Ripper, Clan Honor Warrior

"Over here Spike!" a musical voice called out, interrupting the natural serenity of the gem fields.

"Coming Rarity!" the young voice of a boy answered.

Rarity and Spike were working under the early afternoon sun, trying to get as many precious gems as they could before the day was out.

Rarity had a large order to fill, and her current gem supply just wouldn't cut it. So, the only logical solution was to get more. Simple as pie.

"Where are they?" Spike asked.

The white unicorn pointed a hoof at the ground just barely a meter in front of her. "A large cache of them are just under the surface here, Spike," she told him with a smile. She appreciated everything he was doing for her. Mostly because she could never have done as much as him by herself. But also because, even though she knew it was ridiculous, she knew how much he cared for her. And knowing that, she just couldn't not let him help her. It was a little selfish, yes. But it made him happy.

"I'm on it!" he said with a wide smile. He bent down and tore at the soft ground with his claws, making short work of the soil covering up the gems.

After a few seconds small purple arm shot up, holding half a dozen tiny gems in its palm. "I got 'em!" Spike yelled from the hole he was in.

"Very good Spike," Rarity said as she levitated a small, white kerchief over her forehead, wiping away small beads of sweat. She looked to the sky. "Oh my, it seems we've been at this longer than I thought." She looked at the small purple and green dragon climbing out of the hole. "I do believe it's time for a break."

Spike looked at her with a smile. "Lunch time?"

"Yes," she said with a nod, "it's lunch time."

***

"Can you pass the ketchup?" Spike asked as he swallowed a mouthful of hay fries.

Rarity nodded, levitating the red bottle over to him. She was busy chewing a particularly delicious daisy and daffodil sandwich and couldn't speak. It was unladylike to talk with your mouth full.

"Fanmksh!" Spike said through a mouth full of fries. He squirted the bottle into his mouth and chewed loudly.

Rarity visibly shuddered as she saw this. Spike may be cute and friendly, but sometimes he could really be quite disgusting.

But other than Spike's eating habits, nothing of note happened during their lunch break. Well, that is until...

Spike blinked. "Did you feel that?" he asked the purple maned pony.

She looked at him in confusion. "Feel... what, exactly?"

"I don't know..." he said, scratching his head. "It almost felt like... There it is again!"

Rarity looked around the small area they were resting in. She could neither feel, nor see anything that could be-

"AAAHHHHH!!!" Rarity screamed as the ground beneath her vanished, causing her to plummet into a dark, dirty hole that was at least four meters in diameter.

"Rarity!" Spike yelled after her. He was about to jump in after her, but a huge, clawed paw struck out, smashing into his chest hard and launching him almost ten meters back. He crashed into a tree, making it tremble with the force of his impact. The pain was unimaginable. Tearing, splitting, searing pain all through his body.

Then... everything went black.

***

"Spike!"

The voice was distant, like it came to Spike from a great distance. His head hurt, he couldn't feel left arm, and there was something wet on his side and stomach.

"Spike! Spike please, wake up!"

"Ughh..." Spike groaned, trying to open his eyes. His left eye refused to cooperate, but he did manage to crack open his right eye. Just barely. He saw Twilight. Twilight... and her friends.

"Spike!" Twilight yelled, tears in her eyes.

"Twi..." he rasped out. Then he broke into a fit of coughing, blood coming from his mouth.

They all stepped back, horror and shock clear on their faces and in their eyes.

Spike tried to stand up, but his strength failed him. He rolled his head to his side. His one eye widened at what he saw.

His left arm, the one without feeling, was gone. There was a bloody stump left in its place. The wet feeling from before was his own blood running down his side, making his scales glisten in the moonlight.

Moonlight...

It was dark out. But why was he here? Where was R-

"Rarity..." he groaned.

"Spike, what happened?" Twilight asked, her voice hoarse.

"Gems... Lunch... Rarity... Hole... Claw..." He gasped for air and coughed up more blood.

He felt hooves on him. He looked to see Twilight gently stroking his face, smiling at him through her tears.

"Shh, it's okay Spike. Just rest. We'll get you to the hospital and find somepony to take care of you. Just rest and save your strength. It'll be okay Spike, I'm here." She spoke in a soft voice, so as to sooth the damaged dragon.

"Twi... light... I... I... I..." Spike tried to speak. Tried to tell her what he needed to. But... it was too late.

Spike's vision faded out to darkness. He could no longer hear Twilight. Could no longer feel her hooves on him, stroking his frills.

Spike tried to take a breath, but it wouldn't come. He tried again, but no air would fill his lungs. His eye widened as panic set in. He needed to breathe! He needed air! He needed... He... He...

***

Twilight let out a sob as she realized that Spike had stopped breathing. His one open eye glazed over as it settled on some point off in the distance, forever unseeing.

"S- Spike," she choked out through her sobs.

"Twi?" asked a voice with a southern accent.

Twilight didn't move. She didn't react to the voice in any way.

"Twilight, Ah know that you're upset..."

"I'm not upset Applejack," Twilight said. She spun to face her friends. "I'm bucking furious!" she screeched, her voice cracking.

Applejack gulped audibly. "Yeah, Ah can see that. But, Twi," she said softly, "Whoever did this to Spike still has Rarity."

Twilight gasped as she heard this. Applejack was right. Rarity was still missing.

"We need to go find her!" Pinkie Pie yelled. "She's in danger and we would be bad friends if we let her get hurt."

She was right, of course. She looked at the body of Spike again. "Hole... He said something about a hole and claws. What has claws and lives in holes?" she asked the air around her.

Rainbow Dash gasped. "Those stinkin', no good Diamond Dogs!" exclaimed.

Twilight nodded slowly. "They took Rarity once, but she got away. But now... Now they're violent. Who knows what they might do to her if she resists?" She turned to face her friends. "Girls, we need to go save Rarity."

All of them nodded solemnly in agreement.

"Okay, now all we need to do is-" Twilight started.

"Hey! I found the the hole!" Pinkie yelled.

Twilight blinked. "Good job Pinkie."

They all crowded around the hole. This was it. They didn't know how many Diamond Dogs there were. They didn't know where Rarity was being held. They didn't even know if Rarity was still alive. But they had to believe. They had to believe that their friend was alive. They had to.

Pinkie jumped into the hole, followed closely by Rainbow, Applejack and a nervous Fluttershy.

Twilight looked over her shoulder one last time at the body of her best and oldest friend. Her number one assistant. A tear ran down the side of her face. "I'll come back for you, I promise," she whispered to the corpse. Then she jumped into the hole, flaring her wings and lighting up her horn so she could see ahead of her.