Foundby Nurse BedpanChaptersIIIIIIIVVPrologueIPonyville isn’t the safest of places to settle in. Why Princess Celestia ever recommended it to the first Apples will always be a mystery for the ages. Between manic spirits of chaos and the insane menagerie of the neighboring Everfree, excitement and danger are only a horseshoe toss away. Still, it boasts some of the nicer things Equestria has to offer: lip-smackingly good Apple cider, immense hospitality (more than Manehattan or Canterlot have to offer), and even their own fire-breathing dragon! Okay, so the last part might be just an exaggeration. Still, Twilight Sparkle called Ponyville home, and that was good enough for her number one assistant. Amazingly enough, things seemed to have quieted down lately. After the whole incident at the Empire, nothing ground-shaking had happened for a while. The only recent development Spike could remember off the top of his spines was that new trick Pinkie Pie had been using to jostle the kids out of a rut. “Jeez, I didn’t know she could make a face like that!” The excitement had boiled down to such an extent that Twilight had given Spike the day off from his chores. “You really ought to stretch your legs, Spike. A growing dragon needs exercise just as much as his next gem!,” she laughed as she gave him a magical nudge towards the door. “But…!,” he protested, only to be cut off with a concerned, if quick “No buts, Spike. I think you deserve a proper rest – one that doesn’t involve any fancy dress balls or you just lying in your basket with your mouth agape.” Unable to argue, Spike left the library with a small smile… and absolutely no idea what to do with his day. The answer came to him soon enough, as it is wont to do in most kids. “I guess I’ll check out some of the sites. It has been a while since I got out of the library without a checklist.” As it turned out, Spike knew Ponyville better than he gave himself credit for. With a good amount of daylight to spare, he had covered almost all of Ponyville. He spent a sizeable span of time going to, from, and doubling away from Carousel Boutique in hopes of getting some “alone time’ with Rarity, but his bashfulness did not permit him to do much beyond reaching his claw up to her door to knock. After his ninth time of stopping cold on the welcome mat, Spike thought “Maybe when I’m more ready,” and resumed his search for fun-filled frolic. He also devoted a few hours to watching the schoolfoals spend their bit allowances over at the open air arcade. One colt was even gracious enough to share his bit stash with him for a few games of Smash-It Stallion; regrettably, he was not gracious enough to go easy on the young librarian. “I’ll get you next time, Mash! You’ll see what thumbs can do in an arcade!,” Spike intoned jovially as the latter was led home by his mother. Fun as it was, the pudgy little dragon was once again left with nothing but time on his claws. The sun continued to shine high above, confirming that his curfew was still a longways off. With little else to do and an increasingly vacant stomach, he headed for Sweet Apple Acres in hopes of chatting up Applejack (and probably getting a free snack for his efforts). Instead of the familiar orange mare, he was greeted by a smaller yellow filly; in addition to her pink bow, she wore two small baskets at the sides of her barrel. Apple Bloom seemed to be in high spirits, given her energetic skip and ever-present beam. “Howdy, Spike! What brings ya ‘round th’ farm? Big Mac asked me to work some o’ th’ fields today! Ah feel like a right apple farmer now!,” she said cheerfully. “Uh, AB, don’t you always do this? I mean, you DO live here.” Spike was quite nonplussed by his friend’s giddiness for manual labor. “Not by mahself, Ah don’t! Mah brother n’ sister are awful busy cleanin’ up all the Acres for the family reunion comin’ up, so they finally let me pull some more weight ‘round here. It’s the best!” “Well, there goes that quick snack I was hoping for,” Spike mumbled to himself. While he didn’t particularly dislike talking to Apple Bloom, he knew that he had better things to do than talk about cutie marks. Conversations with any of the Crusaders often lead to discussions about very long and overly involved methods to acquire the ever elusive flank symbols. Not one to forsake his manners, Spike flashed a winning smile at the little Apple, wished her luck on her work, and turned around to make his way back to the town proper. Before he could even make five steps away, his stomach betrayed him with a mighty growl. *guuuuuuuurrggggllee* “Oh, horseapples.” “Ha ha! Somehow, Ah knew that was gonna happen. No shame in getting’ a little famished, Spike. Here – Ah’ll just tell Applejack I needed a snack.” Apple Bloom went ahead and grabbed one of the red fruits from her saddle basket and tossed it towards her friend. Spike wasn’t sure what happened next; it was difficult to process. Apple Bloom swung her head to toss him the apple; he assumed she was at least aiming at his chest, but she hit him square in the face instead. “Hey! What’s the big ide-…?!” He was unable to finish the thought, as his would-be assailant had vanished through a filly-sized hole in the ground. Only a plume of black dust had been where she was standing. Spike was frozen in place. The last time he saw a pony get dragged down into an earthen abyss was two years ago when he had been helping Rarity find gems in the woods… He was brought back to reality by Winona’s mad barking, a distraught “What in tarnation is goin’ on here?” from Applejack, and the thundering hooves of a feverishly digging Big Macintosh. A gentle shake from Granny Smith restored his ability to speak. He rushed to Applejack, all but blubbering “Apple Bloom, apple, face, ground, gone, dogs! Applejack, it’s the Diamond Dogs! THEY’RE BACK!” IIThe residents of Ponyville were livid. Along with Apple Bloom, five other ponies had vanished: Mrs. Cup Cake, Sweetie Belle, Scootaloo, Blossomforth, and Heart Strings. Why the dogs would be digging through a pony settlement wasn’t the only mystery. Surely this was just the beginning? Were these abductions simply the beginning of a complete hostile takeover? “The horror! THE HORROR!,” screamed a flower-peddling pink pony as panic began to overtake the streets. Doors and windows were being shut and terrified ponies sought sanctuary on elevated places like table tops and bookshelves. Diamond dogs were known for their avarice of precious jewels and shiny objects but weren’t a huge problem, owing to their tendency to stay inside old mines and gem fields, both locations usually far from anypony. What had suddenly pushed them to forge ahead into a large community like this? Mayor Mare, Judge Mint, and Honest Decree had summoned Twilight Sparkle and the other Element bearers to town hall to discuss the rash of sudden ponynappings and what might be done about it. “What do we know about the victims?,” asked Twilight, scroll and quill gripped in her magic. “We need to get our facts straight before running into this head first.” “Forgive me for being hasty, darling, but these… these… BRUTES, have my SISTER! Every second we spend here planning could have terrible repercussions for her and the others!” Rarity had mascara running down her porcelain features. She had been awoken from her afternoon beauty rest by shattering dishes and the tell-tale scream of her sister. “Rarity’s right, Twi! We should just go down there, hooves swingin’!” Applejack’s distress and concern had slowly been peaking into anger and frustration. She and Big Macintosh spent half an hour trying to get to their little sister through the pit but found their progress blocked by unyielding black stones. Rainbow Dash was next to put her hoof down. “Can’t we just flood the tunnels or something? I’m sure I can funnel enough rain clouds down there!” “And probably drown the critters who have made their home down there? Or possibly even the hostages? Rainbow, girls, please – we have to do this Twilight’s way. It’s the only we thing we can do to keep this from getting worse!” Fluttershy rarely raised her voice, especially to her friends, but the situation was getting too tense. The other three mares were starting to become irrational. A firm stare down served to calm her friends, if only for a little while longer. Even Pinkie Pie wasn’t her usual jovial self. She sat in one spot, kneading her temples, eyes closed in deep concentration. “Darling, are you alright? You haven’t said a peep since we got here,” asked Rarity, already regaining some of her poise after Fluttershy’s plea. “Mmmhmm,” answered the party throwing mare. There was something missing, something Twilight and the Ponyville officials hadn’t asked… Spike hung back, listening to his friends go back and forth over every minor detail in the incidents. The victims had all been in separate locations, performing nothing out of the ordinary. Heart Strings was reading on a park bench, Apple Bloom was helping move the harvested apples into the cellar, Sweetie Belle was trying to cook her sister some brunch inside the Boutique, Scootaloo was waiting for Rainbow Dash outside the latter’s cloud home to ask her to hang out, Blossomforth had been heading watering some of her flower patches along the outskirts of town, and Mrs. Cake was making some crepes inside the kitchen. He had been asked extensively, first by Applejack, then Rarity, then Rainbow, then Twilight about what he had seen. Apple Bloom – no Apple Bloom. Black dust. His instincts told him something terrible was afoot, so Spike tried convincing Twilight to ask the princesses for the Elements of Harmony back. The monarchs agreed but informed them of a delay in their request. The Elements were Equestria’s greatest defense after all and great care had to be taken for their transit. Both Celestia and Luna made it clear that both of them would come to Ponyville once the necessary precautions were taken. “Alright, I think I have it! We can do what Rainbow suggested, but we have to control the flow of water. Dash will provide the waterworks while Applejack, Rarity, and I use magic and some digging of our own to direct our offense. Fluttershy, we need you and your critters to help us map out the cave systems that were dug out from under us. Think you can handle that?” Twilight wore a steely look of determination. Her initial fact sheet had now tripled in length and quadrupled in number. “I’ll see what I can do,” came the quiet, determined reply from Fluttershy. “Pinkie Pie, I’ll need your help with crowd control. You’re the only pony who knows this village well enough to keep everypony under watch… Pinkie?” The purple unicorn was confused. Pinkie Pie usually had more gusto, especially if it required her to be all over the place. Instead of a reply however, the mares were met with a loud gasp from their friend. “Oh my gosh, you guys! I figured it out! Heartstrings is Twilight, Sweetie and Apple Bloom are their sisters, Blossomforth is Fluttershy, and Mrs. Cake is me!” “Pinkie, you’re makin’ about a much sense as a blizzard in July! What're you goin’ on about?” Spike was genuinely curious about Pinkie’s theory. The mares taken were supposed to be his friends? Didn’t Diamond Dogs hunt by scent? No way they could have fumbled with their targets. Before anypony could say anything, there was a terrible shaking. Then a long fall into pitch blackness. III“You’ve failed me yet again, Twilight…” “All you do is wipe the smiles from everypony’s faces…” “The farm is gone and it’s all your fault, Applejack…” “I’m sorry, Miss Dash, but you’ll never be able to fly again…” “I don’t need anything from you, you pathetic excuse for a dressmaker…” “You can’t stay here anymore. You’re scaring all the animals away…” “Spike?! SPIKE!” Spike was jolted awake by his adoptive sister’s irritated voice. What did he do this time? Twilight had never sounded this cross with him for oversleeping. Heck, she expected it so much, she kept it on her daily itinerary. Come to think of it, why was he so tired? Wasn’t it his day off yesterday? Or was it tomorrow? And even then, there was that awful dream… He’d dreamt before, but never with so many voices going on at once. In his sleep, he was usually limited to trips to lands made of candy and ice cream (with or without Rarity) or repeating the day’s events in random sequence. He wasn’t gifted with lucid dreaming like Twilight – stories about dream-weaving typically ended with a disappointed sigh from her. “Are you STILL in that basket of yours? Get up before I throw you out with it!” “Alright, I’m up, I’m up!,” he replied as he scrambled out of bed. Oddly enough, he wasn’t beside Twilight’s bed – his basket was placed inside the kitchen. The terrible-smelling, dilapidated kitchen. It felt damp and reeked of mold and wet dog. “You lazy, little freak. You’re never good for anything. Be glad the princess exiled the both of us out here. If it were all up to me, I’d have kicked you out months ago.” Spike whirled around to look Twilight in the eye. He wanted to see her face as she said those painful words. She had never once spoken to him with such disdain. Her voice had been so icy… so guttural… so…deep? The baby dragon regretted his actions immediately. Before him stood a warped version of the mare he once knew. Her horn was snapped off at the base, blood caked on her face. Her mane and coat were dull and unkempt, like she had been living in the worst possible conditions. The most striking feature were her eyes, pitch black and sunken, leaking green mist from the outer edges. “I HATE YOU, SPIKE! YOU TOOK EVERYTHING AWAY FROM ME!,” it shrieked as it lunged at him with wild abandon. “Gah! Get away! Leave me alone!” Spike found new strength in his legs, jumping out of his basket and making a mad scramble for the door. Looking over his shoulder, he saw the Twilight monster shambling in his direction. While not particularly fast, its menacing form was more than enough to cause the dragon to re-double his efforts to escape. Spike nearly crashed through the front door of the library, fear engulfing him. His breath was ragged and his eyes started to burn, his vision slowly blurring. As he continued to run away from the library, he couldn’t help noticing the terrible state of the village. Houses appeared to be collapsing under their own weight, the trees appeared jagged and blackened, and the ground was covered in rocky outcroppings. The few ponies out in the open looked as feral as Twilight had been, only they were covered in chains and focused completely on digging into the hard rock they stood on. Focusing his gaze upward, Spike was startled to see the sky’s orange hue untouched by all the malice around him. Instead of blanketing the horizon like usual however, it had been confined into a tiny circle. The borders of this new atmosphere looked similar to the mouth of a predator, sharp rocks mimicking the teeth of a timberwolf. Tall spires of rock and grime surrounded all of Ponyville, reaching their apex in the great maw that appeared to consume the sun. As scared and confused as he was, Spike noticed that his vision cleared up almost immediately after he looked up. Maybe if he could get everypony to do the same, he might get some much needed aid. He had skidded to a halt, just short of the middle of town. “I KNOW YOU’RE OUT THERE, DRAGON! YOU CANNOT ESCAPE ME!” The monster from the library didn’t sound any closer, but it had dropped all pretence of pretending to be Twilight Sparkle. The menace in its voice sounded raw and unfocused – like it was in pain. With no real plan, Spike decided to enter the tallest building in Ponyville – Town Hall. “If I can make it outside, maybe I can get some help! Yeah! The princesses are on their way with the Elements! They’ll figure something out! Yeah!” He pushed the heavy doors open, almost getting flattened by one as it fell off its hinges. His plans fell short immediately however. In the middle of the room was another monstrous mouth of stone. Peering into the darkness, Spike saw some figures moving around the prison, shuffling about aimlessly, raising their heads to moan silently into the sky. Making his way forward to get a better look, Spike braced himself for the worst. The still very clear memory of the pseudo-Twilight was burned into his mind. It’s terrible eyes, unseeing yet focused wholly on his tiny frame, the drool pooling from out its gritted teeth… “No!,” he said. His voice echoed through the empty building, repeating his own message back to him. “I have to be brave. I’m the only one who can stop all of this. My friends are counting on me. Everypony is.” With newfound resolve, Spike stepped closer to the central structure. He almost dropped to the floor from what he saw. Rarity. Applejack. Pinkie. Rainbow. Fluttershy. And yes, even Twilight. They were all inside, moving around with no direction, their eyes dull and streaming constantly with tears. Their faces were a mixture of depression and horror. Every now and again, they would stop dead in their tracks to howl silently in anguish. “What could possibly do this?,” Spike said as he recoiled. “NOT ‘WHAT.’ ‘WHO.’” Spike spun around, coming face to face with the fake Twilight. Its face, while no longer contorted into a mass of hysterical rage, was still wearing a terrible scowl. Black crystals had taken the place of its coat and its mane was receding, giving way to a plume of black smoke. It no longer had hooves, instead sporting jagged talons on massive paws. The ground it stood on continually birthed small spikes of rock and crystal. “Forgive me,” it boomed, its voice laced with poorly hidden malice. “I couldn’t help myself. Part of me really wants to kill you.” Speaking, it gave Spike full view of its sharp fangs. “A-are you a… a d-diamond dog?,” Spike asked. “Stall and buy some time, find out what this thing wants,” he thought to himself. “I am and yet, so much more. As you can see, I have harnessed the dreaded magic of the unicorns. I am more powerful than any of my kind there has ever been.” It grumbled a steady laugh, its mask falling completely off. It now had the long snout of a timberwolf, made of rock and debris. Its eyes, cold and gleaming, betrayed both cruelty and rationality. “I left the caves in search of treasure. Instead, I found cold and was almost claimed by death. Instead, I discovered power. The power to take what I deserve. All the gems and crystals I could get my claws on.” Its ethereal mane pulsed with glee. It leered at Spike, flaring its fangs at him and began to drool again. “You. I don’t like you. You make me feel… make me remember bad things.” “Bad things?,” Spike found himself asking. It was speaking its monologue so well just some minutes ago. Even its posture had changed, hunching over while it glared at him with those eyes. “My pack spoke of this place - how it has ponies that take our jewels. They passed around stories of six: a fast flyer, an animal caretaker, a farmer, a bookworm, a baker, and the dreaded dressmaker.” Sparks of magic came out of its eyes, making the cornered dragon press his back into the rock prison behind him. The beast came close, its crag lips curled back eerily far along its snout. “I took them for my pack. Used my power. But then they laughed." The creature flinched, a sudden pulse of energy streaming down from its smoky mane. "Laughed at me. Say me wrong. Say me have bum nose and me useless,” it said, closing its eyes tightly. “But me show them! Me make all caves mine! All jewels mine! Then come back and fix what me do!” Its speech degenerating, the monster seemed to ignore the purple dragon inches from its muzzle; Spike began to look around for a means of escape. He couldn’t do anything for himself or his friends from inside this thing’s belly. The banisters hung low, but not enough for him to climb. The doors and windows were so far away. Given how this thing snuck up on him, it was going to be impossible to get away from it for long. “Me make whole village mine! Sniffles deserve it! TAKE IT ALL!,” it cackled loudly, laughing like a rabid beast. The sombre tone it had was replaced my high-pitched giggling. Mad laughter echoed through the structure… And stopped. The beast had frozen in place, head thrown back and its mouth frozen open in glee. Smoke continued to pour out of its eyes. Spike approached it and gave it a wary push. It didn’t even budge. “Oookay. That was… insanely scary.” “Spike? Spike, is that you?,” came a familiar voice from behind him. “Twilight?! Are you alright?” “Spike, I’m s-scared. I c-can’t see anything!” Twilight’s voice didn’t have its normal tone. She was whimpering, barely able to string her words together. “I disappointed the princesses…” “Twilight, you’re trapped in some sort of creepy spell! Snap out of it!,” Spike shouted, clawing at the crystals that trapped his friends. Twilight gave no answer, having slid back into simply shuffling about and screaming in silence. “No… Twilight…” “So… hungry…,” came a new voice. The baby dragon turned to see that “Sniffles” had again changed. His body was thin and skeletal, leaking black smoke from every orifice. Its teeth had grown even further, changing its mouth into a tangle of pointy rocks. Its eyes now burned red and green, all attention focused on the defenseless reptile in front of him. Most strikingly, it had grown a new appendage. Spike could hardly believe what he was seeing. The monstrous creature had King Sombra’s red horn affixed to its forehead. IV“Holy guacamole!,” Spike shouted as he dodged another attack from the hell beast. The horned monstrosity was tenacious, but rather clumsy. All of the prowess it exuded while cornering the baby dragon had been replaced by simple feral hunger. It lunged at Spike, throwing its entire body into its attacks. For once in his life, Spike was thankful for his diminutive size. While he didn’t have the same grace as say, Fluttershy, he managed to keep away from the demon. He received cuts and bruises from falling on his belly every now and again, but he was otherwise fine. Unfortunately, he could feel the fatigue setting in. His thighs were starting to ache significantly. Looking up from his prone position, he realized his proximity to the door. “Yes!,” he exclaimed, running towards the outdoors. Landing on his feet, Spike surveyed the area. The stone walls were still standing, accentuating the bright full moon shining directly over them. The spellbound ponies seemed to have stopped their labors, but had not fared much better than when he had seen them. “Grrraaaaaaarrrggh!,” roared the beast, still pursuing its quarry, not losing any speed despite its crumbling skeletal form. “I don’t think I can play keep-away for much longer than this! Aaah!” Spike led his predator on a long chase throughout Ponyville, using his knowledge of shortcuts and twisting paths to keep the latter astray. His heart pumped faster than ever before. All the while, he kept on thinking of a plan. “No magic, no Elements, no Crystal Heart – what the heck am I supposed to do?” After what seemed like eternity, Spike had circled his way back to Town Hall for the ninth time. Around the sixth run or so, he could no longer hear any growling or slathering from his pursuer. Unable to help himself, he sat down. “Come on, Spike, think! What would my friends do?” He massaged his temples, recalling what had happened before in the Crystal Empire. “You’d think they might have noticed an entire village being eaten by now! What do they need a sign saying “HELP” on top of… the…” “That’s it! I can send a message to the princesses! I just need some paper and some ink!” Spike made a beeline for Couches and Quills; he didn’t want to risk going back to Golden Oaks, given its current status. He weaved his way through the buildings, hopping over stalls and under the frozen ponies for good measure. Apple Bloom had told him some time ago while they were playing hide-and-seek with Winona: “Dogs follow their noses. If ya wanna beat Winona, you’ll have ta mess with her first!” While this wasn’t an easy-going game with a tame pet like Winona, he had little else to go on. After passing under three different ponies (he even recognized one as the sofa clerk) and at least six stalls, he finally made it into Couches and Quills. The place looked about as rundown as the rest of Ponyville but its interior didn’t have the same stench of wet dog like the library had. “Please, oh please, oh please… Yes!,” he yelled upon seeing toppled stacks of paper and some stoppered wells. “I can finally put an end to this craziness!” Spike wrote feverishly onto one of the few dry scrolls he could get. He didn’t even bother with quills anymore – he scrawled messily with his right claw. Unlike the letters he had penned for Twilight, this felt maddeningly urgent. No time for proper syntax or salutations here! “DANGER IN PONYVILLE! SOMBRA’S HERE!” Rolling up the small sliver, Spike peered outside, looking to see if the coast was clear. Seeing and hearing nothing, he stepped outside. “Here goes,” he said, before pulling in a deep breath and expelling a steady stream of green smoke. His written message burned to a crisp, becoming a thin wisp of magical smoke. It snaked whimsically from his claws and made it to the opening above… Before stopping and speeding down to south of where he stood. A few seconds later, he heard an ear-piercing howl. “Oh, horseapples.” Steeling himself, Spike grabbed two more inkwells and a ball of papers before making a break for it. “Oh, man! Why didn’t that work?!” Again, he snaked his way throughout Ponyville, electing instead to send his message from above ground level. “The schoolhouse, maybe? Should be tall enough!” Stubby legs swinging to and fro, the little dragon ran past the mesmerized denizens of Ponyville; some had started digging again. Out the corners of his eyes, he could see shadows following him from alleyways and corners. The Sombra-infected dog appeared to be regaining its grip on his hometown. Spike leaped over the half-door into the school, upturned some desks for good measure, and clambered up into the chamber where the school bell was housed. Standing as close as he could to the edge, he once again scrawled the same message onto a sliver of paper and blew. The smoke didn’t even get half an inch away from Spike’s face before zipping straight down and into the school’s front door. Fearing the worst, the little dragon tucked into a ball and jumped towards the ground below. He plummeted into the hard dirt, sending a pangs up his spine. “I am so feeling this in the morning,” he said as he unfurled and made his last effort to send a call for help. The darkness made it hard to navigate, but Spike knew where he was going. He didn’t zigzag his way through town anymore; the monster was probably too close for it to work. No, he made a beeline for the highest point in the city – the clock tower. *Huff* Two more steps. *Huff* One more step. *Huff* “Made… it…!” The tired dragon would have been perfectly satisfied to collapse on the wooden floor right there and then, but he knew he had a job to do. He had made it to the top of the clock tower, tackling the stairs by foot to make it inside the great mechanism itself. Along the way, he had figured out one last gambit to play. Opening the latched door embedded on the clock face, Spike prepared his last two pieces of paper. He breathed deep and incinerated one. As expected, the ash stopped just short of his nose, preparing to zoom away and tell on him. “Gotcha,” he thought. Both times, he managed to notice it – a short delay before his messages revealed his whereabouts to his hunter. Before it whizzed away, the dragon blew another burst of flame onto his second paper. Unlike its predecessors, this one followed the more familiar path up and away from its sender, hopefully to Canterlot. Sadly, no sigh of relief could be had. Spike couldn’t think about it at the time but he knew: the decoy zipped right behind him. Every failed attempt to call for help had brought his own end ever closer. “Be brave, Spike. This is for your friends.” “Noble, but foolish,” intoned a new voice. It wasn’t as monstrous as the beastly diamond dog, nor as shrill when the former began to lose its mind. This was a deep, sinister voice – one of pure malice. “The dog was a poor host. It couldn’t handle its own greed. I sped up the inevitable.” Spike closed the door – even he couldn’t survive a jump from this height. Turning around, it took immense will not to simply curl up into a ball and hide. He wanted to show this monster that it had failed to scare him, even if it could kill him. The chamber was bristling with shadows in various terrifying shapes: dragons, manticores, serpents, chimeras. In the small space in front of him stood King Sombra in full regalia, pulsing crystals intermittently growing and sloughing off his frame. Just like in the Crystal Empire, he wore a smile of cruel dominance. “You won’t win, Sombra,” the dragon said in defiance. He held his head high to look the spectral tyrant eye-to-eye. “You’re not getting your throne back.” “Little one, I do not hunger for my old throne. I can simply take another in its stead.” The hungry look returned to the shadow pony’s face as he licked his lips. “What you and the Crystal Princess took, I can replace. You owe me a new kingdom… and a new body.” “A new body?” Spike faltered. The shadowy figures were weaving an ever tighter circle around him. The king lunged forward, pinning the young dragon under his hooves. “I cannot imagine how powerful I can become as a dragon!” Once again, Spike was plunged into gloom. V“My lord, you’ve slept in. You’re kingdom needs you.” “Rarity? Is that you? Where… am I?” “You are where you belong, sire. In your castle. With me.” Spike shifted to the side and off his bed, a large mattress made specifically for his comfort. He walked towards his radiant wife and kissed her on the lips. “Of course, Rarity. This is where I belong.” "Yes, sire. Yes, indeed." Rarity's voice was flat, completely lacking any or all dramatic flare. "Your hoard continues to grow outside. It would do good to remind your slaves of who rules them." A familiar twinge of joy spiked in the dragon's heart. "My hoard..." It felt alien, yet so right to say those words. "I want to see it. I want to see what's mine." He navigated the dark halls out of his bedchamber to step onto the balcony and confirm the truth spoken by his queen. Oddly, despite his exhilaration, his heart beat was slow and nearly indistinguishable. Stepping out onto the veranda, the great conqueror took in the view around him. The skies were bathed in a satisfying blood red, stretching as far as the eye can see. Peals of black lightning decorated the heavens. His castle towered over the vast region of his new Crystal Empire, taken from the hooves of the “royal pony sisters.” Draconia was all his. The greed he had once suppressed filled his being, made him swell with pride. With greed came power and everything he could have ever wanted. He had all the gems he could eat, the love of his queen, and the unabashed fear from all of his subjects. This was his dream… Wasn’t it? Once upon a time, his dream was to live out his days with his friend and sister Twilight. He dreamed of winning the heart of the most generous mare he ever had the privilege of meeting. He dreamed of having the power to protect all he had held dear. He opened his mouth, but could not bring himself to say a word. The ponies below raised their eyes to him, but no one could see past the black ink and smoke. Had they any reason to cheer for him, no sound would have been heard. The king turned to look at his wife for strength, but found nothing in her vacant smile. Her eyes may have been clear, but her stare stretched for miles beyond him. She wasn’t really in love with him... "This was a gift from my dear friend, Spike-Wikey - the kindest, most generous dragon I know... and I am NOT giving it to a brute like you!" Wait a second - she wasn’t even really there! He wasn’t the feared conqueror of Draconia! Greed never got him anything beyond shame. He could feel the pulse of life, of wakefulness, creeping out from his chest again. In that instant, his voice returned and he addressed the multitudes gathered beneath him. “My name is Spike! Ponyville is my home! And no one is taking it away from me!” Spike’s eyes snapped open. Sombra was in his mind, making him want to BE him. Luckily, the transition breaking caused the melding of consciousness to stop. He was still being pinned to the floor, but something had changed. All the shadows were gone and only the unmoving monarch remained. His horn was inches away from the dragon’s face. Turning his head up towards the clockface, Spike could see streams of light pouring in from outside. “Ha ha! It worked! What do you say to that, Smokey? In a few seconds, the princesses’ll be here to wipe the floor with your sorry butt!” As if to reply, the unicorn lurched and fell to the side, shattering into countless pieces. “Whoa. Well, that was easy.” Twilight’s number one assistant sat up and dusted himself off. He was still terribly tired from running all over Ponyville. If the sun had already come out, then the princesses must have already taken care of things. It would certainly explain why Sombra just up and broke like he did. “You! YOU'RE MINE!” Or not. Spike’s eyes had long adjusted to the dark thanks to spending nearly twenty-four hours inside a pit. He silently thanked his heritage as he spotted the red spike making a beeline for his heart. He managed to clasp both hands together onto the crystal before it could pierce him. Perhaps seeing his plans being thwarted yet again, Sombra doubled his efforts to drive his horn into the young drake. Spike’s claws raked along the red barb, his fatigued muscles straining under the magical force. The unicorn's disembodied voice could still be heard, chanting “Mine” over and over again. Spike was trapped by the jagged fragment, slowly but surely piercing his scales. He could feel his blood being spilled. Any moment now, Equestria would have to deal with a threat even worse than Discord himself! Spike’s life began to flash before his eyes: his hatching, living and studying with Twilight in Canterlot, moving to Ponyville and meeting his friends, getting jealous of Owlowysious, the whole dragon migration debacle… “What was that word Twilight used? ‘Ironic?’ Yeah, that’s it.” Maybe Pinkie Pie had rubbed off on him more than he thought – he could still see the humor in being done in by a gem. A gem? A plan formed in the drake’s head. One even Rainbow Dash would find crazy. Redirecting the last of his strength, Spike grasped Sombra’s horn in his talons, mustering all his force to aim the disembodied appendage to his face… And crushed the evil artefact in his jaws. “You did what?,” asked Cadance. She had come all the way from her throne in the Crystal Kingdom to visit the recuperating mares in Canterlot. “Nothing at all. It’s Spike you should be congratulating.” Twilight, hooked up to a ventilator and an IV, looked absolutely radiant. She was very proud of her little brother. “A baby dragon defeating Sombra twice in a row. Shining would be green with envy,” Cadance intoned. She was wearing an immaculate smile, happy that her friends had survived another onslaught. "Oh, I'm sure he'll get over it. After all, he got the girl... even if he was the one in distress," Celestia's student replied. Ponyville was recovering quite nicely after the recent assault. Both Luna and Celestia managed to pull the village out of the earth with their geomancy and were still busy remolding the earthen spears that had hidden it from their eyes. Pulling the sunken mass of rock from out of the caverns had loosened the evil magic's foothold; both sisters were relieved that Spike had survived up until that long. The corrupting influence of Sombra’s shadows gradually dissipated over the coming days. Buildings regained their structure and the flora and fauna slowly returned. The enthralled citizens had no ill side-effects aside from sore hooves and blurry vision. The sun and moon were terribly welcome sights to everypony. It was as if nothing happened at all. Spike looked out the window of his room at the infirmary. “Figures. Save the country twice and nothing to show for it,” he joked. He could hardly believe it himself. In the instant he chomped down on the cursed horn, he felt anger and greed well up inside of him like never before... Before promptly expelling what was left of the ghost king in a plume of green flame and gas. It was quite the ending to an already stupendous turn of events. “Speak for yourself, Spike!,” declared a squeaky voice. Sweetie Belle, fully recovered from her ordeal, had entered his room. “Hey, Sweetie Belle! Nice of you to come by again,” replied Spike weakly. While he didn’t suffer any ill effects from eating the source of an evil phantom, he was still bedridden from all the exhaustion. While he was glad to have regular visitors, he couldn't hide the slight disappointment in his voice. Sweetie Belle was no Rarity. “We’re taking turns, Rarity and me. She has a new surplus of onyx she needs to keep in check. You know sis – always sees opportunity.” “Ha ha. Sounds just like her.” Things were slipping back into place. He had been smiling a lot after the incident. He found just making eye contact with ponies and talking with them was a tremendous comfort. “And like I said, we all remember the nightmares, Spike. We’re really grateful to you for doing what you did.” She punctuated her statement with a peck to his cheek. “That was from Rarity, by the way,” she grinned cheekily at him. Spike rubbed the cheek dreamily, head already up in the clouds. He suspected that he would be spending his sleep inside a manor of candies and treats, his companion a beautiful white unicorn with a penchant for fashion. “I’ll take it.” PrologueThe night sky still bore the chromatic show of the day’s events – beautiful colors skated across the heavens, as if to celebrate the freedom of the Crystal Empire. Ponies of all shapes and sizes celebrated the momentous occasion with a festival that rivalled even the Royal Wedding of Shining Armor and Mi Amore Cadenza. Their smiles and laughter served to accentuate their crystalline image, bringing out the stunning gloss of their gem-like facades. The freedom of the Crystal Empire continued to be celebrated even as the six bearers of the Elements of Harmony left for their own homes. Their small companion, a purple baby dragon, was still shocked by the day’s events. “Man,” he thought to himself. “The ponies back home will NEVER believe this!” Despite his own disbelief, Spike let his waddle grow into a spirited jaunt. “Hey, Twilight! Race ya back to the seats!” ================================================================================= As night fell across the snowy expanse surrounding the empire, a lone figure loped clumsily across the white plains. The protective spell that kept the ponies under the watchful eyes of the sun and moon was not meant to afford protection to those unfortunate enough to brave the biting cold. A diamond dog, a true runt for the species, had heard rumors amongst his kin of an entire land made of nothing by gems and crystals. Even the creatures living there were made of jewels… all too easily ripe for the taking. And so with nothing but a ragged collar and a hastily made cloak, he rushed off in search of glory and treasure. “Will show them! Make new pack! Find more gems than ever! Make them see they wrong about nose!” His pack had let him go on this foolhardy errand, all tired of the bungling mutt and his inability to distinguish even the most basic of odors. “No loss,” they plotted among themselves. “Get rid of runt, fewer jewels to share.” They plastered false grins on their muzzles as they loudly shared stories of gems that towered over trees and had shined brighter than any star, sure that the excitable nuisance would take the bait. Not one of them expected the cur to return with a bite to back up his once meek bark. Even the stray couldn’t predict the power and the insatiable greed he was bestowed by the single jewel he did find. A normal Diamond Dog would have stayed away. He would have trusted his nose. The mongrel didn’t know any better, of course. All he saw was a blood red crystal buried in the ice. All for him to make his and his alone.
IPonyville isn’t the safest of places to settle in. Why Princess Celestia ever recommended it to the first Apples will always be a mystery for the ages. Between manic spirits of chaos and the insane menagerie of the neighboring Everfree, excitement and danger are only a horseshoe toss away. Still, it boasts some of the nicer things Equestria has to offer: lip-smackingly good Apple cider, immense hospitality (more than Manehattan or Canterlot have to offer), and even their own fire-breathing dragon! Okay, so the last part might be just an exaggeration. Still, Twilight Sparkle called Ponyville home, and that was good enough for her number one assistant. Amazingly enough, things seemed to have quieted down lately. After the whole incident at the Empire, nothing ground-shaking had happened for a while. The only recent development Spike could remember off the top of his spines was that new trick Pinkie Pie had been using to jostle the kids out of a rut. “Jeez, I didn’t know she could make a face like that!” The excitement had boiled down to such an extent that Twilight had given Spike the day off from his chores. “You really ought to stretch your legs, Spike. A growing dragon needs exercise just as much as his next gem!,” she laughed as she gave him a magical nudge towards the door. “But…!,” he protested, only to be cut off with a concerned, if quick “No buts, Spike. I think you deserve a proper rest – one that doesn’t involve any fancy dress balls or you just lying in your basket with your mouth agape.” Unable to argue, Spike left the library with a small smile… and absolutely no idea what to do with his day. The answer came to him soon enough, as it is wont to do in most kids. “I guess I’ll check out some of the sites. It has been a while since I got out of the library without a checklist.” As it turned out, Spike knew Ponyville better than he gave himself credit for. With a good amount of daylight to spare, he had covered almost all of Ponyville. He spent a sizeable span of time going to, from, and doubling away from Carousel Boutique in hopes of getting some “alone time’ with Rarity, but his bashfulness did not permit him to do much beyond reaching his claw up to her door to knock. After his ninth time of stopping cold on the welcome mat, Spike thought “Maybe when I’m more ready,” and resumed his search for fun-filled frolic. He also devoted a few hours to watching the schoolfoals spend their bit allowances over at the open air arcade. One colt was even gracious enough to share his bit stash with him for a few games of Smash-It Stallion; regrettably, he was not gracious enough to go easy on the young librarian. “I’ll get you next time, Mash! You’ll see what thumbs can do in an arcade!,” Spike intoned jovially as the latter was led home by his mother. Fun as it was, the pudgy little dragon was once again left with nothing but time on his claws. The sun continued to shine high above, confirming that his curfew was still a longways off. With little else to do and an increasingly vacant stomach, he headed for Sweet Apple Acres in hopes of chatting up Applejack (and probably getting a free snack for his efforts). Instead of the familiar orange mare, he was greeted by a smaller yellow filly; in addition to her pink bow, she wore two small baskets at the sides of her barrel. Apple Bloom seemed to be in high spirits, given her energetic skip and ever-present beam. “Howdy, Spike! What brings ya ‘round th’ farm? Big Mac asked me to work some o’ th’ fields today! Ah feel like a right apple farmer now!,” she said cheerfully. “Uh, AB, don’t you always do this? I mean, you DO live here.” Spike was quite nonplussed by his friend’s giddiness for manual labor. “Not by mahself, Ah don’t! Mah brother n’ sister are awful busy cleanin’ up all the Acres for the family reunion comin’ up, so they finally let me pull some more weight ‘round here. It’s the best!” “Well, there goes that quick snack I was hoping for,” Spike mumbled to himself. While he didn’t particularly dislike talking to Apple Bloom, he knew that he had better things to do than talk about cutie marks. Conversations with any of the Crusaders often lead to discussions about very long and overly involved methods to acquire the ever elusive flank symbols. Not one to forsake his manners, Spike flashed a winning smile at the little Apple, wished her luck on her work, and turned around to make his way back to the town proper. Before he could even make five steps away, his stomach betrayed him with a mighty growl. *guuuuuuuurrggggllee* “Oh, horseapples.” “Ha ha! Somehow, Ah knew that was gonna happen. No shame in getting’ a little famished, Spike. Here – Ah’ll just tell Applejack I needed a snack.” Apple Bloom went ahead and grabbed one of the red fruits from her saddle basket and tossed it towards her friend. Spike wasn’t sure what happened next; it was difficult to process. Apple Bloom swung her head to toss him the apple; he assumed she was at least aiming at his chest, but she hit him square in the face instead. “Hey! What’s the big ide-…?!” He was unable to finish the thought, as his would-be assailant had vanished through a filly-sized hole in the ground. Only a plume of black dust had been where she was standing. Spike was frozen in place. The last time he saw a pony get dragged down into an earthen abyss was two years ago when he had been helping Rarity find gems in the woods… He was brought back to reality by Winona’s mad barking, a distraught “What in tarnation is goin’ on here?” from Applejack, and the thundering hooves of a feverishly digging Big Macintosh. A gentle shake from Granny Smith restored his ability to speak. He rushed to Applejack, all but blubbering “Apple Bloom, apple, face, ground, gone, dogs! Applejack, it’s the Diamond Dogs! THEY’RE BACK!”
IIThe residents of Ponyville were livid. Along with Apple Bloom, five other ponies had vanished: Mrs. Cup Cake, Sweetie Belle, Scootaloo, Blossomforth, and Heart Strings. Why the dogs would be digging through a pony settlement wasn’t the only mystery. Surely this was just the beginning? Were these abductions simply the beginning of a complete hostile takeover? “The horror! THE HORROR!,” screamed a flower-peddling pink pony as panic began to overtake the streets. Doors and windows were being shut and terrified ponies sought sanctuary on elevated places like table tops and bookshelves. Diamond dogs were known for their avarice of precious jewels and shiny objects but weren’t a huge problem, owing to their tendency to stay inside old mines and gem fields, both locations usually far from anypony. What had suddenly pushed them to forge ahead into a large community like this? Mayor Mare, Judge Mint, and Honest Decree had summoned Twilight Sparkle and the other Element bearers to town hall to discuss the rash of sudden ponynappings and what might be done about it. “What do we know about the victims?,” asked Twilight, scroll and quill gripped in her magic. “We need to get our facts straight before running into this head first.” “Forgive me for being hasty, darling, but these… these… BRUTES, have my SISTER! Every second we spend here planning could have terrible repercussions for her and the others!” Rarity had mascara running down her porcelain features. She had been awoken from her afternoon beauty rest by shattering dishes and the tell-tale scream of her sister. “Rarity’s right, Twi! We should just go down there, hooves swingin’!” Applejack’s distress and concern had slowly been peaking into anger and frustration. She and Big Macintosh spent half an hour trying to get to their little sister through the pit but found their progress blocked by unyielding black stones. Rainbow Dash was next to put her hoof down. “Can’t we just flood the tunnels or something? I’m sure I can funnel enough rain clouds down there!” “And probably drown the critters who have made their home down there? Or possibly even the hostages? Rainbow, girls, please – we have to do this Twilight’s way. It’s the only we thing we can do to keep this from getting worse!” Fluttershy rarely raised her voice, especially to her friends, but the situation was getting too tense. The other three mares were starting to become irrational. A firm stare down served to calm her friends, if only for a little while longer. Even Pinkie Pie wasn’t her usual jovial self. She sat in one spot, kneading her temples, eyes closed in deep concentration. “Darling, are you alright? You haven’t said a peep since we got here,” asked Rarity, already regaining some of her poise after Fluttershy’s plea. “Mmmhmm,” answered the party throwing mare. There was something missing, something Twilight and the Ponyville officials hadn’t asked… Spike hung back, listening to his friends go back and forth over every minor detail in the incidents. The victims had all been in separate locations, performing nothing out of the ordinary. Heart Strings was reading on a park bench, Apple Bloom was helping move the harvested apples into the cellar, Sweetie Belle was trying to cook her sister some brunch inside the Boutique, Scootaloo was waiting for Rainbow Dash outside the latter’s cloud home to ask her to hang out, Blossomforth had been heading watering some of her flower patches along the outskirts of town, and Mrs. Cake was making some crepes inside the kitchen. He had been asked extensively, first by Applejack, then Rarity, then Rainbow, then Twilight about what he had seen. Apple Bloom – no Apple Bloom. Black dust. His instincts told him something terrible was afoot, so Spike tried convincing Twilight to ask the princesses for the Elements of Harmony back. The monarchs agreed but informed them of a delay in their request. The Elements were Equestria’s greatest defense after all and great care had to be taken for their transit. Both Celestia and Luna made it clear that both of them would come to Ponyville once the necessary precautions were taken. “Alright, I think I have it! We can do what Rainbow suggested, but we have to control the flow of water. Dash will provide the waterworks while Applejack, Rarity, and I use magic and some digging of our own to direct our offense. Fluttershy, we need you and your critters to help us map out the cave systems that were dug out from under us. Think you can handle that?” Twilight wore a steely look of determination. Her initial fact sheet had now tripled in length and quadrupled in number. “I’ll see what I can do,” came the quiet, determined reply from Fluttershy. “Pinkie Pie, I’ll need your help with crowd control. You’re the only pony who knows this village well enough to keep everypony under watch… Pinkie?” The purple unicorn was confused. Pinkie Pie usually had more gusto, especially if it required her to be all over the place. Instead of a reply however, the mares were met with a loud gasp from their friend. “Oh my gosh, you guys! I figured it out! Heartstrings is Twilight, Sweetie and Apple Bloom are their sisters, Blossomforth is Fluttershy, and Mrs. Cake is me!” “Pinkie, you’re makin’ about a much sense as a blizzard in July! What're you goin’ on about?” Spike was genuinely curious about Pinkie’s theory. The mares taken were supposed to be his friends? Didn’t Diamond Dogs hunt by scent? No way they could have fumbled with their targets. Before anypony could say anything, there was a terrible shaking. Then a long fall into pitch blackness.
III“You’ve failed me yet again, Twilight…” “All you do is wipe the smiles from everypony’s faces…” “The farm is gone and it’s all your fault, Applejack…” “I’m sorry, Miss Dash, but you’ll never be able to fly again…” “I don’t need anything from you, you pathetic excuse for a dressmaker…” “You can’t stay here anymore. You’re scaring all the animals away…” “Spike?! SPIKE!” Spike was jolted awake by his adoptive sister’s irritated voice. What did he do this time? Twilight had never sounded this cross with him for oversleeping. Heck, she expected it so much, she kept it on her daily itinerary. Come to think of it, why was he so tired? Wasn’t it his day off yesterday? Or was it tomorrow? And even then, there was that awful dream… He’d dreamt before, but never with so many voices going on at once. In his sleep, he was usually limited to trips to lands made of candy and ice cream (with or without Rarity) or repeating the day’s events in random sequence. He wasn’t gifted with lucid dreaming like Twilight – stories about dream-weaving typically ended with a disappointed sigh from her. “Are you STILL in that basket of yours? Get up before I throw you out with it!” “Alright, I’m up, I’m up!,” he replied as he scrambled out of bed. Oddly enough, he wasn’t beside Twilight’s bed – his basket was placed inside the kitchen. The terrible-smelling, dilapidated kitchen. It felt damp and reeked of mold and wet dog. “You lazy, little freak. You’re never good for anything. Be glad the princess exiled the both of us out here. If it were all up to me, I’d have kicked you out months ago.” Spike whirled around to look Twilight in the eye. He wanted to see her face as she said those painful words. She had never once spoken to him with such disdain. Her voice had been so icy… so guttural… so…deep? The baby dragon regretted his actions immediately. Before him stood a warped version of the mare he once knew. Her horn was snapped off at the base, blood caked on her face. Her mane and coat were dull and unkempt, like she had been living in the worst possible conditions. The most striking feature were her eyes, pitch black and sunken, leaking green mist from the outer edges. “I HATE YOU, SPIKE! YOU TOOK EVERYTHING AWAY FROM ME!,” it shrieked as it lunged at him with wild abandon. “Gah! Get away! Leave me alone!” Spike found new strength in his legs, jumping out of his basket and making a mad scramble for the door. Looking over his shoulder, he saw the Twilight monster shambling in his direction. While not particularly fast, its menacing form was more than enough to cause the dragon to re-double his efforts to escape. Spike nearly crashed through the front door of the library, fear engulfing him. His breath was ragged and his eyes started to burn, his vision slowly blurring. As he continued to run away from the library, he couldn’t help noticing the terrible state of the village. Houses appeared to be collapsing under their own weight, the trees appeared jagged and blackened, and the ground was covered in rocky outcroppings. The few ponies out in the open looked as feral as Twilight had been, only they were covered in chains and focused completely on digging into the hard rock they stood on. Focusing his gaze upward, Spike was startled to see the sky’s orange hue untouched by all the malice around him. Instead of blanketing the horizon like usual however, it had been confined into a tiny circle. The borders of this new atmosphere looked similar to the mouth of a predator, sharp rocks mimicking the teeth of a timberwolf. Tall spires of rock and grime surrounded all of Ponyville, reaching their apex in the great maw that appeared to consume the sun. As scared and confused as he was, Spike noticed that his vision cleared up almost immediately after he looked up. Maybe if he could get everypony to do the same, he might get some much needed aid. He had skidded to a halt, just short of the middle of town. “I KNOW YOU’RE OUT THERE, DRAGON! YOU CANNOT ESCAPE ME!” The monster from the library didn’t sound any closer, but it had dropped all pretence of pretending to be Twilight Sparkle. The menace in its voice sounded raw and unfocused – like it was in pain. With no real plan, Spike decided to enter the tallest building in Ponyville – Town Hall. “If I can make it outside, maybe I can get some help! Yeah! The princesses are on their way with the Elements! They’ll figure something out! Yeah!” He pushed the heavy doors open, almost getting flattened by one as it fell off its hinges. His plans fell short immediately however. In the middle of the room was another monstrous mouth of stone. Peering into the darkness, Spike saw some figures moving around the prison, shuffling about aimlessly, raising their heads to moan silently into the sky. Making his way forward to get a better look, Spike braced himself for the worst. The still very clear memory of the pseudo-Twilight was burned into his mind. It’s terrible eyes, unseeing yet focused wholly on his tiny frame, the drool pooling from out its gritted teeth… “No!,” he said. His voice echoed through the empty building, repeating his own message back to him. “I have to be brave. I’m the only one who can stop all of this. My friends are counting on me. Everypony is.” With newfound resolve, Spike stepped closer to the central structure. He almost dropped to the floor from what he saw. Rarity. Applejack. Pinkie. Rainbow. Fluttershy. And yes, even Twilight. They were all inside, moving around with no direction, their eyes dull and streaming constantly with tears. Their faces were a mixture of depression and horror. Every now and again, they would stop dead in their tracks to howl silently in anguish. “What could possibly do this?,” Spike said as he recoiled. “NOT ‘WHAT.’ ‘WHO.’” Spike spun around, coming face to face with the fake Twilight. Its face, while no longer contorted into a mass of hysterical rage, was still wearing a terrible scowl. Black crystals had taken the place of its coat and its mane was receding, giving way to a plume of black smoke. It no longer had hooves, instead sporting jagged talons on massive paws. The ground it stood on continually birthed small spikes of rock and crystal. “Forgive me,” it boomed, its voice laced with poorly hidden malice. “I couldn’t help myself. Part of me really wants to kill you.” Speaking, it gave Spike full view of its sharp fangs. “A-are you a… a d-diamond dog?,” Spike asked. “Stall and buy some time, find out what this thing wants,” he thought to himself. “I am and yet, so much more. As you can see, I have harnessed the dreaded magic of the unicorns. I am more powerful than any of my kind there has ever been.” It grumbled a steady laugh, its mask falling completely off. It now had the long snout of a timberwolf, made of rock and debris. Its eyes, cold and gleaming, betrayed both cruelty and rationality. “I left the caves in search of treasure. Instead, I found cold and was almost claimed by death. Instead, I discovered power. The power to take what I deserve. All the gems and crystals I could get my claws on.” Its ethereal mane pulsed with glee. It leered at Spike, flaring its fangs at him and began to drool again. “You. I don’t like you. You make me feel… make me remember bad things.” “Bad things?,” Spike found himself asking. It was speaking its monologue so well just some minutes ago. Even its posture had changed, hunching over while it glared at him with those eyes. “My pack spoke of this place - how it has ponies that take our jewels. They passed around stories of six: a fast flyer, an animal caretaker, a farmer, a bookworm, a baker, and the dreaded dressmaker.” Sparks of magic came out of its eyes, making the cornered dragon press his back into the rock prison behind him. The beast came close, its crag lips curled back eerily far along its snout. “I took them for my pack. Used my power. But then they laughed." The creature flinched, a sudden pulse of energy streaming down from its smoky mane. "Laughed at me. Say me wrong. Say me have bum nose and me useless,” it said, closing its eyes tightly. “But me show them! Me make all caves mine! All jewels mine! Then come back and fix what me do!” Its speech degenerating, the monster seemed to ignore the purple dragon inches from its muzzle; Spike began to look around for a means of escape. He couldn’t do anything for himself or his friends from inside this thing’s belly. The banisters hung low, but not enough for him to climb. The doors and windows were so far away. Given how this thing snuck up on him, it was going to be impossible to get away from it for long. “Me make whole village mine! Sniffles deserve it! TAKE IT ALL!,” it cackled loudly, laughing like a rabid beast. The sombre tone it had was replaced my high-pitched giggling. Mad laughter echoed through the structure… And stopped. The beast had frozen in place, head thrown back and its mouth frozen open in glee. Smoke continued to pour out of its eyes. Spike approached it and gave it a wary push. It didn’t even budge. “Oookay. That was… insanely scary.” “Spike? Spike, is that you?,” came a familiar voice from behind him. “Twilight?! Are you alright?” “Spike, I’m s-scared. I c-can’t see anything!” Twilight’s voice didn’t have its normal tone. She was whimpering, barely able to string her words together. “I disappointed the princesses…” “Twilight, you’re trapped in some sort of creepy spell! Snap out of it!,” Spike shouted, clawing at the crystals that trapped his friends. Twilight gave no answer, having slid back into simply shuffling about and screaming in silence. “No… Twilight…” “So… hungry…,” came a new voice. The baby dragon turned to see that “Sniffles” had again changed. His body was thin and skeletal, leaking black smoke from every orifice. Its teeth had grown even further, changing its mouth into a tangle of pointy rocks. Its eyes now burned red and green, all attention focused on the defenseless reptile in front of him. Most strikingly, it had grown a new appendage. Spike could hardly believe what he was seeing. The monstrous creature had King Sombra’s red horn affixed to its forehead.
IV“Holy guacamole!,” Spike shouted as he dodged another attack from the hell beast. The horned monstrosity was tenacious, but rather clumsy. All of the prowess it exuded while cornering the baby dragon had been replaced by simple feral hunger. It lunged at Spike, throwing its entire body into its attacks. For once in his life, Spike was thankful for his diminutive size. While he didn’t have the same grace as say, Fluttershy, he managed to keep away from the demon. He received cuts and bruises from falling on his belly every now and again, but he was otherwise fine. Unfortunately, he could feel the fatigue setting in. His thighs were starting to ache significantly. Looking up from his prone position, he realized his proximity to the door. “Yes!,” he exclaimed, running towards the outdoors. Landing on his feet, Spike surveyed the area. The stone walls were still standing, accentuating the bright full moon shining directly over them. The spellbound ponies seemed to have stopped their labors, but had not fared much better than when he had seen them. “Grrraaaaaaarrrggh!,” roared the beast, still pursuing its quarry, not losing any speed despite its crumbling skeletal form. “I don’t think I can play keep-away for much longer than this! Aaah!” Spike led his predator on a long chase throughout Ponyville, using his knowledge of shortcuts and twisting paths to keep the latter astray. His heart pumped faster than ever before. All the while, he kept on thinking of a plan. “No magic, no Elements, no Crystal Heart – what the heck am I supposed to do?” After what seemed like eternity, Spike had circled his way back to Town Hall for the ninth time. Around the sixth run or so, he could no longer hear any growling or slathering from his pursuer. Unable to help himself, he sat down. “Come on, Spike, think! What would my friends do?” He massaged his temples, recalling what had happened before in the Crystal Empire. “You’d think they might have noticed an entire village being eaten by now! What do they need a sign saying “HELP” on top of… the…” “That’s it! I can send a message to the princesses! I just need some paper and some ink!” Spike made a beeline for Couches and Quills; he didn’t want to risk going back to Golden Oaks, given its current status. He weaved his way through the buildings, hopping over stalls and under the frozen ponies for good measure. Apple Bloom had told him some time ago while they were playing hide-and-seek with Winona: “Dogs follow their noses. If ya wanna beat Winona, you’ll have ta mess with her first!” While this wasn’t an easy-going game with a tame pet like Winona, he had little else to go on. After passing under three different ponies (he even recognized one as the sofa clerk) and at least six stalls, he finally made it into Couches and Quills. The place looked about as rundown as the rest of Ponyville but its interior didn’t have the same stench of wet dog like the library had. “Please, oh please, oh please… Yes!,” he yelled upon seeing toppled stacks of paper and some stoppered wells. “I can finally put an end to this craziness!” Spike wrote feverishly onto one of the few dry scrolls he could get. He didn’t even bother with quills anymore – he scrawled messily with his right claw. Unlike the letters he had penned for Twilight, this felt maddeningly urgent. No time for proper syntax or salutations here! “DANGER IN PONYVILLE! SOMBRA’S HERE!” Rolling up the small sliver, Spike peered outside, looking to see if the coast was clear. Seeing and hearing nothing, he stepped outside. “Here goes,” he said, before pulling in a deep breath and expelling a steady stream of green smoke. His written message burned to a crisp, becoming a thin wisp of magical smoke. It snaked whimsically from his claws and made it to the opening above… Before stopping and speeding down to south of where he stood. A few seconds later, he heard an ear-piercing howl. “Oh, horseapples.” Steeling himself, Spike grabbed two more inkwells and a ball of papers before making a break for it. “Oh, man! Why didn’t that work?!” Again, he snaked his way throughout Ponyville, electing instead to send his message from above ground level. “The schoolhouse, maybe? Should be tall enough!” Stubby legs swinging to and fro, the little dragon ran past the mesmerized denizens of Ponyville; some had started digging again. Out the corners of his eyes, he could see shadows following him from alleyways and corners. The Sombra-infected dog appeared to be regaining its grip on his hometown. Spike leaped over the half-door into the school, upturned some desks for good measure, and clambered up into the chamber where the school bell was housed. Standing as close as he could to the edge, he once again scrawled the same message onto a sliver of paper and blew. The smoke didn’t even get half an inch away from Spike’s face before zipping straight down and into the school’s front door. Fearing the worst, the little dragon tucked into a ball and jumped towards the ground below. He plummeted into the hard dirt, sending a pangs up his spine. “I am so feeling this in the morning,” he said as he unfurled and made his last effort to send a call for help. The darkness made it hard to navigate, but Spike knew where he was going. He didn’t zigzag his way through town anymore; the monster was probably too close for it to work. No, he made a beeline for the highest point in the city – the clock tower. *Huff* Two more steps. *Huff* One more step. *Huff* “Made… it…!” The tired dragon would have been perfectly satisfied to collapse on the wooden floor right there and then, but he knew he had a job to do. He had made it to the top of the clock tower, tackling the stairs by foot to make it inside the great mechanism itself. Along the way, he had figured out one last gambit to play. Opening the latched door embedded on the clock face, Spike prepared his last two pieces of paper. He breathed deep and incinerated one. As expected, the ash stopped just short of his nose, preparing to zoom away and tell on him. “Gotcha,” he thought. Both times, he managed to notice it – a short delay before his messages revealed his whereabouts to his hunter. Before it whizzed away, the dragon blew another burst of flame onto his second paper. Unlike its predecessors, this one followed the more familiar path up and away from its sender, hopefully to Canterlot. Sadly, no sigh of relief could be had. Spike couldn’t think about it at the time but he knew: the decoy zipped right behind him. Every failed attempt to call for help had brought his own end ever closer. “Be brave, Spike. This is for your friends.” “Noble, but foolish,” intoned a new voice. It wasn’t as monstrous as the beastly diamond dog, nor as shrill when the former began to lose its mind. This was a deep, sinister voice – one of pure malice. “The dog was a poor host. It couldn’t handle its own greed. I sped up the inevitable.” Spike closed the door – even he couldn’t survive a jump from this height. Turning around, it took immense will not to simply curl up into a ball and hide. He wanted to show this monster that it had failed to scare him, even if it could kill him. The chamber was bristling with shadows in various terrifying shapes: dragons, manticores, serpents, chimeras. In the small space in front of him stood King Sombra in full regalia, pulsing crystals intermittently growing and sloughing off his frame. Just like in the Crystal Empire, he wore a smile of cruel dominance. “You won’t win, Sombra,” the dragon said in defiance. He held his head high to look the spectral tyrant eye-to-eye. “You’re not getting your throne back.” “Little one, I do not hunger for my old throne. I can simply take another in its stead.” The hungry look returned to the shadow pony’s face as he licked his lips. “What you and the Crystal Princess took, I can replace. You owe me a new kingdom… and a new body.” “A new body?” Spike faltered. The shadowy figures were weaving an ever tighter circle around him. The king lunged forward, pinning the young dragon under his hooves. “I cannot imagine how powerful I can become as a dragon!” Once again, Spike was plunged into gloom.
V“My lord, you’ve slept in. You’re kingdom needs you.” “Rarity? Is that you? Where… am I?” “You are where you belong, sire. In your castle. With me.” Spike shifted to the side and off his bed, a large mattress made specifically for his comfort. He walked towards his radiant wife and kissed her on the lips. “Of course, Rarity. This is where I belong.” "Yes, sire. Yes, indeed." Rarity's voice was flat, completely lacking any or all dramatic flare. "Your hoard continues to grow outside. It would do good to remind your slaves of who rules them." A familiar twinge of joy spiked in the dragon's heart. "My hoard..." It felt alien, yet so right to say those words. "I want to see it. I want to see what's mine." He navigated the dark halls out of his bedchamber to step onto the balcony and confirm the truth spoken by his queen. Oddly, despite his exhilaration, his heart beat was slow and nearly indistinguishable. Stepping out onto the veranda, the great conqueror took in the view around him. The skies were bathed in a satisfying blood red, stretching as far as the eye can see. Peals of black lightning decorated the heavens. His castle towered over the vast region of his new Crystal Empire, taken from the hooves of the “royal pony sisters.” Draconia was all his. The greed he had once suppressed filled his being, made him swell with pride. With greed came power and everything he could have ever wanted. He had all the gems he could eat, the love of his queen, and the unabashed fear from all of his subjects. This was his dream… Wasn’t it? Once upon a time, his dream was to live out his days with his friend and sister Twilight. He dreamed of winning the heart of the most generous mare he ever had the privilege of meeting. He dreamed of having the power to protect all he had held dear. He opened his mouth, but could not bring himself to say a word. The ponies below raised their eyes to him, but no one could see past the black ink and smoke. Had they any reason to cheer for him, no sound would have been heard. The king turned to look at his wife for strength, but found nothing in her vacant smile. Her eyes may have been clear, but her stare stretched for miles beyond him. She wasn’t really in love with him... "This was a gift from my dear friend, Spike-Wikey - the kindest, most generous dragon I know... and I am NOT giving it to a brute like you!" Wait a second - she wasn’t even really there! He wasn’t the feared conqueror of Draconia! Greed never got him anything beyond shame. He could feel the pulse of life, of wakefulness, creeping out from his chest again. In that instant, his voice returned and he addressed the multitudes gathered beneath him. “My name is Spike! Ponyville is my home! And no one is taking it away from me!” Spike’s eyes snapped open. Sombra was in his mind, making him want to BE him. Luckily, the transition breaking caused the melding of consciousness to stop. He was still being pinned to the floor, but something had changed. All the shadows were gone and only the unmoving monarch remained. His horn was inches away from the dragon’s face. Turning his head up towards the clockface, Spike could see streams of light pouring in from outside. “Ha ha! It worked! What do you say to that, Smokey? In a few seconds, the princesses’ll be here to wipe the floor with your sorry butt!” As if to reply, the unicorn lurched and fell to the side, shattering into countless pieces. “Whoa. Well, that was easy.” Twilight’s number one assistant sat up and dusted himself off. He was still terribly tired from running all over Ponyville. If the sun had already come out, then the princesses must have already taken care of things. It would certainly explain why Sombra just up and broke like he did. “You! YOU'RE MINE!” Or not. Spike’s eyes had long adjusted to the dark thanks to spending nearly twenty-four hours inside a pit. He silently thanked his heritage as he spotted the red spike making a beeline for his heart. He managed to clasp both hands together onto the crystal before it could pierce him. Perhaps seeing his plans being thwarted yet again, Sombra doubled his efforts to drive his horn into the young drake. Spike’s claws raked along the red barb, his fatigued muscles straining under the magical force. The unicorn's disembodied voice could still be heard, chanting “Mine” over and over again. Spike was trapped by the jagged fragment, slowly but surely piercing his scales. He could feel his blood being spilled. Any moment now, Equestria would have to deal with a threat even worse than Discord himself! Spike’s life began to flash before his eyes: his hatching, living and studying with Twilight in Canterlot, moving to Ponyville and meeting his friends, getting jealous of Owlowysious, the whole dragon migration debacle… “What was that word Twilight used? ‘Ironic?’ Yeah, that’s it.” Maybe Pinkie Pie had rubbed off on him more than he thought – he could still see the humor in being done in by a gem. A gem? A plan formed in the drake’s head. One even Rainbow Dash would find crazy. Redirecting the last of his strength, Spike grasped Sombra’s horn in his talons, mustering all his force to aim the disembodied appendage to his face… And crushed the evil artefact in his jaws. “You did what?,” asked Cadance. She had come all the way from her throne in the Crystal Kingdom to visit the recuperating mares in Canterlot. “Nothing at all. It’s Spike you should be congratulating.” Twilight, hooked up to a ventilator and an IV, looked absolutely radiant. She was very proud of her little brother. “A baby dragon defeating Sombra twice in a row. Shining would be green with envy,” Cadance intoned. She was wearing an immaculate smile, happy that her friends had survived another onslaught. "Oh, I'm sure he'll get over it. After all, he got the girl... even if he was the one in distress," Celestia's student replied. Ponyville was recovering quite nicely after the recent assault. Both Luna and Celestia managed to pull the village out of the earth with their geomancy and were still busy remolding the earthen spears that had hidden it from their eyes. Pulling the sunken mass of rock from out of the caverns had loosened the evil magic's foothold; both sisters were relieved that Spike had survived up until that long. The corrupting influence of Sombra’s shadows gradually dissipated over the coming days. Buildings regained their structure and the flora and fauna slowly returned. The enthralled citizens had no ill side-effects aside from sore hooves and blurry vision. The sun and moon were terribly welcome sights to everypony. It was as if nothing happened at all. Spike looked out the window of his room at the infirmary. “Figures. Save the country twice and nothing to show for it,” he joked. He could hardly believe it himself. In the instant he chomped down on the cursed horn, he felt anger and greed well up inside of him like never before... Before promptly expelling what was left of the ghost king in a plume of green flame and gas. It was quite the ending to an already stupendous turn of events. “Speak for yourself, Spike!,” declared a squeaky voice. Sweetie Belle, fully recovered from her ordeal, had entered his room. “Hey, Sweetie Belle! Nice of you to come by again,” replied Spike weakly. While he didn’t suffer any ill effects from eating the source of an evil phantom, he was still bedridden from all the exhaustion. While he was glad to have regular visitors, he couldn't hide the slight disappointment in his voice. Sweetie Belle was no Rarity. “We’re taking turns, Rarity and me. She has a new surplus of onyx she needs to keep in check. You know sis – always sees opportunity.” “Ha ha. Sounds just like her.” Things were slipping back into place. He had been smiling a lot after the incident. He found just making eye contact with ponies and talking with them was a tremendous comfort. “And like I said, we all remember the nightmares, Spike. We’re really grateful to you for doing what you did.” She punctuated her statement with a peck to his cheek. “That was from Rarity, by the way,” she grinned cheekily at him. Spike rubbed the cheek dreamily, head already up in the clouds. He suspected that he would be spending his sleep inside a manor of candies and treats, his companion a beautiful white unicorn with a penchant for fashion. “I’ll take it.”
PrologueThe night sky still bore the chromatic show of the day’s events – beautiful colors skated across the heavens, as if to celebrate the freedom of the Crystal Empire. Ponies of all shapes and sizes celebrated the momentous occasion with a festival that rivalled even the Royal Wedding of Shining Armor and Mi Amore Cadenza. Their smiles and laughter served to accentuate their crystalline image, bringing out the stunning gloss of their gem-like facades. The freedom of the Crystal Empire continued to be celebrated even as the six bearers of the Elements of Harmony left for their own homes. Their small companion, a purple baby dragon, was still shocked by the day’s events. “Man,” he thought to himself. “The ponies back home will NEVER believe this!” Despite his own disbelief, Spike let his waddle grow into a spirited jaunt. “Hey, Twilight! Race ya back to the seats!” ================================================================================= As night fell across the snowy expanse surrounding the empire, a lone figure loped clumsily across the white plains. The protective spell that kept the ponies under the watchful eyes of the sun and moon was not meant to afford protection to those unfortunate enough to brave the biting cold. A diamond dog, a true runt for the species, had heard rumors amongst his kin of an entire land made of nothing by gems and crystals. Even the creatures living there were made of jewels… all too easily ripe for the taking. And so with nothing but a ragged collar and a hastily made cloak, he rushed off in search of glory and treasure. “Will show them! Make new pack! Find more gems than ever! Make them see they wrong about nose!” His pack had let him go on this foolhardy errand, all tired of the bungling mutt and his inability to distinguish even the most basic of odors. “No loss,” they plotted among themselves. “Get rid of runt, fewer jewels to share.” They plastered false grins on their muzzles as they loudly shared stories of gems that towered over trees and had shined brighter than any star, sure that the excitable nuisance would take the bait. Not one of them expected the cur to return with a bite to back up his once meek bark. Even the stray couldn’t predict the power and the insatiable greed he was bestowed by the single jewel he did find. A normal Diamond Dog would have stayed away. He would have trusted his nose. The mongrel didn’t know any better, of course. All he saw was a blood red crystal buried in the ice. All for him to make his and his alone.
