, so you can take it."
"But that's your only diamond you have. I don't want to take something that may not be able to be replaced."
Spike smiled at her and said, "Hey, you don't have to worry about it Lyra, it's ok. I wasn't gonna use this anytime soon. Besides, you need it more than I do." Lyra smiled at him and took the diamond from his claws.
"Thanks Spike. You certainly are the most generous dragon I have ever known. You will make somepony really happy one day." Lyra said
"You're welcome Lyra." Spike told her. Right after saying this, they both saw that Spike's hat was starting to glow and they grew worried.
"Um Spike, is your hat supposed to be glowing?" she asked.
"Maybe it's not the hat itself." Spike said as he took off his hat and took out the piece of paper. The paper started glowing and after a few seconds a beam of light landed on one of the small circles. Spike and Lyra were almost blinded by it but then the glowing stopped and one of the small circles was then suddenly filled in with a G.
"Wow, the Doctor was right. A beam of light really does fill in these small circles. First it filled one of them in with a K someday before today, then this morning with an M and now one is filled in with a G. Maybe once all the circles are filled in, it'll spell out something." Spike said
"Interesting. Where did you get that magic paper?" Lyra asked. Spike shrugged, claiming that he had no idea where the paper came from. She nodded.
"Anyway, now that you have a diamond to get bits," Spike started. "What are you planning on buying your special somepony?"
"I'm planning on buying her a heart shaped glass decoration with an inscription of her and I on it, showing how much I love her." Spike smiled at her gift idea.
"I can't wait to buy this gift. Thanks for helping me with this and I will make up for what you did ten fold, I pinkie promise. Cross my heart and hope to fly, stick a cupcake in my eye." Lyra said as she started walking off.
"You don't need to do that Lyra." Spike yelled to her.
"TOO LATE SPIKE. I ALREADY MADE THE PINKIE PROMISE." was all she told him before walking far enough away to the point they won't hear each other anymore. Spike just shrugged and decided to keep walking on.
As he was walking however, something caught his eye. A train coming from the south arrived in Ponyville. He saw many ponies get off, but most of them were the apple family from the town Appleoosa. At this sight, Spike started feeling sad again. The Apple Family has so many family members to play with and have fun, including the adventurous trio which was the Cutie Mark Crusaders and yet all he had was himself as well as a few random ponies. He started feeling apathy in his heart and just couldn't feel happy anymore, so with his head hung low, he trudged all the way back to the castle.
Once he got inside the castle, he went to the main hall and saw that the decorations that he set up yesterday were still up. To Spike, it was like they were insulting him and taunting him, telling him that he set them up all for nothing. So he decided to just take everything he set up yesterday down and back in the storage closet. So he got boxes from the storage closet and started his work. Spike first started with taking down the decorations on the tree, he first took off the ornaments and put them in their respectable boxes, then he took down the lights and put then in their own box. He then took the boxes and he put them back in their spots in the storage closet.
He wondered what he would do with the tree, since that was an invention made by the Doctor and it was made out of cardboard. He remembered it folded it up, but when he tried to fold it up or do anything to it after an hour, he still couldn't get is back to it's original state. Spike was getting angrier and angrier by the second to the point where he just burnt the tree into ashes. Luckily, nothing else was burnt so he just got a broom and swept up the remaining ashes. He then got to work taking down the decoration around the main hall like the garland and the wreath. After another hour of hard work, Spike was finally done.
Spike just sat down in a chair and looked down sullenly. He looked at the clock and saw that it was almost time for dinner, but he was still sad and also didn't feel hungry so he decided not to eat dinner right now. He started yawning and feeling tired, which was weird because he still had another 3 hours before going to bed. He thought is was just from the hard work from taking down the decorations, so he just rested in his chair for a while, but he still felt himself getting more and more tired with every passing second.
He just looked down, closed his eyes and sighed. "I don't want to be conscious anymore." With that he just got up from his chair and started walking to his room. He kept looking down because he didn't want to see the castle interior. It just reminded him of bad memories. Because of this he made a decision. "That settles it. I'm leaving Ponyville and possibly all of Equestria for good tomorrow night. I just don't feel happy living here anymore."
Before long, he arrived at his bedroom door. He opened it up and entered. He looked out the window and saw that it was dark and the blizzard outside was getting much much worse than it was this morning, but right now, Spike didn't care. He just crawled onto his bed and buried his face into his pillow, he wasn't crying, he just didn't feel anything. He didn't even feel like moving a single muscle, so he just laid there until his mind slipped off into the dream realm.
As Spike drifted into the realm of dreams, the howling winds outside seemed to seep into his subconscious. In his dream, he found himself wandering through a vast, snow-covered landscape, the air thick with the same biting chill he had felt earlier. But as he trudged through the snow, he heard faint crying towards a cave not far from where he was standing, which was beckoning him forward.
Driven by a sense of curiosity, Spike pressed on towards the crying sound, his footsteps leaving deep imprints in the pristine snow. He got to where the crying was, but when he looked around, he didn't find anyone there. Feeling a shiver run down his spine, Spike scanned the desolate landscape, his breath forming frosty clouds in the frigid air. The crying persisted, seeming to echo from all directions at once, disorienting him. It was then that a deep voice interrupted the crying, startling Spike.
"Hello brave warrior. I see you've been betrayed."
Spike didn't know if the voice was talking to him or the source of the crying, but his thoughts were put to rest when another, much higher voice talked up.
"Why would they do this to me. I never did anything to them. I didn't kill anyone." The voice said in between sobs.
The deeper voice hummed for a few seconds. "I see. What happened back where you came from?"
"Every creature accused me of treason and murdering someone. I don't even know who was murdered or why they were accusing me. But no one believed any of my pleas, and they tortured me in ways I don't even want to mention. In the end, every creature I had left abandoned my and turned their backs on me. Oh no. Please no. I DON'T WANT TO GO THROUGH THOSE MEMORIES AGAIN!!" The voice sobbed louder like he was going through something traumatizing.
Spike's heart sank as he listened to the anguished voice recount its ordeal. He felt a pang of empathy for whoever was suffering so deeply, as he knows what it's like to be abandoned by creatures he thought were his friends. Tentatively, Spike called out into the darkness, his voice trembling with uncertainty.
"Who's there? Can you hear me?"
But his voice went onto deaf ears as the deeper voice continued to speaking to the crying voice as Spike now calls it because that's all he knows about the crying creature.
"Hmm, that does seem bad. However, I do have a proposition for you. How would you like to rule Equestria and the lands beyond with me?"
"*sob* W-What?!"
"You heard me. You can help me rule all lands. I have an incredible power in my arsenal and I will share it with you and teach you the ways my power works. Once you master it, you will have no trouble getting revenge on those who betrayed and abandoned you and you and I will have no trouble conquering Equestria and all other lands beyond it's borders. Now tell me little one. What is your answer?"
Spike was mortified about the intentions of the deeper voice. He wants to take over Equestria and do who knows what to all that live there. His thoughts were once again interrupted when the crying voice spoke once again.
"What? Of course not. Even though I was abandoned by every creature, that doesn't mean every creature has to suffer for it. I would rather give my life than make anyone who didn't deserve it suffer."
Spike smiled at the crying voice for not giving in to peer pressure and make all suffer, but his smile disappeared after what came next.
As Spike listened intently, the deeper voice let out a chilling laugh that echoed through the darkness.
"Ah, such noble words from such a naive soul. But you see, dear one, it's not about what you want. It's about what I want. And what I want, I get. Quite a shame you didn't join me actually. You would've been quite useful." After this was said, a strong wind blew threw the cave that Spike and the voices were in.
"NO, FAUST. OH NO FAUST PLEASE NO. NO. NO. NOOOOOOOOOO" the crying voice screamed
Spike's heart raced with fear as he realized the true nature of the deeper voice. It wasn't seeking an ally—it was seeking a puppet, some creature to bend to its will and use as a tool for its own sinister plans. He desperately wanted to help, but he couldn't for 2 reasons. The first one is that he couldn't see who he wanted to fight against and the second reason is that he couldn't move because he was petrified with terror
What followed made Spike want to throw up. He heard the crying voice start choking and gagging. This went on for a few minutes until it suddenly stopped. It was then that the deeper voice spoke again.
"No one can know I was here." and with that, Spike heard a low continuous thundering sound until it was silent. Spike realized that they both of the voices were gone. Spike just stood there petrified until a bright light suddenly engulfed him and brought him to another dream.
In the dream that Spike found himself at, he saw he was in a vast, open field bathed in golden sunlight. The air was fresh, and a gentle breeze rustled through the grass. As he looked around, he noticed a figure standing in the distance, but it didn't look inviting. It looked like a giant dark phoenix surrounded by what looked like terrifying monsters. They then charged at him and blocked out the sun with and orange sky and dark brown clouds.
Spike turned to run, but when he turned around, he saw Princess Celestia and what looked like over a few thousand guards and another couple thousand creatures like dragons, changelings, ponies and griffons standing firm, glaring at the giant phoenix.
"KING NAEUS, YOUR TORMENT OF MY SUBJECTS HAS GONE ON FOR LONG ENOUGH." Celestia said in her royal Canterlot voice. "YOU LEAVE ALL OF US NO CHOICE. CHAAAAARRGE!!!" After she said this, every creature that was there charged against the king and his monsters.
Spike's heart raced as he watched the epic confrontation unfold before him. He felt a surge of both fear and determination coursing through his veins. Despite the overwhelming odds, he knew he had to stand with Princess Celestia and her army against the menacing King Naeus and his monstrous minions.
With a deep breath, Spike joined the charge, his feet pounding against the earth as he ran towards the fray. As he fought alongside ponies, dragons, changelings, and griffons, he felt a sense of unity and purpose unlike anything he had ever experienced before, as if all creatures were in perfect harmony.
The battle raged on, with spells flying, claws slashing, and hooves pounding. Spike fought with all his might, channeling his inner courage and strength. He dodged fiery blasts from the dark phoenix and clashed with the terrifying monsters that threatened their land. As he was fighting though, he also saw something incredible. A dragon in orange and red armor with a sword was fighting alongside a griffon who also had a sword, a dark purple changeling male along with a blue-green changeling female, a unicorn mare that had warriors armor, and a pegasus stallion with warriors armor as well. They were fighting along side one another as a bright light engulfed them. Afterwards, a giant rainbow shot out from the light and flew into the air. Spike must have guessed that they were the elements of harmony which also confused him, because he thought Twilight and her friends were the elements of harmony.
The rainbow came back down and landed on King Naeus. When the rainbow subsided, they saw that nothing changed, and Naeus only got angrier. It was then that the monsters started gaining ground against the warriors of Equestria and Spike grew more and more worried.
"What happened?" Spike heard the unicorn mare ask. "I thought the elements were supposed to work against evil."
King Naeus bellowed a terrifying laugh. "FOOLS!! YOU'RE PATHETIC ELEMENTS OF HARMONY ARE USELESS AGAINST ME! YOU CAN'T DEFEAT ME! YOU NEVER WILL!!"
Spike was worried and confused that the elements didn't work, but he was even more scared when the monsters were getting closer and closer. He saw many creatures of Equestria get murdered in cold blood while one of the monsters swat the dragon wearing the orange and red armor away before going to attack the other remaining supposed elements of harmony. Just when it was about to attack the 5 creatures, a blinding light filled the sky along with a thunderous roar of sorts. It was coming at them very quickly before engulfing the 5 elements, many monsters and himself in it.
The dream realm went black for another minute before the images of a small village filled the void in Spike's mind. He looked around and saw that the village rested between some rolling hills. He also saw many creatures living there happily. It had cobblestone streets winding between stone cottages adorned with colorful flowers. The air was crisp and filled with the scent of pine, and a soft breeze whispered through the trees.
Spike got up so he could look around, but when he tried to walk, he instantly fell over onto his face on the cobblestone. He wasn't crying though, after all he was a strong baby dragon. Although at the same time, he was crying in his dream. He didn't know why seeing as it didn't hurt him so much, but he just kept crying.
Apparently, some creature had heard his crying and that creature looked like a dragon that was green and had blue eyes. The dragon picked Spike up and held her close. Spike for some reason found this feeling a little bit familiar. Spike blinked, trying to shake off the confusion. As he gazed up at the dragon holding him, he felt a strange sense of comfort wash over him. Despite the initial shock of being lifted off the ground, he soon relaxed into the dragon's embrace, feeling safe and protected.
"Oh you poor dear, trying to walk but you hurt yourself. Here, let me help you feel better." The dragon said, the voice telling her it was a female. The green dragon crooned softly, her blue eyes full of warmth and understanding. She nuzzled Spike gently, as if trying to soothe his tears without words. Spike couldn't help but feel a connection with her, a sense of familiarity that he couldn't quite place. It was then that she sang a little lullaby while rocking the dragon back and forth.
Don't cry little one Nothing will happen to you I will protect you I'll make sure you're safe all while you dream You're a strong one, you will do great things My child, you're safe From all bad Drift to sleep now I'll love you always
Spike stopped his dream crying and listened to the song. He thought that it was the most beautiful song he had ever heard. The soothing presence of the green dragon, coupled with her gentle lullaby, seems to have eased his distress and brought him a sense of security. It was then that he heard another voice.
"My dear wife? Where might you be?" Asked the voice of a male dragon. He got into Spike's eyesight and he looked purple with red spikes on his head. In his arm, he was holding an egg that was purple and had darker purple dots on it. The male dragon's voice held a tone of concern and affection as he called out for his wife, which made Spike realize that this dragon was likely the mate of the one comforting him.
"Oh I'm right over here my dear, I was just helping a baby stop crying." The female dragon said. The male dragon walked over to the 2 before stopping right in front of them. He smiled at the both of them.
"You really seem to have a thing for younglings dear. I can see why you wanted a kid for a while." The 2 smiled at each other before the female dragon looked at the purple egg happily.
"And how is our little Pogum doing here" She asked while putting Spike down and picking up the egg. "I hope you had a great time with your daddy." She said in a silly voice before giggling.
"You're gonna be a great mother one day. You know that, right?" The male dragon asked before giving her a kiss.
"Yes I do and you're gonna be a great father one day." The 2 adult dragons hugged each other before going on their way. Spike smiled at the 2 dragons before he saw another welcoming light engulfed him once again.
Spike then awoke in his bed. He didn't have the blankets covering him as he didn't bother putting them over him last night. He heard the wind howling outside, indicating it was still snowing, but he also knew that he was awake and that the dream jumping, was over.
As Spike blinked his eyes open, he couldn't shake the feeling of lingering unease from the dream. The vividness of it, the sensation of jumping through different realities—it all felt so real, as if these actually happened. Spike was also thinking about other things. Today was Hearths Warming Eve and tonight was the night that he would leave Ponyville and Twilight along with her friends for good.
He swung his legs out of bed, shivering as his feet made contact with the cold hard, crystal floor of the castle. He could hear the wind rattling the windows, and he could hear the snow falling on the castle as it endured the onslaught of the winter storm. Rubbing his eyes, he went out of his room and into the kitchen where he filled up a kettle full of water to boil. He set it on the stove and left it to boil while he get a red ruby from the cabinet and he ate it. He walked back to the table to wait for the the tea to boil.
As Spike waited for the kettle to boil, he couldn't help but let his thoughts drift to the impending departure. It weighed heavily on his heart, knowing that he would soon bid farewell to the place he had called home for the last few years, but he also knew staying here would make him more depressed and unhappy. He believed Twilight and her friends didn't care for him anymore so he should move on from them.
As he was thinking, he heard a crash at the front door. Spike got up to investigate it, and when he got there, he opened the doors to a giant burst of wind and snow. After recovering from that, he looked around and he saw a mailmare he knew as Derpy standing there.
"C-Can I-I C-c-come i-in?" She asked, clearly shivering and freezing. Spike instantly nodded his head and lead her in. He got her to the couch, wrapped her in a blanket and sat beside her.
"Would you like some tea Derpy? I'm currently boiling water right now so it should be ready in due time." Spike asked the grey mailmare.
"Yes please Spike. I could use some, and I'll explain what I was doing out there in the snow." She said. Just as she said this, they both heard a loud whistling noise coming from the kitchen.
"Tea must be ready. I'll go get us a cup." Spike said as he walked to the kitchen where he saw a plume of steam arising from the kettle. He picked up 2 cups, 1 for him and 1 for Derpy, and set them down. He then picked up the kettle and poured the contents into the cups. He then went into one of the bottom cabinets and grabbed some bay leaves and he put them in the tea. After waiting for a few seconds, he brought both cups to the living room where Derpy was. "Here's your tea Derpy. Just be careful as it is a little hot."
Derpy nodded. "Thanks for the tea Spike." She said as she took a sip. Her eyes widened at the taste. "Wow Spike, you can make some really good tea, you know that?"
Spike's face turned red at the compliment as he isn't used to those. "Oh it was nothing. You can just say that I'm a good chef." he said with his face still red, but he quickly shook it away "We should get to the point though. Why were you outside in that blizzard?"
"You may not believe me when I say this, but it's the truth. This blizzard isn't supposed to happen."
Spike was surprised by this. "Why would you say that Derpy? The weather is pretty predictable here as the pegasi in the weather factory make it. Twilight told me all about it."
"That may be true, but all pegasi working there have the day off from work so they could celebrate Hearths Warming with their families, so it shouldn't even be snowing this much. On top of that, The Doctor did some studies of the snow and saw that these weren't made in the weather factory."
Spike's eyes turned to concern. "That sounds bad. Do you believe some powerful magic by some pony could be behind this Derpy?"
Derpy sighed. "I don't really know much about magic since I'm not a unicorn, so I don't use it. However, I do think you may be right and that some powerful being is using magic to create this blizzard." As she said this however, they heard the blowing of the wind stop.
The sudden cessation of the wind left an eerie silence in its wake, punctuating the seriousness of their conversation. Spike and Derpy both exchanged worried glances at each other, both sensing that something significant was about to happen.
"I think the blizzard stopped." Spike whispered worriedly.
"Then that must mean something bad is about to happen." Just as Derpy said this, they heard an ear piercing scream coming from outside, scaring the 2 to their very core. They got up from the couch and sprinted to and opened the doors and what they saw, would have made Rarity super faint
Black goo was rising from the ground in large quantities. It was moving toward the ponies in Ponyville. Spike and Derpy went out the doors just as the mounds of black ooze grew and multiplied. Spike and Derpy stood frozen for a moment, their minds racing to comprehend the surreal scene unfolding before them. The black ooze seemed to have a life of its own, undulating and spreading with an ominous intent.
"What is this stuff?" Derpy asked.
"I don't know, but I do know that this stuff is not friendly at all." They then saw ponies all around them be engulfed by the ooze, which made Spike and Derpy even more terrified. They then heard a faint voice calling for Derpy's name. They turned around and saw the Doctor calling out for Derpy.
"DOCTOR!" Derpy yelled out and they both ran to get to him. However, they stopped in their tracks when they saw a mound of black ooze right behind him. Just then, Derpy bolted to her husband to get him away from from the ooze mound, but it was too late. The mound engulfed the Doctor before she could get to him. All he could say before being completely engulfed was, "Derpy, get out of here. Get yourself to safety."
Spike caught up to Derpy only to find her tearing up and hyperventilating as she was filled with panic, fear and despair. "Whatdowedo? Whatdowedo? Whatdowedo? I can't lose my husband like this?" She said while hyperventilating.
Spike just wrapped his arms around her, hugging her. "Derpy. Derpy, listen to me." She turned her head to face him. "Just take some deep breaths. Breathe with me. Breathe in," Spike breathed in deep while Derpy did the same. "And breathe out." Spike breathed out and so did her. They did this a couple of more times before Derpy was calmed down.
"Thanks Spike, I needed that. We still need to find out what's going on and put a stop to it." She said while Spike nodded in agreement.
"How can we help stop this ooze though? I think we can only do so much." Spike exclaimed.
They pondered what to do to stop it when they heard laughing. Spike and Derpy turned their heads and saw a pegasus stallion sitting on a bench laughing at something in the newspaper. They also saw a mound of black ooze slither towards him. They tried to stop him, but when they did, he let out a bellow of laughter. This laughter somehow drove the ooze back underground.
Their eyes widened at what they saw. The stallion's laughter caused the ooze to repel and travel back underground. They ignored the questions about why he wasn't paying attention to anything around him because this was crucial information to what they could do to stop the ooze from destroying Ponyville.
"I know what we need to do. It's just like what Pinkie said a few years back. She said, 'If you're scared by your surroundings, all you need to do is laugh at the ghosties, or black ooze in this case." Spike told Derpy with newfound determination. Derpy listened to what he said before going over to the stallion with the newspaper.
"Hello Sir. Can I see that newspaper for a minute." She asked. The stallion looked up at her for a second and then smiled.
"Of course you can. You just have to see the headline here because it's the funniest thing you will read all day." He gave her the newspaper and she read it. After reading, she laughed a lot before coming back to Spike.
"This really can help us, that was so funny." she said while getting the last of her laughs out and giving the newspaper to Spike. The top headline was...
Griffon Farmer Accidentally Moves Equestrian Border & Sings A Song
After reading this, Spike laughed just as much as Derpy did when she first saw the headline. "Oh Celestia. Derpy, that really was the funniest thing I ever read." he said while getting the last of his laughs out. "We can use this to get rid of the ooze and save Ponyville for the second time in 2 days."
They looked at each other before nodding in determination. They ran to the nearest ooze mound before reading the headline again. Before the ooze could engulf them, they let out a bellowing laugh, which just as planned, repelled the ooze back underground. Once the ooze travelled back underground, it revealed a royal blue pony passed out and barely breathing.
"Derpy, go get the nurse while I continue using laughter to stop this ooze." Spike commanded. Derpy nodded and set out to find the nurse to check on the ponies covered in the ooze mounds. Spike meanwhile set out to go from ooze mound to ooze mound and laughing to get rid of the ooze and freeing all of the ponies that were trapped under the mounds. After about half an hour, he got rid of almost all of the mounds of black ooze.
Spike thought they were in the clear but he didn't see the mound of ooze behind him. When he realized what he forgot to see, it was too late. The mound started engulfing him and it felt like the ooze was literally sucking his soul right out of his body. Before he was fully engulfed in the ooze however, he heard laughter coming from somewhere around him and suddenly, the ooze just disappeared from around him and travelled back underground like what happened to the other ooze mounds. He laid there while looking up at the sky, panting heavily from the encounter. As his heartbeat slowed, he turned his head to see Derpy standing beside him, concern etched on her face.
Derpy knelt beside Spike, her expression filled with worry. "Spike, are you okay? That was too close."
Spike managed a weak smile, though he still felt drained from his encounter with the ooze. "Yeah, just a little shaken up. Thanks for getting rid of that last mound."
Derpy sighed in relief. "No problem Spike. Nurse Redheart is checking up on everypony in the town. I just saw the Doctor being wheeled into the hospital. I know' that he's gonna be ok, but I'm gonna go check up on him. See you tomorrow for the Hearths Warming party, maybe." She then trotted back to the hospital to check up on her husband.
"Wait Derpy." Spike tried to say, but it was too late. Derpy was out of his earshot, so he couldn't tell her about his plans to leave Ponyville. He sighed and decided to walk back to the castle. As he was walking, he saw all of the ponies that were trapped under the mounds of ooze being wheeled into the hospital as they were still passed out.
As Spike made his way back to the castle, the weight of his decision to leave Ponyville settled heavily on his shoulders. He couldn't shake off the feeling of guilt for not telling Derpy or the Doctor about his plans. they had been really good friends to him these past few days, and he hated the thought of leaving them without saying goodbye properly.
Entering the castle, Spike found himself lost in thought. He wandered aimlessly through the halls until he reached his room. Sitting down heavily on his bed, he contemplated his next move. Should he write a letter to Derpy and the Doctor explaining everything? Or should he just leave quietly and hope they understand?
Before he laid his head down however, he saw 2 pieces of paper on the nightstand next to his bed. One was the piece of paper he had since yesterday, only now, 1 of the circles is filled in with an LA. The letters he has now on the paper are a K, an M, a G, and now an LA. He now thinks that he's starting to get all the pieces to solve the riddle that this paper had, but he needed the 2 remaining letters for these remaining circles.
Spike put the piece of paper down and looked at the second sheet of paper. He never saw this paper before on his nightstand. He opened it up and saw what it said. While he was reading it, his pupils shrank and for some reason, he started trembling. The letter read...
Come see me in a cave 3 hours away from you're current location. This is just the calm before the final storm my friend. If you want to see all you care about again, you know to come back to me. -Spike
Spike looked at the paper with wide eyes and trembling body. This somepony was calling himself Spike too even though he was the real Spike. He then got out of bed and trudged to his closet to pack the things he needs when leaving.
As he walked to his closet, many things were on Spike's mind right now. He was leaving Ponyville and maybe Equestria for good tonight and he was starting to wonder if he was actually ready. Swimming in his mind was also the fact that he saved Ponyville from weird wild beasts yesterday, and now today, he saved Ponyville from black ooze mounds which caused many to go to the hospital. And now a strange letter gets delivered to him from somepony naming himself Spike, saying that he has to meet him in a cave during, "The calm before the final storm." Spike is starting to think that these attacks on Ponyville are not a coincidence and that this creature calling themselves "Spike" is behind all of it.
Spike's heart raced as he mulled over the events of the past few days. The coincidence of his own name being used by this mysterious figure was unsettling. Could it be some twisted prank, or was there a deeper connection that he hadn't yet uncovered? He reached for the letter, examining it closely. The paper was aged and worn, the ink slightly faded, but the message was clear and unnerving. "The calm before the final storm." What did it mean? Was there some impending danger looming over Ponyville, something even more sinister than the recent attacks?
Spike made a decision that before leaving all he's known, he should see what this "Spike" wants from him. Spike knew that he didn't have a life with Twilight and her friends anymore, nor a purpose with them. They surely wouldn't care or even notice if he was even missing. But what about Derpy and the Doctor? They showed him true friendship unlike Twilight and her friends and he hopes that they will be ok after he leaves.
Lost in thought, he didn't notice he arrived at the closet door until he bumped straight into it. Rubbing his forehead, he reached for the handle of the closet door, his mind still grappling with uncertainty. As the door swung open, a wave of nostalgia washed over him. The closet was filled with memories of his time in Ponyville with Twilight and her friends. There were pictures, his double headed costume for Nightmare Night and several gems and trinkets from gem hunting with Rarity. He grabbed one of the very few pictures with him on it along with some gems from his closet. He closed it, placed the items on his bed and went down to the kitchen to grab things. He grabbed more gems, some bits and some "shaving cream." He went to another closet in the castle and found a walking stick and a bandana of sorts. He got back to his room where his other stuff was, put everything in the bandana, tied the bandana to the walking stick to make a knapsack, and got a firm grip on it.
Spike sighed to himself. "I just have to see what this "Spike" guy wants of me and then I'm leaving to find a better life. But first, I should take a nap and then get something to eat right after." So he put the knapsack right next to his bedside, and settled down in his bed. Spike closed his eyes, seeking solace in the embrace of sleep before facing whatever lay ahead. As he drifted off, thoughts of his friends, some old and drifting away, some new, danced through his mind. Twilight, Rarity, Derpy, the Doctor... Each had left an indelible mark on his life in their own way. He shook these thoughts away however, so he could focus on sleeping before his journey, after a few minutes, his mind drifted off and he fell asleep.
Spike woke up a few hours later, and saw that it was darker outside. Spike assumed that while Celestia and Luna were busy having fun celebrating the holiday at the Crystal Empire, they found time to set the sun and rise the moon. His thoughts were interrupted when his stomach growled. He then realized that he hadn't eaten anything for the last few hours. He grabbed his knapsack and untied it to look in it. He saw 75 bits next to his "shaving cream". He decided to go to the Hay Cafe in Ponyville before leaving for dinner, so he put on his coat and hat, put some bits in his coat pocket, left the room and out of the castle.
Ponyville was quiet at this time. Most families were inside their own homes celebrating Hearths Warming eve with their families and telling their little ones about how Equestria was created 3,000 years ago in which the pegasi, unicorns and earth ponies joined together in harmony after an abnormal blizzard which froze everything, thus it created Hearths Warming. The walk to the Hay Cafe was an easy walk with nothing really stopping Spike. When he arrived, there weren't a lot of ponies in there, so he walked in the smell of hay fries and other goods filled his nostrils. He walked over an empty booth in the corner where he sat and waited for his order to be taken. A few minutes later, a waitress walked over to him.
"Hello puddin', what can I get you on this fine Hearths Warming Eve night?" she asked
"I'll just have some hay fries and a chocolate shake please." he told her.
"Alright puddin'. Coming right up." And with that, she went to the backrooms to get some hay fries and a chocolate shake.
As Spike was waiting, an important thought jumped into his head. He didn't know where this cave was. He was pondering where this specific cave may be for 2 minutes until his thoughts were interrupted by the waitress coming back with his order.
"Here's your order puddin'. That will be 5 bits." Spike opened his coat pocket and took out 5 bits to give to the waitress.
"Why thank you puddin'. Enjoy your food and have an excellent Hearths Warming." With that, she walked away, leaving Spike to his own devices. Spike ate his hay fries and his milkshake while also dipping his fries into the milkshake every once in a while. After he was finished, he got up from his table and left the cafe.
Spike was walking around, trying to figure out where the cave may be, when he heard a choir singing not far from the outskirts of town. The sound of the choir piqued Spike's curiosity. He wondered what could be happening on the outskirts of Ponyville on such a quiet night. With a mix of caution and intrigue, Spike followed the direction of the sound until he reached its source. As he approached, he saw a gathering of ponies illuminated by lanterns and candles, standing on a small stage. They were singing traditional Hearth's Warming carols, their voices harmonizing in the chilly night air. Spike felt a twinge of nostalgia as he remembered past Hearth's Warming celebrations with Twilight and her friends and once again asked himself "Where did that time go?"
He sat down in a random chair, listening to the beautiful song that was being sung by the choir. He looked around the area and saw a few ponies there in the chairs, but there was one pony that caught his eye. He saw the familiar black fur and orange and yellow mane and tail and the meteor cutie mark. Spike knew this pony as Shooting Star. He got a better look at her and saw that she had tears rolling down her eyes while sniffling.
Spike's heart twinged with concern at the sight of Shooting Star's tears. He knew Shooting Star as a usually cheerful and optimistic pony who loved giving hugs, so seeing her distressed was unexpected. Quietly, Spike approached her, trying not to disturb the choir's performance. He went over to her and Shooting Star looked over at him.
"Um, hi Shooting Star." Spike greeted, not knowing what to say.
"Oh, umm... Hi Spike." Shooting Star greeted, like Spike, not knowing what to say.
"Do you mind if I sit down next to you?"
"Not at all Spike. I could actually use some company." So he sat down next to her. Neither of them moved for a minute before Spike just decided to give her a hug. Shooting Star froze up as she was somewhat surprised.
Spike felt her freeze for a minute so he told her, "I feel like you need a hug right now. Besides, you love giving hugs, so I think it's time that the favor was returned and I give you a hug."
Spike's words were comforting, and Shooting Star slowly relaxed into the hug, her body tenseness melting away bit by bit. She leaned into Spike's embrace, feeling the warmth and reassurance it offered.
"Thanks Spike." she murmured, her voice still filled with emotion.
"May I ask why you're crying Shooting Star?" Spike asked.
"It's just that Hearths Warming just brings back pretty bad memories for me. Ever since a few years ago, Hearths Warming has filled me with nothing but dread and made me hate the holiday."
"I don't mean to pry Shooting Star, but what happened that made you dislike Hearths Warming?" Spike asked her, hoping the story isn't too bad.
She smiled at him before saying, "Its ok Spike. I appreciate your concern, but I can tell you." Her face and tone turned serious then. "My father was a very inspirational pony, spreading inspiration to everypony around him. That was how he met her wife and my mother. After 2 years of dating, they eventually got married and a year later, they had me." she told him before continuing.
"Life was perfect for the 3 of us for the next 9 years with my dad being still as inspirational as ever, and my mom showing nothing but love and kindness to everyone around her, especially me and my dad. But all that changed one day when my dad saw a flier for the Canterlot royal guard." Shooting Star paused, her voice trembling slightly as she recalled the painful memories. "He was always passionate about serving Equestria, so he decided to join the Royal Guard. My mom and I were so proud of him, but little did we know that it would be the last time we'd see him." Spike's gut dropped at that, but he still listened with empathy and concern.
"During his first mission, there was an accident," Shooting Star continued, her voice growing quieter, saying in between sobs. "A terrible accident that took his life, and I don't really know the exact details. I was devastated. My mom, she... she couldn't bear the loss. She fell into despair, and it changed her. She became distant, withdrawn, spending nearly every minute of every day in her room either crying or drinking. She stopped spreading her kindness and love and she started acting all hostile towards me as a result of it. And... a few months later, on Hearths Warming Eve, I found her dead in her room. She was hanging on a rope that was hanging on the ceiling, indicating she took her own life. Since then, Hearths Warming has been a painful reminder of what I've lost." She said before ultimately breaking down into tears.
Spike felt his heart ache for Shooting Star as she poured out her story. He couldn't imagine the pain she must have endured losing both of her parents, especially during what was supposed to be a joyous time of year. He tightened his hug around her, offering what comfort he could.
"I... I'm so sorry, Shooting Star. I had no idea you had to go through so much. I can't even begin to imagine what you've been through. Losing both your parents like that... it's just... it's heartbreaking." he said. Shooting Star rested her head on his shoulders and sniffled.
"Thank you so much for being here for me tonight. You really are a kind dragon." Her words were starting to make Spike tear up too. Why couldn't Twilight, her friends or the princesses see what Shooting Star sees in him? He started sniffling too. This wasn't lost on Shooting Star however.
"Spike? Are you Ok?"
"Y-yeah, I-i'm fine." he said. Shooting Star wasn't convinced in the slightest.
"Spike, if you think telling me your problems after me telling you mine will be selfish, then you're wrong. We all should seek comfort in those we trust, and we can trust each other." she told him.
Spike looked down and sighed. "All my friends and family abandoned me again." he told her.
"What do you mean?"
"My friends and family are celebrating Hearths Warming Eve at the Crystal Empire. However, they didn't even bother to bring me. They never bring me along to anything fun, whether it be in the Crystal Empire, Canterlot or literally anywhere in Equestria, they never bring me along to anything. I wasn't even invited to my own caretakers birthday party in Canterlot. They just make me stay at home so I could cook and clean everything in the castle. Guess you could say that I'm basically a slave to them." Shooting Star became shocked at this.
"They never bring you along to anything? Do you remember any time they brought you along to something?"
"There are a few times I was brought along to something, but I was the butt of any joke they threw at each other. Like this one time, I was invited to the dragon migration a few years back, but in the end they just called my lame because I was small and wearing an apron." he said looking down.
Shooting Star was mortified. She couldn't believe the kind and loving dragon could get treated this way by his friends. He deserved better and she knows it.
"I'm so sorry you had to go through that Spike, but I promise you that I will never treat you the same way as your other friends do." she said looking very serious.
Spike smiled. "Thanks Shooting Star, but I'm going to be honest. I'm leaving this place for good tonight." This worried Shooting Star."
"Is it because of the treatment of your friends?"
"Mostly, but there's another reason to it. I got this strange letter from somepony impersonating as me telling me to go to a cave 3 hours away if I want to see all I hold dear again. After I see what's happening, then I'm leaving for good."
"Oh my. Are you gonna be ok?" she asked
"I don't know, but I don't want to see you or anypony else suffer." Spike told her. She then made a decision that she would help Spike figure out what's going on and journey with him to the cave.
"I'm coming with you Spike." This shocked him.
"Wait what? Are you sure? I want you to be safe and I don't want you to be killed because of me."
"I don't want you to get yourself killed either. I'm your friend and a true true friend helps a friend in need and they always look out for each other."
Spike smiled. "Thanks. I was actually going to that cave before I heard this choir singing and talking to you."
"Then this would be the perfect time to get to the cave. Let's go."
"Shooting Star, wait." She stopped dead in her tracks and turned around to face Spike.
"Yes Spike?" She asked
"Before we leave, I wanna be honest with you. A few nights ago, I had a dream about you." Spike said looking away, while Shooting Star's face turned red.
"You... You did?"
"Yeah. I was walking around Ponyville before we saw each other before you greeted me and started hugging me, then everything went dark and a dark version of me appeared and---" his face turned to horror.
"Spike, what's wrong?" Shooting Star asked.
"I think I may know who sent me that ominous letter. A dark version of me appeared and talked to me before leaving my dream. That might be him who sent the letter. He might also be the one responsible for this snowstorm, the weird wild beasts and the mounds of black ooze. If everything I said is true, then... This is worse than I thought. We need to get to that cave ASAP!" Spike said.
"Then we need to go now." With that, Shooting Star and Spike leapt from their seats and away from the small stage. They ran until they were in the marketplace which was all fixed up. "So do you have any idea where this cave might be?" she asked.
"Actually no. I know that the cave is 3 hours away but I don't know which direction the actual cave is in." Spike said sheepishly.
"Seriously?" she asked with a deadpan look. Just then, 2 lights illuminated the air. One was red and one was white. They both travelled to the duo where the white morphed into the paper with circles and letters, only this time there was an additional H to one of the circles, meaning that only one circle was left to be filled before the big one was all that was left, while the red light hit the ground and created arrows that lead straight into the Everfree Forest.
"Well these arrows might lead us to that cave, so we should follow them. Are you ready Shooting Star?" Spike asked.
"Yes I am Spike. Onward and Upward." And with that, they ventured into the Everfree forest, ready for the cave and whatever danger may cross them. They had to get to the Dark Alternate Spike before another plan of his plays out.
The Everfree Forest was eerily quiet as Spike and Shooting Star followed the glowing red arrows deeper into its depths. The thick canopy above blocked out most of the moonlight, casting shadows that seemed to dance and twist among the trees. Despite the darkness, Spike felt a strange sense of determination coursing through him. He had to confront the dark alternate version of himself and put an end to whatever sinister plans it had in store.
"Do you think your alternate self is really a bad creature Spike?" Shooting Star asked.
"If all of these attacks from the past few days are anything to go by, then we might be facing a villain more evil than most. Those attacks actually hurt ponies and put them in the hospital."
"But what about Queen Chrysalis? She and the rest of those parasites trapped ponies of all ages in some icky green goo and left them unconsious during the Canterlot invasion." She pointed out.
"That's why I say more evil than 'most' villains." Spike emphasized 'most'. Shooting Star nodded in understanding, and continued on.
As they ventured deeper, the air grew colder, and a thick fog began to roll in, obscuring their path. But Spike and Shooting Star pressed on, their resolve unshaken. Suddenly, they heard a low growl emanating from the darkness ahead.
Spike's heart raced as he gripped Shooting Star's hoof tightly. "Did you hear that?" he whispered.
Shooting Star nodded, her eyes wide with apprehension. "I think we're not alone in here."
Just then, an awful stench filled the air around them. It smelled like a mixture of rotten eggs, dead fish and smelly basal roots. Spike knew this smell an awful too well. Before he could react, a pair of glowing yellow eyes appeared in the fog, followed by the menacing silhouette of a creature lurking in the shadows. It was a timberwolf, its jagged teeth bared in a snarl as it advanced towards them.
Spike and Shooting Star felt a surge of fear grip them, but they both knew that they couldn't let that fear overcome them. With a determined expression, he stepped forward, shielding Shooting Star behind him. "Stay back, Shooting Star. I'll handle this."
Summoning his courage, Spike let out a fierce roar, surprising both himself and the timberwolf. The creature hesitated for a moment before lunging forward, but Spike was ready. With a swift motion, he unleashed a burst of fire from his mouth, engulfing the timberwolf in flames.
The creature howled in pain before retreating back into the darkness, leaving Spike and Shooting Star unharmed but shaken. They exchanged a glance, silently acknowledging the danger that lurked in the forest.
"That was only one timberwolf, there could be a whole lot more coming. We need to move, double time." Spike said
"I agree. We both need to be more careful if more of those wooden creatures are lurking just nearby. And with this fog, there could be any threat just behind that tree over there." She pointed to a random tree with her hoof.
"This fog is either just nature to the Everfree forest or an illusion by my alternate self, and right now, I don't know which one it is." Spike told her.
"That's not important right now though. We need to continue onward. We can't let anything stop us from reaching that cave. Especially not a creature made out of firewood." With a nod of agreement and renewed determination, Spike and Shooting Star looked at the arrows on the ground that were still glowing and illuminating their path. They followed the arrows in hopes of finding the cave as soon as possible.
After a half hour, the 2 creatures came across the ruins of the castle of the 2 sisters. Although it was far away and even with this fog, Spike and Shooting Star could still get a good look at the castle ruins from a distance. Spike just looked at it like it was nothing unusual for him, which it was usual for him. Shooting Star on the other hand, just looked at it with a look of awe on her face.
"THERE'S OLD CASTLE RUINS HERE!?!? HOW COME I NEVER SEEN THESE RUINS BEFORE!?!?" She yelled out.
Spike wasn't fazed by the outburst and casually told her, "That used to be the castle of the 2 princesses before Princess Luna was banished to the moon and Princess Celestia moved to the mountain which is now known as the city of Canterlot. I used to come here with Twilight and her friends before she became a princess. That place is actually more complicated than you think. Maybe after this whole fiasco, I can take you here whenever Twilight and her friends are having fun without me."
"You would actually do that with me Spike?" she asked.
"Of course. You definitely seem interested in those castle ruins, so why not take you one of these days."
"I-I would love that. Thanks." Shooting Star told him.
"No problem." And with that, they stopped looking at the castle of the 2 sisters and continued on their way.
As they ventured deeper into the forest, the terrain grew increasingly treacherous. Even though the path got harder and harder to follow, Spike and Shooting Star didn't stop and continued trudging on. They had to do something about alternate Spike before something terrible was going to happen.
After about 2 hours of walking and talking, thorny vines snaked across their path, and twisted roots threatened to trip them with every step. Spike decided to get a closer look at these vines and when he did, his eyes widened in shock.
"How are these vines still here? I thought they were completely eradicated by the tree of harmony over a year ago." Spike said as shooting star looked at the vines too.
"You saw these vines before Spike?" She asked him.
"Yes I did. Over a year ago, these vines grew out of the Everfree forest and into Ponyville. They were as invasive as can be and they seemed to have a mind of their own. They made the Everfree forest completely unlivable and they took over the town of Ponyville and not even the princesses could do anything to stop it.
"Hm, now that I think about it, I think I have heard of these vines before. I was in ponyville when this happened but I couldn't see any of the vines for some reason. All I saw was the sun and the moon in the sky at the same time which halved the sky into day and night." Shooting Star told Spike in a tone that said 'as a matter of fact.'
"These are the same vines as before, but they're not moving. I don't know why, but this has to mean something. They may be dead or something else going on. I'm hoping for the first option.
As Spike and Shooting Star pondered the presence of the seemingly dormant vines, a sense of unease settled over them like a heavy fog. The eerie stillness of the forest amplified their apprehension, and they exchanged worried glances. It was then that they heard what sounded like a war song in the distance.
On the horizon I can see the storm coming The enemy is in the forest Evil like a hurricane
The song chilled Spike and Shooting Star to the core, as if there was another blizzard going on. The war song echoed through the dense foliage, sending shivers down Spike and Shooting Star's spines. It wasn't just the haunting melody that unsettled them; it was the realization that the Everfree forest might soon become a place where something terrible was going to happen. Despite being afraid, they decided to follow where the song was coming from and if they were lucky, the song might be coming from the cave they were looking for.
They silently followed the sounds of the song for over a few minutes. And then they saw it, they saw a giant wall of rock with a gaping hole on the side of it, which looked like it lead to an endless void of darkness The arrows seemed to travel into that void like an army of ants. They did it. They faced the dangers of the Everfree and they found the cave they have been looking for for the past 3 hours
"I think that's the cave we've been looking for Spike." Shooting Star told him. "All the arrows are going into the cave which must mean you alternate self in in there waiting for us."
"Then we shouldn't wait any longer. If he has something terrible planned, then we can't let it happen. Let's go." Spike said
"Onwards and Upwards." Spike and Shooting Star looked at each other, then back at the cave and ventures forth, ready to endure any trial that the alternate Spike may have set up for them.
As they approached the gaping maw of the cave, Spike and Shooting Star couldn't shake off the feeling of impending danger. The air grew thick with tension, and every step felt like a weight pressing down on their chests. Yet, they pressed on, their determination outweighing their fear.
The cave entrance loomed before them, its darkness swallowing the feeble light of the shining moon. Spike took a deep breath, steadying himself for whatever lay ahead, while Shooting Star composed herself to continue trekking into the bowels of the cave. The song growing louder and louder with each trek they trekked. As they continued, the air grew colder, and the darkness enveloped them like a suffocating blanket.
Yet they continued, even when it felt like they were about to suffocate. After a while, everything in the cave around them was so dark that only the glowing red arrows were still able to be seen and it was so silent that only the steps of Spike and Shooting Star could be heard. They followed the arrows until they reached a fork in the road. The arrows split up and went into both of the paths which made Spike and Shooting Star worried. The one on the left led to more darkness while the other one of the right seemed to slope upward if the arrows were anything to go by.
Spike furrowed his brow, contemplating their next move. "Which way do you think we should go?" he asked, turning to Shooting Star.
Shooting Star scanned the two paths, her eyes narrowed in concentration. "I'm not sure," she admitted, her voice barely above a whisper. "But something tells me that the one on the left might lead us closer to our goal. If I know villains, then they like darker spaces, especially at night."
Spike nodded in agreement, trusting Shooting Star's intuition. With a shared glance, they veered towards the left path, their steps echoing off the cavern walls. As they ventured deeper into the darkness of the left path, the air grew colder, and the atmosphere more oppressive. Each step they made seemed to echo louder along with the song, amplifying the feeling of isolation in the cavern. Spike and Shooting Star stayed close together for both of their senses were on high alert for any sign of imminent danger.
As they continued down the path, they heard sounds of life in these caves. They both knew that they couldn't be bats because they didn't even sound close to what they were hearing. They followed the arrows again and in the distance, they could see some light. They followed the light for a minute and a half and saw where it lead. When they got there, they looked around and saw arrows turning into one arrow, meaning that both paths led to the same place. They ignored the absurdity of that and turned around. The first thing they saw was a herd of the same wild beasts made out of black crystal and ice Spike fought yesterday.
They looked at Spike and Shooting Star, ready to attack. They were about to attack, but then a familiar tune played which lulled them to sleep. They heard one line and it was all it took to put the beasts to sleep.
Don't cry little one
Spike recognized the song, but didn't pay any attention to it this time as he continued onward along with Shooting Star.
After a while, they also saw something terrifying. The same thorny vines from before they were entering the cave but this time, they were alive and holding another mare still while her soul got sucked away from her using the black ooze from earlier today. She was a pink unicorn, lilac eyes who had a purple mane and tail with a light turquoise streak on them. She was being covered by the mound of ooze except for her head which showed her eyes darkening before going completely black and she slumped over.
Spike shivered at the sight of seeing that mare being tortured like that but they continued onward. They reached the end of the room where he saw something majestic and horrifying at the same time. It looked like a throne of sorts, and it was made out of the same black crystals that the beasts were made out of with the wall behind it being made out of the same stuff.
Just then, the light in the room seemed to turn into an empty and dark void with nothing in it while the sounds of the beasts, torture and music seemed to turn off as well. Now Spike and Shooting Star couldn't see or hear anything. It worried them, but what worried them the most was the voice of an all too familiar creature to Spike.
The voice echoed through the empty void, sending chills down Spike's spine. He knew exactly who it belonged to- it belonged to the one who popped up in his dreams. The dark alternate version of Spike.
"What do you think of my little abode here my little creatures?" He asked.
Spike's heart pounded as he heard the familiar voice reverberating through the emptiness around him. It was the voice of his darker self, the one that haunted his dreams and filled him with dread whenever it surfaced.
"So you're the dark alternate version of my friend?" Shooting Star asked while glaring.
"Why that is correct, Shooting Star. I'm sure Spike told you a lot about me."
"How do you know my name?"
"Oh, I know lots of things. Especially considering that I have been watching what you Spike have been doing in the town for the past few days.
"I only told her about the letter and horrible theories about you- uhhh... what should I call you?" Spike asked.
"Oh I go by many names my friend, but since I'm a dark version of you, then how about you call me 'darkness."
"Darkness it is then," Spike replied, his voice quivering slightly. He glanced at Shooting Star, concern etched on his face. "What do you want from us, Darkness?"
The void made by Darkness began to let out a sinister chuckle that almost made them freeze with the chills down their spine
"Oh, just a little chat, my dear Spike. I want to discuss... possibilities."
Shooting Star stepped forward, her expression defiant. "We're not here to entertain your twisted fantasies, Darkness. Whatever you have in mind, we're not interested."
"Oh? Well you haven't even heard what I was about to say. You haven't heard the choices I was going to give you two.
Darkness's words hung in the air, heavy with ominous intent. Spike and Shooting Star exchanged wary glances, bracing themselves for whatever twisted proposition Darkness was about to present.
"What choices?" Spike ventured cautiously, his voice betraying his apprehension.
Darkness's chuckle echoed again, sending shivers down their spines.
"Ah, the choices. You see, my dear Spike and Shooting Star, every decision we make in life branches off into countless possibilities, countless realities. And I'm here to offer you a glimpse into some of those possibilities."
"Well, what are these possibilities?" Spike asked.
"Like I said, there are countless possibilities, countless realities, so I will just name a few. Shooting Star, you can see what would happen if you your father never wanted to be a royal guard. You can see what would happen to you if you never lost your family. And Spike, you can see if you were with you so called "Friends" and not staying behind being abandoned. You can even see what happened to your parents."
As Darkness laid out these unsettling propositions, Spike and Shooting Star exchanged uneasy glances. They could actually see what would happen if they had their parents and for Spike, see what actually happened to them. The main question is if they were ready for it or not. The offer seemed tempting yet foreboding, like a dark path leading into the unknown.
Shooting Star's expression softened, a mixture of curiosity and apprehension clouding her features. "You... you can really show us these alternate realities? What they could have been like?"
"Oh yes, my dear Shooting Star. I can show you all that and more. But remember, once you glimpse these possibilities, there's no going back. You may see things that you wish you hadn't."
Just then, a bright circle of light illuminated this dark void and turned into a bright portal that leads to Celestia knows where. Spike and Shooting Star stared at it with awe and curiosity.
Spike shifted uneasily, his mind racing with conflicting thoughts. The allure of seeing what could have been was strong, but he couldn't shake the feeling of dread that coiled in the pit of his stomach.
"C-can me and Shooting Star talk about this first, Darkness?" Spike asked
"Oh of course my little dragon. Take all the time you need. Nothing will change."
Spike and Shooting Star stepped aside, their voices lowered as they deliberated their options. Spike's hands trembled slightly as he glanced back at the ominous portal, uncertainty gnawing at him.
"I don't know, Shooting Star," Spike whispered, his gaze troubled. "It's... it's tempting, seeing what could have been. But Darkness... he's not exactly trustworthy."
Shooting Star nodded in agreement, her expression serious. "I know what you mean, Spike. This feels... wrong somehow. Like we're playing right into his hands."
Spike sighed, running a hand through his spines in frustration. "But what if there's something important we could learn? About our pasts, about ourselves..."
"Or what if it's just a trap?" Shooting Star interjected, her voice tinged with worry. "We don't know what we could be getting ourselves into."
Silence fell between them as they weighed their options, the weight of Darkness's offer hanging heavy in the air.
"But think about it. We could see ourselves living in a happy world with a happy life. You would still have your parents and I would still have my friends." Spike pointed out.
Spike's words lingered in the air, enticing yet laden with uncertainty. Shooting Star chewed on her lower lip, her thoughts racing as she considered his proposition.
"I... I suppose you're right," she admitted, her voice hesitant. "But what if I'm not ready to see what could have been? It might be the life I want to live again, but it could also be something that could be worse than my own worst nightmare."
Spike nodded understandingly, his eyes reflecting the same apprehension. "I get it, Shooting Star. It's a risk we have to weigh carefully. We have to consider if knowing these alternate realities is worth the potential consequences."
"Oh you made such a good point back there Spike. I just want to see if I could be happy again, be loved again." she said
"Me too Shooting Star. Me too."
Spike and Shooting Star glanced at each other, reaching a mutual agreement. They turned to look at the portal and Spike said, "We made a decision Darkness. We will see what these endless possibilities have for us."
"Oh wonderful. You will see quite some things, so head on through and see what those possibilities have in store for you."
As Spike and Shooting Star approached the portal, a surge of anticipation mixed with apprehension washed over them. With one last glance at each other, they stepped forward, crossing the threshold into the unknown.
Shooting Star
Shooting Star was enveloped in a bright light for a few seconds before ending up in what looked like a wide, lush and verdant meadow. The sun hung high in the sky, casting a warm, golden glow over the landscape. Birds chirped merrily in the distance, and a gentle breeze rustled through the tall grass.
Shooting Star blinked in astonishment, taking in the serene beauty surrounding her. It was a stark contrast to the desolate void she had just left behind.
"Spike?" she called out, her voice echoing softly across the meadow. But there was no response.
Alone in this idyllic setting, Shooting Star's mind raced with a flurry of emotions. She couldn't shake the feeling of unease that still lingered within her. Was this truly a glimpse into an alternate reality, or was it merely an illusion crafted by Darkness?
But despite her doubts, a small part of her couldn't help but revel in the tranquility of this new world. For a brief moment, she allowed herself to bask in the warmth of the sunlight, the gentle caress of the breeze soothing her troubled thoughts.
As she wandered through the meadow, Shooting Star couldn't help but wonder what other possibilities awaited her beyond this serene landscape. With each step she took, she braced herself for whatever revelations lay ahead, determined to look for anything that this universe or timeline threw her way.
It was then that she saw the town of Ponyville in the distance. The sight of Ponyville in the distance stirred a mixture of emotions within Shooting Star. It was a familiar sight, yet in this new context, it felt like a beacon of hope amidst uncertainty. She knew that wherever she was, Ponyville could offer her what could happen if here parents were still around.
With determination in her heart, Shooting Star made her way towards Ponyville, each step fueling her resolve to uncover the truth behind this mysterious journey. As she approached the outskirts of the town, she couldn't help but marvel at how unchanged it seemed, yet she knew that beneath its familiar facade, there were bound to be differences, subtle or profound, that would reveal the nature of this alternate reality.
When she entered Ponyville, Shooting Star felt quite a few emotions rush into her. She felt a sense of security, since she was in a place she knows quite well, but she also felt a sense of longing. She mainly wanted to go through with this because she wanted to see her loving parents again, and relive the life she lost even if just for a second.
As she wandered through the town, Shooting Star couldn't help but notice the small details that hinted at the divergence of this reality from her own. Perhaps there were faces she didn't recognize, buildings that were constructed differently, or events that unfolded in unexpected ways. But she heard one thing that made her stop in her tracks.
"I DON'T HAVE IT RIGHT NOW! YOU HAVE TO WAIT."
She knew that voice all too well. "Father."
Shooting Star's heart skipped a beat at the sound of her father's voice. It was a mixture of disbelief and overwhelming joy that washed over her. Without a second thought, she followed the sound, her hoofsteps quickening with each passing moment.
After sprinting towards the sound for a minute and a half, she turned a corner and found a stallion with dark grey fur, just a little lighter than Shooting Star's fur with a black and white mane and tail, and he also had multiple meteors as a cutie mark.
He was yelling at a stallion that had royal blue fur, a van dyke brown mane and tail and a bowl of bits as a cutie mark, and there was another stallion behind him. Shooting Star saw that they were in a really heated argument with each other, so she decided to wait for them to calm down.
That didn't happen though as the blue stallion started talking with a snarl. "Meteor Storm, if you don't give me what is rightfully mine, then I WILL BURN YOUR ENTIRE HOUSE TO THE GROUND, KILL YOUR FAMLY AND MAKE YOU A SLAVE IN STALLIONGRAD!!"
"IF YOU DO ANYTHING TO FLYING COMET AND SHOOTING STAR, THEN I WILL RIP YOUR BUCKING EYES OUT!!" Meteor Storm shouted.
Shooting Star stood frozen in place, her heart pounding in her chest as she listened to the tense exchange between her father, Meteor Storm, and the other stallion. Her mind raced with a flood of emotions, torn between relief at finally finding her father and concern over the confrontation unfolding before her. Her thoughts and emotions were interrupted when the blue stallion spoke again
"Woah there is no need to swear buddy. So do you have my money or not?"
Meteor Storm sighed and said, "No."
The blue stallion shook his head and turned to look at the pony behind him. "You know what to do sir."
Just then, the said pony lit up his horn. Using his magic, he lifted Meteor Storm up into the air and slammed him into a nearby tree trunk at a fast rate.
"FATHER!!" Shooting Star yelled as she tried to use her wings to get to her father to see if he was alright, but it felt like some kind of external force was keeping her put, making her watch this horrible scene before her unfold.
"LET HIM GO! HE DIDN'T DO ANYTHING!" Shooting Star shouted with tears in her eyes, but her pleas went onto deaf ears as they couldn't see or hear her.
Just then, the blue stallion lit a wine bottle on fire with his magic before throwing it inside the house. It exploded in the house and burned everything in the room it was thrown into. He also lit a few more wine bottles and threw them in different places of the house. He just watched with a smirk on his face as the house burned in front of him.
Meteor Storm woke up to see his house burning. "YOU MONSTER!!" he said as he charged towards the blue stallion. He detected this though and dodged, then he used his magic to keep Meteor Storm in his grip and made him watch.
Suddenly, they heard a bloodcurdling scream coming from inside the house. It sounded like a mare that was dying a painful death. Shooting Star's blood went cold as she knew who the voice belonged to.
"MOTHER!!!!" She tries so hard to try and move, but she can't as she has to watch and hear her mother scream and cry while she burns to death. She can't bear this scene anymore as she breaks down sobbing as the blue stallion takes Meteor Storm away from the house. Shooting Star continues sobbing until a bright light engulfs her vision.