Prologue - The Taste of the Fire Ruby

THE TASTE OF THE FIRE RUBY

by BrownieComicWriter

It was raining hard. The storm was steadily worsening, and the thunder rolled with an earsplitting clamour. Spike shuddered in the cold and gazed ruefully at the dirty-coloured sky, searching desperately for any sort of shelter from the endless bucketfuls of freezing water. There was a mountain in the distance. As Spike stumbled closer, he spied a cave set into the slope. He dashed for the cover that it gave, shaking the rainwater off himself once inside. It was still cold in the dark cavern, and not exactly dry; the floor and walls were damp and covered in moss and lichen. Spike sat gingerly on the floor and waited for the storm to pass. He had been exhausted by his long trek and urgently needed rest - even in spite of the cold, the damp, and the noise of the great storm, Spike sank lower and lower into a deep sleep.

Spike was not sure how long he slept for, but the storm had by no means passed by the time he awoke, cold, sore and stiff. Spike pricked his ears up - had he heard something? He listened closely, and at first could hear nothing but the sound of cascading water and crackling thunder. But then... yes, there was another sound... yes, definitely... coming from further inside the cave... a voice... a female voice, softly calling his name.

"Spike..."

Spike followed the source of the voice, creeping along the tunnel at the back of the cave. He watched his feet carefully, wary of slippery moss and algae.

"Spike..."

Spike was sure that he knew the owner of that voice... it sounded strangely familiar...

"I'm here, Spike..."

Spike hurried along, no longer taking care not to slip on the treacherous floor. He rounded a corner, and saw something in the faint light.

"Rarity?? Is that you?"

Rarity lay seductively on a pile of gems a little bigger than herself. She wore nothing but a playful expression and more makeup than usual, and she clutched the Fire Ruby in her front hooves. "Spike... you came for me..." For a moment it seemed that she and her pile of gems were all the world's beauty and all the world's wealth. She slowly lifted the ruby she was holding and endowed it with a tender lick. Her eyes slowly closed and she gave a grunt of pleasure. "Ooh, Spike..."

Spike's face fairly glowed, with a rosy hue, and his tail inexplicably flipped up, "Sproing!" His mouth hung open and his eyes slipped their focus. "Ruh... reh... Rarity..." He edged slowly closer...

Spike awoke with a start. There were no pile of gems, nor any cave, nor any Rarity to be seen - just library. It had all been a dream. Spike rolled over and sighed. "Man, why do I always wake up before the best part?" He shook his head vigourously as if to clear it of such thoughts.

"... Maybe I should go take a cold shower."