Three Years Ago...
On the shore of N. Sanity Island, washed up a extremely strange sight to behold. Within a large chunk of ice, was a blue mare, with a silver mane, a horn, and a magician's cutie mark. The mare herself had a look of anger on her face, frozen on there for who knows how long. The ice sat there, slowly melting in the sun. A few hours later, just as a few sea gulls came to rest on the cool cube, the unicorn's horn lit up with energy as it busted the ice in one pulse, sending the startled gulls blasting away into the clouds. The mare, now out of her prison, shook her head and stomped her hooves together.
"Twilight Sparkle and her annoying friends did this to me!" she fumed. She turned to look at the island, and as she sat there, she suddenly gathered an idea. "Hmm... perhaps this pathetic little island can be of use to the Great and Powerful Trixie!" she smirked. Using her magic, she picked up a small stick and began to trace on the ground. "If I had something she cared about, then she would finally admit to all of Equestria that I am the greatest unicorn!" She finished her drawing in the sand, and there sat a poorly drawn dragon with big, child-like eyes. "And I know just who that is," she grinned, stepping on the dragon and running off to who knows where, then falling on her face. "Ugh, why does that always happen?!" Trixie whined.
Vacation of His Dreams...
"Come on, Spike! It's time to go."
Spike woke up from his nap with a yawn. Twilight gently shook him so he would see that they were about to get off the ship to their vacation. Well, at least she called it a vacation. Really, Twilight would do what she always does; read up on some obscure history about their vacation spot, Try to conduct spell tests on different types of flowers, or just sit outside, stuffing her face full of hay fries. Spike knew it wasn't any different from their other "vacations", but this time was special. This was the time where he was allowed to go off on his own without anypony! Not to mention, his other friends Applejack, Pinkie, Fluttershy, Rainbow Dash, and especially Rarity, were coming along as well.
"Maybe now I can try to be romantic to Rarity without Twilight butting in," Spike thought to himself. As he fantasized about how he would win her heart, he was pushed along by Twilight's magic. As they stepped off the boat, the Captain waved them goodbye as he slowly left. With everypony on the sandy dunes, Spike tried to find his bags. He dug around in the pile of luggage, looking for his simple little backpack, full of gems to snack on, and ideas on how to woo Rarity. Among the things he dug through, he tossed out a case with balloons wrapped around the edge, which started to float into the sky. Before it could, though, Pinkie Pie plucked it out of the sky from seemingly out of nowhere, then returning to the ground with the case in her mane.
"Thanks, Spike!" she chirped, being her usual Pinkie self. She then bounced away to find her hut.
Spike, confused, just decided to keep digging around. He eventually managed to find everypony's bag or suitcase except his, making him groan. Just then, a hoof tapped him on the shoulder, as he turned around to see the most beautiful being in all of Equestria smiling at him.
"Excuse me, Spike," Rarity said, her voice as sweet as rubies to the little lovebird. "But would it be too much to ask if you could help me with my bags?" she said, batting her eyelashes as she looked at him. His little dragon heart melted instantly.
"Anything for you, Rarity," he drooled. He held out his hands to take her bag. Sadly, he failed to notice the bags that held above his head hanging by a blue glow, which promptly dropped on him. If it wasn't for his thick scales, he might have been crushed under all that weight.
"Why, Thank you, Spikey-Wikey!" she crooned. To Spike, it didn't matter if all the cake Celestia eats in an hour would've fallen on him. He would do anything for her. He slowly followed behind her, puffing from under the weight of the bags. Soon, the pair reached the quaint hut where Rarity would sleep. It wasn't big, Spike noticed, but he certainly seemed comfortable enough. He gently placed the bags down, while Rarity went into the kitchen of the home.
"I want to thank you for your kind help, Spike," she said. The dragon wondered what he could possibly be getting. A Kiss? Her undying love? A new iPod? He squirmed with anticipation. She came back in, holding a strange looking fruit. She held it out for him to examine.
"Do you like it? It's a strange type of gem found around this island," she Explained. "The natives here call it Wumpa Gems, and they grow like fruit on trees all around here. Maybe these could be something you can enjoy?" Spike eyed the jewel she held. He grabbed it, and slowly took a bite out of it. As soon as he did, flavor burst inside his mouth. He quickly ate the rest of the fruit, while Rarity watched in amusement.
"That was great! Thanks, Rarity!" he exclaimed. The unicorn smiled and nodded happily. Then, Spike remembered what he wanted to ask her. He gathered up his courage, then blurted out quickly, "Would you like to walk with me later?" Rarity looked surprised at his suddenness, but then gently raised his head as he looked down, embarrassed.
"Why, I would love to. Just let me unpack my things, and I promise that I will come join you." Spike's heart raced. She then added while she giggled, "It's a date." She was then hugged by the adorable dragon quickly, and then he ran off to go tell Twilight the good news.
"Man," he thought. "This is going to be an Awesome vacation."
Author's Note
Aloha, guys! Thanks for reading the first part! This is my first fic, so I hope you enjoy it. Anyways, how did you like it? I know this first part is slow, but believe me that it will get more exciting in the next part, where we actually get into the "Levels", so to speak. In any case, does anybody have suggestions for character roles? Here's the list so far:
Spike- Crash
Trixie- Cortex
Rarity- Cocco (You'll see why next part)
Chp. 2: Jungle Bungle
Getting Some Strength
Spike ran back to where Twilight said their hut was. Luckily, it was easy to tell which was his, considering she practically packed her entire library with her. All he had to do was find the one with towers of books at the doorway. When he ran inside, he saw Twilight setting up the beds and organizing her pen and quills for notes.
"Hey Twilight, I'm gonna go on a date with Rarity today!" he yelled to her, as he attempted to go to his room. Just then, a purple aura picked him up and turned him to face her.
"Oh, really? Sounds fun! Maybe I should invite the girls and we could all have a picnic." Spike immediately frowned and struggled to get out of her magic grasp. Sadly, she was to strong, and he simply held in place.
"No, Twilight! This is a date! As in, just me and her." Twilight looked as if ready to give a lecture to him, for the billionth time.
"Now, Spike, I know you want to go around the island, but you're just a-" she began, but then Spike tapped her horn when she got close enough, breaking the magic holding him up, as he fell to the floor.
"What, a baby dragon? Come on, Twi, you promised I could go out on my own now. I've gotten more responsible over the years." he said earnestly. "And besides, Rarity's going too. Don't you trust me?" Twilight looked a little guilty at that, remembering how she did promise her faithful assistant a chance to be his own dragon. She seemed to think in her head, then quickly remembered something and galloped away to get a box. When she returned, she pulled out a strange looking amulet, which reminded Spike of that freaky Alicorn Amulet Trixie wore a while ago.
"This is something Princess Celestia gave me in case you ever had to go somewhere without me," she explained as she wrapped it around his neck. Spike noticed the amulet was indeed in a similar style to the Alicorn Amulet, but this one had the color scheme of the solar princess herself. Immediately after it went on him, he felt some type of power going through his veins.
"W-what does it do?" asked Spike, interested.
"It gives the wearer a stronger physical prowess, as well as increasing any magic abilities. For you, that would be your fire breath," she stated. "I know I can't always be there for you, so this should help you defend for yourself. And if you get into serious trouble, Celestia can use some of her power to protect you." Spike wasn't sure what that last part meant, but he liked the idea of being stronger. To test this out, he tried to pick up his sister, which he could never do before. Surprisingly, he could pick her up without much strain, which he absolutely loved.
"Gah, put me down!" Twi cried out, flailing her hooves like an upset foal. Spike sheepishly put her down and chuckled. She sighed and then gave him a wary smile. "Alright, I trust you. Now be careful! I expect you to be back before sundown." she warned. Spike nodded and began to head out, just as she handed him his backpack he was searching for earlier.
"Thanks, Twi! I promise I'll be back before then. Before he would head to Rarity's, he decided to dig in the sand to find her a nice pearl to give her. Little did he know, a shadowed figure snuck by him, heading to the fashionista's house.
A Foolproof Disguise...
Rarity had just finished unpacking, and was planning to walk down to go meet Spike for their date. She even decided to wear a fancy getup, just for her Spikey-Wikey. Just behind some bushes, sat Trixie, beginning the first phase of the plan. She pulled out a book of spells to find one to take care of Rarity. She saw one to tickle an opponent.
"Too weak," she said. The next page showed one to engulf the target in flames.
"Too bright. besides, I need the costume," she sighed. The next page showed how to stun them for a few hours. She just skipped that and went to the next one, which showed how to vaporize them into dust.
"Uhh... no." she grimaced, switching back to the stun spell. She conjured it up, and shot it directly at the well dressed mare. The shot hit Rarity in the chest, causing her to spaz out and fall on the ground with a hilarious expression on her face. Trixie walked up to her and said, "Sleep well, my insipid angel..." as she began to take her clothes.
Jungle Bungle
As Spike found yet another old boot in the sand, he heard a heavenly voice approach him.
"Spike!" a squeaky voice called out, revealing to be Trixie wearing Rarity's clothes and a fake mane that resembled hers. Although the bad voice impression and terrible costume should've given it away, Spike was too deep in his own lovestruck mind to notice the difference. "There's something strange going on by the bay, come see!" she yelled out, then grinned evilly as she ran off to the ambush.
"Here I come, Rarity!" Spike said, as he scurried over to where the mare ran to. Suddenly, a familiar voice came from the amulet he was wearing.
"Hello Spike. It's me, Princess Celestia. I just wanted to tell you that I'm here to give you protection." The amulet spoke. "If you need my advice, just focus your fire breath on the amulet." Spike was understandably shocked. But to him, it was like the ruler of Equestria was his bodyguard. Nopony screws with Celestia, so there was no way anything could get in the way of his date.
"Uhh, thanks, Princess." he said as he ran off again. He noticed that there were various crates lining the ground. Some had question marks, some had arrows, and others had his face on them! He busted one open and found some more Wumpa Gems.
"Well, finders keepers," he said, putting the stones in his pack. While going through the trail, he noticed many ancient looking statues, depicting tiki faces that either held joy or contempt. He also noticed the flora was beautiful, with many shades of colors lining the tall trees. Once again, there were more crates that held goodies for the dragon. He decided then that all crates must be good. He jogged for a few more minutes, jumping past turtles or skunks that tried to run into him. He then reached a bridge where "Rarity" was standing, waiting for him.
"This way, Spikey!" she said as she jumped on the bridge, Then, she lost her balance and fell into the spiked pit below, leaving Spike with his jaw dropped. Just as he was about to cry, A figure teleported to the other side. It turned out to be "Rarity", whose mane was twisted backwards and makeup was smeared. "I'm...okay, the spikes broke my fall," she groaned, rubbing her sore flank. She then slowly limped to a strange tower that seemed to match the design of the tiki statues from earlier. Spike just shrugged his shoulders and went over to get a big surprise...
Author's Note
Alright, that's Jungle Bungle out of the way! Thanks for the people with character ideas so far. Keep 'em coming! In any case, Celestia/The Amulet of Alicorns is this story's Aku Aku, which was a divine mask who could take a hit for Crash in his series. Also, the reason it gives Spike strength and stronger magic was so he could get through some of the tougher areas later on, or the areas where he has to pick up and toss a certain somepony, since he is much smaller than anyone else.
EDIT: I decided to add the OST to the story, because 1. It helps you/me imagine the story easier, and 2. Twinsanity has a freaking amazing soundtrack. Here's to you, Spiral Mouth. :D
Chp. 3: Mecha Spike and Cavern Catastrophe
Sort of Like A Birthday Party...
Spike huffed as he struggled to get to the center of the strange tribal tower Rarity had just gotten to. It didn't take long for him to reach his date, but what he saw next made his jaw drop. Above him, he could see a few familiar faces glaring down at him, while "Rarity" laughed maniacally. He then heard a large thud as a gate locked him in this pit, surrounded with spikes.
"Surprised to see me, Spike?" said Trixie as she pulled off her Rarity outfit, returning to her normal voice. Spike gulped as he saw the unicorn lift herself into the air with magic. "Like that one muffin obsessed pegasus, I keep coming back" she grinned. "Three years I spent alone in that frozen prison, and I missed you!" as she cooed the last part with fake happiness.
"So I've organized a little gathering," the mare said, gesturing to the crowd of old enemies. "Sort of like a birthday party, except the EXACT opposite. And look, all of your friends are here." she mocked, as Spike got a clearer view. Above him, he saw Garble, the jerky teenage dragon he met on his dragon quest, and two of his cronies. Beside them was who he assumed was Iron Will, who Fluttershy had said was a bit of a bully when he made her "take nothing from nopony." Next in line was Pinkie Pie, holding a cake that said "Happy Birthday, Spike!" in frosting, and looking very confused.
"Are we at the right party, Spike?" she called down. She was then pushed aside by the cruel griffon, Gilda, who treated almost everypony like garbage when she visited. Strangely, Spike saw what looked to be his old pet phoenix, Peewee, looking down at him and holding a baseball bat menacingly. The last two villains were Queen Chrysalis and the Mane-iac, who was still wrapped around her own mane, bouncing around.
"You're very popular you know," Trixie mocked. "Why don't we start by handing out the gifts?" She then got into a stance, as she landed on a platform above the dragon. Spike felt sweat running down the side of his scales. How was he supposed to take on Trixie by himself? The other times, Twilight and the girls were there, but now... he was alone. She began by shooting out energy balls from her horn. Spike narrowly dodged the attack, but nearly fell off into the pit below. This occurred for multiple times, with no way for the dragon to hit her. He racked his brain, trying to find some sort of weakness. As the unicorn began her attack again, he noticed that most of the balls were red, while one she shot out was green.
"Hmm... maybe if I attack that, it could do something?" Spike mused. He decided it would be better than dancing around before getting impaled, so as the green sphere flew towards him, he punched it hard with his left claw. At first, he felt nothing, then he saw the green ball return to it's sender. It hit Trixie square in the jaw, making her fall on her back. "Must be that power boost from Celestia," Spike grinned, now knowing how to beat the fake magician.
"Ouch! How dare you hit the Great and Powerful Trixie with her own spells!" she snarled, creating more energy spheres to throw at him. She shot more rapidly, while Spike jumped up and down and all around to dodge them. Out of nowhere, she began to throw bombs at him, making the platform even smaller. "This one's from Gilda! Here's one from Garble... Oh, Chrysalis, you shouldn't have!" as Spike weaved in and out of range. He then saw more green spells, and smacked them right back. This want on for a few more cycles, till Trixie looked tuckered out and warped out of the pit. "Fine! Cheat all you want, dragon, but Trixie has something to even the odds!" She then whistled and looked up to the sky. It was hard to see, but Spike saw something huge coming down to the pit, and it didn't look like much room was going to be left for him. He searched around frantically, trying to find a way out.
"Meet your brand new, hydraulically-operated twin brother... MECHA SPIKE!" A giant shadow loomed over the purple dragon's head, as he turned to see a giant metallic dragon robot. It greatly resembled what grown up dragons look like, but had the color scheme of himself. It's mouth was fixed in a permanent snarl, teeth bared. What really was interesting was the two claws, which featured a chainsaw in one hand and a rocket launcher in the other. At the head, there was an opening, holding the cockpit. It was being piloted by none other than Flim and Flam, the two geniuses who built the Super Speedy Cider Squeezy 6000 a few years ago. The hard stomping of the machine flipped down a staircase on the tower, which Spike scampered up as the Mecha Spike landed where he stood not five seconds ago.
"You are exceptionally brilliant, my dear!" said Flim as he began to literally work his magic, making the robot give out a metallic growl.
"I couldn't agree more, brother!" said Flam excitedly.
"I know, you fools!" yelled Trixie over the clank of the machine. "Initiate missile attack." The dragon then raised it's left arm towards Spike, holding the launcher up to his face.
"Sweet Celestia on a stick!" Spike yelled as he ran as fast as his little legs could carry him. Sadly, he was to close to the machine, and the missile's blast radius managed to hit him. Spike steeled himself to fall off the tower to his doom, but that never happened. He opened his tightly clenched eyes to see that the amulet around his neck glowed and blocked the attack. Both he and Trixie were shocked. "Haha, thank you, Celestia!" he cheered as he got ready to fight back. "So that's what she meant earlier," he thought to himself.
"What's wrong with you two? Blast him into the sky!" the unicorn mare yelled to the twins. The two pumped their magic into the machine and began to shoot missiles into the air. Spike managed to dodge these, but then saw the metal dragon's right arm cut directly in front of him, chainsaw whirring alarmingly close. He jumped back, as he turned to see Mecha Spike lighting up his mouth. Spike then saw the machine spit out imitation dragon fire, which even looked somewhat green. However, they must have forgotten Spike can withstand flames, so he opened his own jaws and let loose his own fire. Increased by the power of the amulet, his dragon fire overpowered the metal dragon's flames and hit the machine dead in the cockpit of the two brothers, causing the machine to short circuit.
"Uh, there seems to be a problem," Flam said worriedly. "Mecha Spike isn't listening to us anymore." Trixie facehoofed hard as she watched the two panic, while Spike did a victory dance, infuriating her.
"I suggest we RUN!!!" said Flim as he and his brother warped out of the machine. The Mecha Spike seemed to grow a mind of it's own, and began to spit fireballs at Spike rapidly. Spike dodged the first few, then launched his own in rapid succession, eventually taking off both arms of the fake dragon. The robot seemed to have a tantrum, jumping up and down angrily. It did not notice that it quickly broke the floor of the spike pit, showing nothing but darkness below. The dragon floated in mid-air for a moment, then looked down at the hole he made, then looked back up at Spike before falling down. Spike was reminded of those Saturday morning cartoons he watched with Twilight when he was first hatched. As Trixie floated in front of Spike, a lone missile shot from the hole and hit the side of the tower's edge, flinging both her and Spike down to the gaping emptiness below. The two screamed until they could no longer be heard.
The villains rose up from the shelter they hid behind while the fight ensued. They each looked at each other, not knowing what to do next. Iron Will spoke up first.
"So, anypony want lunch?" Everyone murmured in agreement, and left to go grab some evil coffee and donuts, or whatever villains eat. Pinkie walked up, still confused as ever, and rubbed her hoof on her chin in thought.
"... I wonder if I should tell Twilight about this?"
Cavern Catastrophe
Strangely enough, the hole was not terribly deep. As the mare and dragon fell downwards, they saw that one of the walls were slanting in a way to safely slide on. Spike managed to get down without too many bumps, but Trixie somehow managed to hit every single rock on the way down. Eventually the hole opened up into a cavern, where pieces of the Mecha Spike still sparked pathetically.
"Whew. Glad that's over with," Spike whistled, dusting himself off. However, Trixie was infuriated with all the failure that had just occurred. She started to yell, then screamed, then spout out such strong curse words that I cannot mention due to keeping a teen rating. She looked at Spike, with venom in her eyes.
"YOU! GET OVER HERE!" she yelled as she ran up to him like a maniac. Spike tried to run away, but she nailed him with an uppercut before anything else. Instinctively, Spike punched back, jabbing her in the snout. The two eventually had a big ball of fighting rolling around, pulling out all the moves, One minute, Trixie would kick Spike between the legs. Another, Spike gave the unicorn a massive wet willie. As the fighting escalated, the two never noticed that they were falling down a hole in the floor. The ball of fighters rolled deeper into the unknown caverns, smashing into stalactites and crates that somehow made it down there.
They went farther, finding some man-made planks guiding them around the place, lanterns burning brightly. Soon the two rolled into giant crystals, of varying sizes. With each tap, the caves shook threatingly. After the third crystal was hit, A huge boulder broke open a path into what looked like a mine. More lanterns hung from the tops of the neatly dug holes, showing signs of civilization. The fighters rolled onto some old time wooden wheels, lifting them up onto flat ground. Trixie rolled off of Spike, her nose bleeding, hair in what Rarity would call a travesty. She looked up to see a bright, shining shape float in front of her, making her broken-tooth grin in astonishment.
"Ah! A Power Crystal!" she snatched it from the air, gleaming down at hit. Spike, with a few scratched scales and multiple bruises, looked to see Trixie carrying a beautiful crystal, which made him go into a trance. Trixie noticed the purple dragon walking towards her, arms outstretched. "Keep back, you weak minded fool!" she held it defensively. "Avert your gaze, lest you go 'Crystal Crazy'!" making a circling gesture with her hoof. Beneath her the ground shook, making everything rock back and forth. She could do nothing as a giant drill pushed the earth she stood on straight up. The doors opened to reveal giant dogs with a love of gems stepping out.
"Ah, it's that stupid dragon again, probably trying to take our gems!" the leader Diamond Dog screeched. The other dogs jumped out from the ground, ready to fight. "Fight, dogs, fight"! Spike was greatly outmatched, with the fight with Trixie weakening him. He decided it would be best to run and try to find some strategy. As he circled around the drill, running from the dogs, he saw that the keys were still in there, so he tried to get past the hunters and bring that drill down. The first time, the small, brown dog bit his tail when he got near the thing, which the Amulet did not protect against.
"Hrrgh, must have to recharge before it blocks again," thought Spike in dismay. He circled again, getting closer still, but then the large grey dog threw him a few feet, howling in victory. The purple dragon got back up and, closing his eyes, ran as fast as he could to the controls, barreling past any Diamond Dogs that met his path. He jumped out of the way of the three main dogs, and belly-flopped onto the controls. Warning lights came on, with the drill falling back down the hole it dug, with the Diamond Dogs fleeing underground.
Trixie came back down, looking dazed and confused. She shook her head, just as Spike grabbed the crystal, and tugged her along. Although he was strong, Trixie never let go of the crystal in her hoof, desperately trying to pull away from him. The two made it to a elevator that was raised by a valve. Spike spun the unicorn at it, turning the valve and bringing them higher. He repeated this process till they made it to the top, Trixie looking green.
"I think the Great and Powerful Tri-HURK!" she tried to say as she was forcefully pulled further down the dog holes. The duo came to a gap in the gears and wheels, with no way to jump over to the other side. Spike seemed stumped, but then a voice called to him. "Don't worry, throw me." He turned to see Trixie gesturing to pick her up.
"Uh, what? You WANT me to throw you?" he asked, confused.
"Yeah, do it. You can trust me! We're pals, right?" Trixie said innocently. Spike shrugged and picked her up, then walked up to the edge. He threw her far, the unicorn falling on her rump on the other side. She stood up and found a Spell-Switch, which activated certain things to happen around for unicorns only. She shot her magic at it, making a rock fall down to walk over. She warped back to Spike, who immediately jumped over the pathway and went forward. The two then managed to find a room with multiple lifts around, with ropes blocking off the long fall at the bottom.
"We're not through with you yet, dragon!" said a familiar voice as the drill began to rise from the crevice. Spike sighed as he forced Trixie to "fix" the valves to climb up. There were a few more of those crystal groups on the walls, which Spike hit to make rocks fall onto the drill, slowing it down. It helped, but did not completely stop it. The faster they climbed, the closer the drill got to skewering them. Luckily, Spike managed to throw Trixie out of the way and jump into the exit while the drill flew by them. Both let out a sigh of relief, just as Trixie swiped the Power Crystal from his claws!
"Thanks for nothing, twerp!" she laughed maniacally as she warped down the exit to N. Sanity Island. Spike groaned and went to catch up with the mare who tried to kill him.
Author's Note
Hoo-wee! This chapter's a little late, but I managed to finish it, as promised. Anyways, a few notes:
Why was Pinkie and Peewee there with the villians? Well, in the cutscene that that part is based off of, it shows many of Crash's enemies, except for Crunch (Who was saved by Crash in the last game and became his friend/big brother.) holding a birthday cake and being confused, And Polar( a bear you ride in a few levels in Crash 2 and maybe 3) holding a baseball bat and threating to hit Crash with it. The creators said that Polar was there as a joke, because he was Crash's friend. That's why Peewee was put in his place.
Many villains were added in, but I sorry to say that most of them won't have such a big role in the story, unless you have any ideas on the ones mentioned so far. Do not fret, though, since there are a few villians I have yet to show! In any case, thanks for reading, and here's the updated character guide:
Spike-Crash
Trixie-Cortex
Rarity-Cocco
Flim and Flam-N.Gin (Will be used later)
Garble-Dingodile (Used later)
Iron Will-Pinstripe (No use later)
Pinkie Pie-Crunch
Gilda-Tiny Tiger (No use later)
Peewee- Polar (No use later)
Queen Chrysalis- Nitrus Oxide (Will be used later)
Mane-iac- Ripper Roo
Diamond Dogs- Stange Aliens (May be used later, may have another role)