The Five: Into the Beyond

Chapters

Chapter 1: The Prophecy
Chapter 2: Canterlot
Chapter 3: The Hammerhead
Chapter 4: Serpentine and Gold Shine
Chapter 5: Into the Cooking Pot
Chapter 6: The Hippocampi of Hecate Straight
Chapter 7: Sink or Swim
Chapter 8: It's a Jungle Out There
Chapter 9: Prison and Thompson
Chapter 10: Training and The Altar
Chapter 11: Kaleidoscope and The Temple of the Sea
Chapter 12: Princess Coral and Coraline
Chapter 13: The Kraken and Cobras
Chapter 14: Captured and Chained
Chapter 15: Tombs and Trials
Chapter 16: Royalty and Rain
Chapter 17: Debris and Death
Chapter 18: Hope and Haste
Chapter 19: War

Chapter 1: The Prophecy

Twilight Sparkle and Spike were in the old library in the castle. Twilight was reading furiously, trying to find some information about how to fix crystal walls. (Discord had cracked a whole corridor in her new castle.) She was flipping through books while Spike lounged at a table reading the latest comic from a new series called The Trotting Dead.

Twilight brought out another book and opened it, starting to read. As she read, a piece of paper fell from the book. Twilight saw it and floated it up to her to read.

The Prophecy of the Five

The Five are the ones that will save us. They will be our salvation.

From a terrible evil, long locked away. These five will halt his stay.

These five, regular ponies. These five, not knowing.

One is of fire, one of rose. One of thread and one of gems.

And one is of magic, strong, even though she does not know it yet.

Will sail, run, and explore long forgotten lands.

If they succeed, the ponies of Equestria will be saved.

If not, all will perish.

The Five will have five weeks

Before the evil will finally strike.

Twilight laughed at the prophecy and threw it to the ground, continuing to read her other book.

"Why are you laughing?' asked Spike. He wondered if she had found a wrong fact in the book. Now he would have to sit through another twenty minute lecture about atoms and such.

"I just found this ridiculous prophecy. It's on the floor. Read it if you want." said Twilight as she kept reading her book. "Aha! I found the spell to fix the walls! Now we can go back to the castle." she said.

As Twilight trotted away, Spike gingerly picked up the prophecy. After he was done reading it, suddenly the paper flooded in green light, Twilight turned around to see Spike floating in the air with the prophecy in front of him. Twilight watched as the green on the paper floated in front of Spike and formed words, saying Spike, you are one of the five. You must find your counterparts and bring them to Canterlot. Celestia will aid you.

Suddenly Spike fell to the ground. Twilight cantered over to him. He was getting up, rubbing his head.

"Are you all right?" asked Twilight Sparkle.

"I-i think so-o." Spike said.

Twilight enveloped him in a hug and she said," Maybe that's not such a stupid prophecy, after all."

As the two walked away, Spike looked down at the prophecy. He flipped it over and found that a weird diagram had appeared on the other side! Now thought Spike. Time to find the others.

===

Coco Pommel trotted leisurely to Princess Twilight's new castle to thank Rarity, who was holding court that day, for the job as the designer for the play Rarity was supposed to work on.

She trotted up to the entrance of the castle. She waited in line for a while, waiting to get in. She finally got to the front of the line and was let in. She trotted down multiple corridors filled with stained glass windows. She stopped when she saw one of her giving the thread to Rarity. She had heard that her gift had helped save Equestria from Tirek.

Coco was about to reach the doors of the court when she heard a voice call out her name. She turned to see Spike, Twilight's adopted brother, running up to her.

===

Spike and Twilight were trotting to the wrecked corridor when Spike saw Coco and thought One of thread. It could be her! He and Twilight had deduced that he was the one of fire. When Coco heard him, she trotted over to him.

"I know this is kinda weird, but will you read this paper?" asked Spike.

Coco hesitantly picked up the paper from Spike's outstretched claws and read it. When she had finished, she suddenly floated up into the air and green light flooded from the paper and formed words, saying Coco, you are one of the five. So is Spike. Help him find your 3 other counterparts and travel to Canterlot to speak with the Princess Celestia. She will help you on your quest.

===

Coco's jaw dropped, but she looked up at Twilight, knowing that she didn't believe in prophecies. But when Twilight nodded, she knew it must be true.

Coco trotted to the wrecked corridor with Spike and Twilight, countless thoughts and ideas swirling in her head. She could tell Twilight was angry that she wasn't part of the quest, but also scared for Spike, not wanting him to get hurt.

Coco whispered in Twilight's ear," I will make sure he is safe."

Twilight smiled gratefully, but Coco could tell that she was still scared.

===

Amethyst Star trotted down the halls of the new castle of friendship. She had been summoned by Princess Twilight Sparkle to help fix the wrecked castle corridor since she was adept at magic involving gems and minerals. After all, her cutie mark was three diamonds.

As she trotted past the doors to court, she saw Princess Twilight, Spike, and a white earth pony mare exit them, looking downcast. A piece of paper fluttered out of Spike's claws and fell onto the floor.

She hesitantly picked it up in her light purple magic aura, floating the piece in front of her to give back to Spike. She quickly looked down at the paper. She hated looking at something that could be private, but couldn't help it. She tried to look away but couldn't. She read the whole thing. Then she felt herself start to rise into the air.

===

Spike had went into the court to talk to Rarity with Coco and Twilight. They had hoped that she would be the one of gems. But when she read it, nothing had happened. As they walked out, defeated, Twilight remarked "They might not even live in Ponyville. We may have to search all of Equestria!"

Spike hoped not. As they walked away from the court room, Spike realized he had dropped the paper! He turned around to see a pony he knew from Ponyville named Amethyst Star floating in the air, green words forming over her head, saying : You are the one of gems. Help Spike and Coco find the other two questers. They are also chosen for this quest. You will travel to Canterlot to speak to Princess Celestia, who will help you on your journey.

Amethyst collapsed to the floor, and a butler stallion cantered over to her, helping her to her hooves. Spike rushed over to her, Coco and Twilight at his heels.

Amethyst seemed a bit skeptical, but followed them as they continued to search. They were headed to the gardens to find "The one of rose."

===

Roseluck trotted over to the yellow roses, a watering can in her mouth. She looked around at the new and very large castle gardens, also called the Courtyard of Friendship. She trotted over to the lilies, watering them to. She could see her friends Daisy and Valley Lily watering and cutting plants in other parts of the garden. An animal caretaker from Canterlot was also in another part of the gardens, teaching some baby birds to fly.

She heard some new hoofsteps on the cobblestone. Roseluck trotted over to a patch of marigolds and began watering them.

The owners of the hoofsteps approached. The first was the princess, and the other her foster brother, Spike. The other two were mares, one she recognized from town, and one white one that she was unfamiliar with.

The princess was in the lead, a piece of paper clutched in her pink aura. She was walking past a rosebush. The thorns on the plant would rip the paper to shreds! She dived forward, her back bursting open with hundreds of tiny scratches.

The princess looked down at her paper's savior, mouth and eyes open wide.

===

Spike had been stripped of the title "Prophecy Carrier" when he had dropped it. He had argued that it had helped them find one of the three others, but Twilight had dismissed it and swept the paper away in her aura. Now she had almost destroyed it.

Spike watched as Roseluck's eyes became riveted to the paper. The one of rose! thought Spike as he watched the mare float into the air. The words over Roseluck's head said: You must help three of the other four: Spike, Amethyst, and Coco, find the last member of your party. You will then head to Canterlot to find help from Princess Celestia.

Roseluck fell from the air, and they help her up. Roseluck seemed very jolly to join the crew. To Spike it seemed like she felt like her life had a purpose now that wasn't just watering flowers. Now, where were they going to find the last one?

===

Dinky Doo cantered along the road to the castle. Her mother flew above her, carrying a letter for Rarity, who was holding court today. She watched as her mother spun in the air and reached the entrance a few seconds before her.

The pair trotted into the castle. Dinky's blank flank shined in the light seeping through the many windows. The pair soon reached the court room doors. Princess Twilight and three other mares were trotting towards them. And also walking over to her was the hottest little dragon she had ever seen.

===

They had figured out that the last one must be a young unicorn filly that hadn't gained their cutie mark yet. As the prophecy stated, the last one left was "And one is magic, strong, even though she doesn't know it yet."

So when they saw Dinky, they trotted over to her. Spike blushed mildly as he walked up to her. He had always thought she was cute, kind, awesome- so, pretty much everything he looked for in a mare. He had given up on Rarity soon after Tirek's defeat when he found her on a date with Thunderlane. He watched as she brushed her blond mane out of her eyes shyly.

"W-would you read this, beautiful? I-I mean, uh, Dinky?" Spike's face burned hotter than the sun.

"Uh, s-sure, Spike." Dinky blushed even more than Spike as she grabbed the paper from his outstretched claws.

As soon as she finished reading, Dinky floated up into the air. Ditzy began to fly up to pull her daughter out of the sky, but was pushed away magically by Twilight Sparkle. Green words formed over Dinky's head, saying: You, Dinky, are the last of The Five. Travel with the others to Canterlot. You will receive help from Princess Celestia.

Dinky collapsed. As soon as she recovered, Spike announced "Off to Canterlot, I guess."

===

At the Tree of Harmony

A shadowy figure stepped forward and untwisted the elements from their slots, using their magic to teleport them to the farthest reaches of Tartarus. "Now nothing can stop me!" the shadowy figure cackled before slipping away, melting into the darkness.

Chapter 2: Canterlot

The group of five cantered out of the castle, Princess Twilight flying above them. They were headed for the hot air balloon.

When they reached it, they got it ready for flight while Twilight pestered Spike about the upcoming quest.

"Spike, you need me! You are all going to die if I don't come!" screamed Twilight as they began to take off. Ditzy the mailmare, Dinky's mom, would be accompanying them to Canterlot as Dinky's chaperone.

"Oh, look, somepony's not being arrogant!" Spike retorted. Twilight was taken aback. Why was he being so mean? "Anyways, you're not in the prophecy!" Twilight was about to say something, but Spike shushed her. "You can come with us to Canterlot, but that's it." he said before turning away. Twilight hopped on. Why was he being like this?

===

As the group sailed through the sky, Spike thought about his outburst. It wasn't like he didn't love Twilight, it was just she was always the one to complete all the quests and such, and he was known as her sidekick. He hadn't thought about it much, but after Twilight's comment, it all came pouring out of him like water pours off a waterfall.

Spike put his hand up to cover the sun. He could see the outline of the Canterlot skyline.

===

Coco didn't fell so swell. She hated heights, and hoped that they wouldn't be traveling by air for the rest of the quest. When she saw the Canterlot skyline, she sighed of relief before heaving over the side of the balloon. They sailed on silently, well silently except for Coco's heaves. In several minutes, the landing pad on the castle was visible. Spike started to suck up some of his fire he had put into the balloon, and they started to descend.

Coco pushed the others out of the way when they landed and kissed the ground mercifully. When she was done praising and making out with the ground, they all trotted towards the entrance of the sisters' castle. Coco blushed horribly the whole time while everypony (and dragon) gave her weird stares. All Coco said was,"I hate heights."

The group reached the giant doors at the entrance to the castle. Only Spike and Twilight had been here before. So when they walked up to the guards and walked leisurely into the castle, they turned around to see everypony else gawking at the size of the castle as they slowly entered it. Coco had never been to somewhere so important. Sure, she had been to The Castle of Friendship, but this was Canterlot Castle, Castle of Celestia and Luna, and she was going into it.

===

Spike walked at the front of the group with Twilight while everypony else gasped and gawked at every stained glass window and painting. The two had made peace and were rolling their eyes every time there was a "Gasp!" or a "Ahhh!" Which ment their eyes were pretty much rolling continuously. Spike shook his head when they all gasped for the millionth time at a stained glass window of the Mane 6 defeating Nightmare Moon.

They soon reached the doors of the throne room. When they entered, only Princess Celestia was inside. Everypony, except Twilight and Spike, dropped in a deep bow. Meanwhile Spike gave a little bow while Twilight ran up to her old mentor and hugged her.

Spike looked back to see Dinky, Ditzy, Roseluck, Amethyst, and most of all, Coco, spluttering nonsense as they started up at the ruler of the sun.

"Who do we have here, Twilight?" asked Celestia.

Twilight explained the whole situation in great detail, taking over an hour. The whole time, everypony recovered from their shock, except for Coco, who was staring wordlessly at Princess Celestia. She would mutter something along the lines of "P-princ-c-essssss Cel-l." before fainting and then waking up several minutes later to repeat the process.

Eventually Spike got so annoyed with her that he went over to her and slapped her, hard. Thankfully this helped her recover and she was awake by the time Twilight was done.

"Well, I knew this time would come, at least someday." said Celestia.

"How would you know?" asked Twilight.

"Because I was the one that conceived it."

===

Roseluck stared up at Celestia. She had been the first to recover from the shock of seeing the princess. But now Roseluck watched as Princess Celestia walked over to the wall. She pressed her hoof against a impression in the wall. A slot slid out of the wall under her hoof and she levitated out three objects. One was a book titled "The Beyond". The second was a unfinished map. The third and final object was a small bronze gear.

"You're quest will take place in the beyond." Celestia said.

"So we have to go east to the dragons and griffins? that should be easy. We have lots of maps and good relations with them." said Spike.

"No, you will be heading West. What you are searching for are these." Princess Celestia floated the small gear up for all to see. "There once was an explorer named Marco Pony several centuries ago. He traveled into the Western Beyond on an air ship. On board he had a weapon of unimaginable power that he and I had created together. It could turn Discord to dust with a single zap. We were going to use it to destroy the meanece that will soon attack us. Anyways, this object was on the air ship when the ship was attacked by an unknown species. The ship and weapon blew apart and the weapon's pieces were scattered over the beyond.

One of the explorers survived and came back with the half finished map and this gear, part of the weapon. He then wrote this book of his travels.

Celestia floated the objects over to the group and Roseluck took the objects into her magic grip. She flipped through the book.

"Giraffes, elephants, hippos, and cannibalistic unicorns? Wait,WHAT!?" said Roseluck.

"You are the chosen ones. You can back down and let everyone here die, along with yourself, or go risk your life for the safety of the whole." said Celestia.

Roseluck was a little surprised at the Princess's bluntness, but understood that she was worried.

"Now," said Celestia. "You can rest for the day and then you must get going. I will have a sailing ship ready for you in the morning at the docks of Vanhoover. You will travel there tonight and leave at dawn." Coco looked relieved that it was a sailing ship. But not Amethyst. Roseluck knew she hated water.

Twilight looked at Celestia and Celestia said," You must stay behind, Twilight Sparkle."

Twilight hung her head and slowly nodded. Then they all waved to Twilight and Ditzy, and Spike gave Twilight a hug ,and then the group headed for the train station, headed for Vanhoover.

Chapter 3: The Hammerhead

Dinky hugged her mother hard before letting go. Her mother had tears in her eyes and told her how much she loved her and how proud of her she was. Dinky sobbed into her mother's shoulder before slowly trotting away to the train station.

The group reached the train station after a short walk. Princess Luna would meet them in Vanhoofer to help them launch in the morning.

As they boarded the train, it began to rain. dinky let a few tears fall off her face at this time so no one would notice. She was the youngest in the group, and she didn't want to seem like extra baggage that they were forced to carry around.

When they sat down on the train, she shared a seat with Spike. She was still crying and he wiped the tears off her face and looked into her eyes. They were both blushing.

They both heard a little snort and turned around to she Coco trying to hold back laughter. She finally let loose and fell to the ground, a stitch forming in her side as she cried from laughing so hard. The other two mares started to giggle and then full out laugh, also.

"W-what's so funny?" asked Spike nervously.

"I-it's s-so obvious!" said Coco before falling to the ground, laughing some more.

The two were blushing horribly now. "W-what's o-obvious?" Spike asked, already knowing the answer.

"Th-that you want her s-so badly!" snorted Coco, who collapsed into another fit of giggles.

The two blushed even harder, if it was possible, and turned away from each other. The three mares finally recovered.

"S-sorry." said Amethyst Star. "I wasn't laughing at you like Coco. I was laughing at her with her funny faces and her laugh!" Amethyst pretended to be Coco and made faces and absurd noises. They all fell over laughing, even Spike and Dinky giggled.

"I guess I deserved that." said Coco.

"Ya sure did." said Spike. They all then fell silent as they looked out the windows, watching the beautiful landscape zing by. In no time, they had arrived in Vanhoofer.

===

Amethyst looked around as they walked down the streets of summer Vanhoofer. Usually Vanhoofer was covered in snow, but it was the peak of summer, so no ice was around.

They headed for their hotel. The train ride had taken several hours and it was now night, a crescent moon shining in the sky. Amethyst watched as Spike and Dinky started to move closer together. She felt bad about laughing before, but she couldn't help it, like she couldn't help prying into private matters.

Spike had realized that the diagram on the back of the prophecy paper was a diagram of the weapon. Coco had brought a red pencil out of her saddle bags and checked off the small gear on the diagram.

But now the group approached their hotel, the Maritrot. They entered and went up to their rooms, Spike staying in his own room while Dinky and Roseluck went in one and Coco and her went into the other.

Coco snores, horribly. It took Amethyst over an hour to fall asleep. But it also was from worries, not just Coco's chainsaw snores. She really needed to see a doctor about that.

Anyways, Amethyst eventuall y fell into a dreamless sleep.

===

Spike awoke the next morning in his own room, bright and early at 6:00 am. Okay, he woke up with all four mares pounding on his door to get him up.

Anyways, they were now headed to the Vanhoofer docks, where they would board their ship and meet Princess Luna, mare of the night.

When he and Dinky had gotten laughed at, he had felt angry, but the anger had quickly subsided, replaced by doubt and worry of this upcoming quest. What would befall them?

But that didn't matter now as he watched Dinky's golden tail swish in the dawn light. He sighed as he drooped watching her beautiful form...

Spike snapped back into attention when he heard Amethyst Star call out "We're here!"

Spike followed the group as they passed a great deal of fisherpony rowboats. But at the end of the docks was a giant ship, twenty times the size of the meager rowboats surrounding it.

The ship was made of wood, but the hull was gold plated. Three masts rose out of the center of the ship. The Equestrian flag swayed in the light breeze, hanging from the tallest mast. Printed on the wooden hull, just above the gold plating, was the words "The Hammerhead", which was probably the ship's name.

Princess Luna emerged from the innards of the ship. She flew over to them. They all bowed. Spike slapped Coco before she fainted. Coco recovered after that.

Luna lead them onto The Hammerhead. She gave them the grand tour. They walked across the deck, where two ballistae were stationed on either side, and up a flight of stairs to the wheel. Roseluck, as a filly, had sailed sailboats, trying to earn her cutie mark in sailing since her father was a ship captain, so she would be steering.

They then entered the below decks. They each had their own personal rooms. They stopped in each to drop off saddlebags and personal belongings. Spike's room was across the hall from Roseluck's, and Dinky and Coco's rooms were on either side of his. Amethyst's was next to Roseluck's. On the other side of Roseluck's room was the food storage, a supply that would last a year if they got lost at sea.

There was also the bathrooms and a living room. And then there was the armory.

It was full to the brim with weapons and armor. Luna suggested that they get suited up now. So they all did.

Roseluck and Coco donned silver armor, while the other three suited up in bronze. It was made to protect the most vital areas but was still light and easy to move in. And then it was time to pick weapons.

Amethyst chose a bow and quiver, slinging them over her back, and then taking a small dagger and placing it in a hidden pocket in her armor. Roseluck chose two hoofaxes. Spike chose a pair of short swords, sheathing them in their holders that hung from his waist. Coco chose an earth pony lance that you fit in your mouth, along with a belt of daggers. And Dinky chose a long, golden sword and a mini crossbow that folded up to fit in her hidden pocket.

The newly armored crew headed above decks. There were no crews available, so it was just them five. Luna took off from the boat as Amethyst used her magic to raise the anchor, and Spike and Coco fixed the rigging and let the sails unfurl, and Roseluck took the wheel. Meanwhile, Dinky headed below deck to prepare breakfast for them all.

The ship was off, Vanhoofer fading into the distance. They were heading into the Beyond, into the unknown.

Chapter 4: Serpentine and Gold Shine

Roseluck looked out across the waters as she steered the ship around a small pillar of rock that was covered in starfish. She narrowed her eyes as the breeze blew her mane out of her face.

They had left five hours ago. Spike was on the center mast, being lookout. Coco was swabbing the deck, and Dinky was loading the ballistae, shoving the giant arrows into the giant crossbows, mounted on the deck. And Amethyst was throwing up. For the tenth time that hour.

Roseluck shook her head, feeling bad for the mare. She thought she had saw some anti-sea sickness medicine in the storage room...

Either way Roseluck's thoughts turned away from that as she swerved out of the way of a small barrier island, only several pony length's wide and long. Everypony fell sideways, even Roseluck. She quickly recovered and put her hooves on the wheel, making the ship steady again.

They sailed on for several minutes in silence. Amethyst Star threw up again. Roseluck couldn't help it and shouted down to the mare about the medicine. Amethyst quickly retreated below decks to procure it.

Amethyst Star reemerged from the belly of the ship, looking a bit better. Dinky scurried to one side of the ship, pushing several barrels of ballistae ammo upright that had fallen during the swerve.

Amethyst looked down at the map. If she was correct, they were right on some weird squiggly line that was labeled "Skolopendra."

Roseluck dismissed it and kept on sailing. Several minutes later Spike began to scream. Roseluck snapped into attention. She tried to look at where he was pointing, but couldn't see the object of his distress. But it was to late as the massive monster Spike would later dub "Shrimpzilla" attacked, rocking the ship.

===

Dinky screamed as the giant monster sprouted tentacles from its nose that began to wrap around the ship. One wrapped around Coco, and she was pulled off deck, being swung in the air. Meanwhile Roseluck fought for control of the ship, manning the wheel, while Amethyst pulled out her bow in her aura and fired arrows that bounced harmlessly of the monster's shelled back.

Spike jumped from the top of the mast and flung out his swords, cutting the tentacle around Coco. They both fell to the deck, Coco pulling out her lance and swinging at the invading tentacles, chopping them to pieces.

Dinky got a hold of herself and cocked the ballista in front of her while pulling her sword out of its sheath at her side and chopping off a third of a tentacle.

She fired the ballista, the large arrow hitting a vulnerable spot in the monster's armored back. Blood dripped from the wound, but the monster tore the ballista arrow from its hide and chucked it into the ocean and fought back while blood freely flowed off its back.

A forest of tentacles surrounded her as she chopped them away, but for every one she hacked off, three more would zoom from the monster's snout. She turned to see Spike held in the monster's nose hairs while Coco desperately hacked at the tentacles surrounding Spike while fighting ones advancing on her.

While Dinky was distracted, tentacles zoomed forward and wrapped around her. She cut them away, but more came. She couldn't fight them any longer as black spots started to cloud her vision. The monster had a tentacle wrapped around her neck, gradually squeezing harder. She was about to black out when it dropped her, arrows protruding from her fleshy bonds. She smiled at Amethyst, who had freed her, before returning to the battle, hacking away at the tentacles.

Suddenly Coco freed Spike, who landed on his right arm with a sickening crunch. Then Coco got a hold to the ballista closest to her and fired, puncturing the creature's shell. More blood erupted from the wound.

But as the creature struggled to pull out the ballista arrow, an even larger shape was swimming towards them. They watched as a giant green sea serpent burst from the water, biting off half off the dying skolopandra. This was not going to be a good day.

===

Coco sighed in relief as she collapsed on to the deck. The sea serpent's body was half submerged, sinking. It had been easy to kill, one ballista shot through its fat neck, and it died. But the thing was so fast that it took over ten shots to finally kill the thing.

Amethyst and Dinky were helping Spike get up. They had already fixed a cast on his broken arm. Coco just thought how cute Dinky and Spike were. She shook her head, sighing again, before heading with everyone except Roseluck, to the storage.

They were grabbing some fruits and gemstones for Spike when Coco tripped over a crate marked "Important!"

She dragged it on deck to where everyone was already eating. When they saw it, though, they all gathered around to see what was inside. Even Roseluck jumped down from the wheel. She said that they were in open sea for the next hour, so they should be fine. Should be.

But anyways, Coco cracked open the crate. Inside was a note and some weird, long, tubular bronze thing. They all gathered around as Coco read the note:

Dear the Five,

We forgot to give you one important thing to help you on this quest. The bronze object is actually something you put on a unicorn's horn. When a unicorn pus any amount of magic into it, it will show the user where the assigned objects are located on a map. This one has been programmed to search for the parts of the weapon, and will show up on the map I gave you.

Have a Nice Day!

From,

Celestia

Yes. Coco thought. It has been a wonderful day. NOT.

Anyways, Amethyst picked up the contraption that she dubbed "the Finder" and put it on her horn. She then flowed her magic into it. We watched as Roseluck fetched the map. There were around fifteen gears all over the map. The nearest one was on a small island with a picture of a unicorn a fire next to it. It had a label, but the ending was smudged out. It said "Unicorn Ca--------"

"Maybe they are castaways! I bet we can trade them for it!" Oh, how wrong she was.

===

They arrived at the small island in an hour. Amethyst looked out across the waters to the beach of the island. Even with the medicine, she still felt a bit sick, and was happy to be going on land.

Roseluck went off first, the others trailing behind her. They sat down and ate some food before getting up to head farther into the island. Suddenly a white unicorn stallion stepped out of the bushes, His smile was contagious, and Amethyst could feel her cheeks twitching. He was definitely handsome. Amethyst felt her cheeks warm up and her heart beat faster as she looked at the muscular stallion. His mane was pure gold color, and so were his eyes. They stood out against his white coat. His mane and tail were cut short and shaggy, and his cutie mark was a single bar of gold.

He walked over to them and said "Hi, I'm Gold Shine. Please don't be afraid. Come with me, please." The handsome stallion trotted away into the foliage.

Spike seemed the only one not to be convinced. He said" Are we sure the map said Castaways? Could it be.."

But Spike stopped when he saw Dinky looking longingly after the stallion. He puffed out his chest and looked like he had something to prove. They all then trotted after him. Spike still seemed to have his doubts. And he did rightly so. Because they were heading into a trap.

Chapter 5: Into the Cooking Pot

Spike brought up the rear of the group as they trotted through the thick jungle. He wiped sweat of his brow, shaking his head. He breathed fire, and he thought this jungle was hot!

But the mares showed no discomfort at all as they trotted happily behind Gold Shine like little ducklings. Spike didn't like this, not one bit. Why did all the others seem so entranced by Gold?

But he had complied when he had seen Dinky drooling over Gold. He felt like he had something to prove, like that he was better than Gold Shine. He had to prove that. Somehow.

They trampled through some bushes before crossing a small crystal clear rivulet. Spike looked at his reflection. What about him made him special enough for Dinky?

But all that was forgotten when Gold called out that they had arrived. He pushed back the bushes to reveal, dun dun duh: a small group of rundown wooden shacks surrounding a large fire.

A large pot full of boiling water boiled over the flames. Holding up the pot were two metal sticks. On the end of either stick was a gear. The gear on the left stick was a rusty silver. But the one on the right was gleaming and bronze. Spike saw Amethyst perk up at the sight of it, like a signal was drawing her towards it.

Spike looked around. There were about twenty ponies. Some of them were sucking on bones. And Spike was horrified to realize the bones they were sucking on weren't animal ones. They were pony bones.

===

Roseluck shook as they tied her forelegs together and then her backlegs together. They had done so with all of them except Spike, planning to kill him after their delicious four course meal. Spike was tied up to a nearby tree. Turns out the map said "Unicorn Cannibals" instead of "Unicorn Castaways."

Roseluck shook as she watched a unicorn mare that Gold Shine had called "Paprika" picked up Coco in her magic aura. Paprika had a white coat, while her mane was a dusty bronze. Her cutie mark was a shaker of paprika with a pan behind it. Her red eyes glinted madly as she lowered Coco into the pot of water. Coco screamed as her back hooves entered the scalding water. She was lowered to the base of her neck, and then stopped sinking. At least they would be able to breath while they were cooked alive.

Coco had been stripped of her armor and weapons, and the others mares had been to. But Spike still wore his. She hoped Spike had a plan, or this quest would be over before it practically even started.

She watched as Amethyst was put in next. She had confirmed that the gear on the right part of the spit was a piece of the weapon.

Another pony sauntered up to the pot, looking as Paprika lowered Dinky into the water. Roseluck shook from the filly's screams. Dinky was shorter, so the water almost went over her head, the poor filly having to tilt her head back to breathe.

The new pony was an old unicorn stallion, a grisly beard covering his chin. His coat was a light gray, and his mane was a vibrant green. A spearmint leaf adorned his flank.

Roseluck shook as she was picked up by Paprika. But then Gold slapped Paprika, disrupting her magic. He said" I want to keep this one. She's pretty." All the other ponies shook their heads and sighed, but let him guide her to the biggest shack. Apparently Gold was the leader of this place.

All Roseluck said was "How? How did you trick us?"

"My mother was a siren pony, my father the chief of this town, which we call The Cooking Pot. As soon as I was born, my father ate my mother. As it is tradition."

Roseluck recoiled in disgust. To parent a child ment death in this culture? Who would want children if you die if you have one? Suddenly Roseluck's mind was hit with several ideas of how a mare could get pregnant unwillingly. She shuddered.

"Now you stay in here" said Gold. "I'll be back tonight."

Roseluck began to whimper and then full out sob, the floor becoming drenched in her tears. Spike better have a plan.

===

Spike struggled against the restraints, waiting for his guard to become distracted. When the pink unicorn mare looked away from him and to a butterfly fluttering in the trees nearby, he quickly whipped his knife out of his hidden pocket and began furiously cutting at the thick rope made of vines. He was about to cut through all of it when the mare returned her attentions to him. He stopped immediately a struggled some more.

Spike watched as she got distracted as Roseluck was pulled away into that Gold Shine's shack. She hoped he didn't hurt that mare. He was starting to consider the others friends, not just some ponies put on a boat to save the world. Which they also were.

But anyways Spike cut all the way through the bonds. He threw his knife at the mare. He was surprised at his accuarcy and watched as the mare silently crumpled, the pommel of the dagger hitting her temple.

Spike found Dinky's retractable crossbow the nearest weapon to him. All the cannibals were around the pot, chanting over his burning friends. He also grabbed Coco's lance. He then ran forward, hoping he didn't have to kill any pony.

Spike shot his crossbow at the legs of the five nearest ponies. The all crumpled, one falling forward and having her whole body fall into the flames. She rolled out of the fire and rolled around, also setting the plants and ponies around her on fire too.

Spike whipped out the lance, cutting open a stallion's backlegs, while reloading the crossbow. With the reloaded crossbow, he shot down three more unicorns, including Paprika, in the legs. Gold Shine was leaving his cottage to see half of his ponies on fire and the other half laying uselessly on the ground, their legs gushing blood. He quickly grabbed a sword, but Spike had already refilled his crossbow while knocking a yellow unicorn mare in the temple with Coco's lance.

Spike shot at Gold Shine. But his aim was off, and instead of hitting him in the legs, he hit Gold in the chest. Blood ruptured from the wound as the stallion collapsed. He pulled the arrow out of him and ran away, grabbing a box of medical supplies before fleeing.

Spike looked around to see all the other ponies taken care of, and quickly sucked up all the fire from the fire under the pot and the fire burning the jungle, and burst it into a bucket of water, where it turned into smoke. He then ran over to the pot and poured his friends out. They were covered in horrible burns but were able to stand after her had freed them.

They put on their armor and procured their weapons before heading to the cottage where Roseluck was trapped. They freed her too and they all headed back to the ship, boarding and sailing quickly away, hoping to never see that place again.

Chapter 6: The Hippocampi of Hecate Straight

Dinky twirled the small gear around her horn as she traveled below decks to place the newly found gear with the one from the princess. They had looked at the map, and the next gear was in open water, near a picture of a horse-fish looking thing. Dinky really hoped it wasn't another Shrimpzilla.

It hurt to walk around with her blistered skin. Roseluck had taken the wheel and they had set sail, leaving the cannibalistic unicorns behind, legs slashed.

Spike was currently helping Amethyst by wrapping bandages around her body and rubbing healing cream on her burned coat. Dinky couldn't wait for her turn to be massaged by Spike.

So she was disappointed when the newly healed Amethyst helped her instead of Spike. Spike was helping Coco. Was he avoiding her? Was her crush on him that obvious?

Dinky placed the gear in storage before heading to the deck, Amethyst waiting for her with bandages and cream. She sighed as Amethyst rubbed the cream into her back. She winced and let out a little scream. The cream stung horribly. She looked down at her coat to see the burns slowly mending and merging together, her coat starting to return to its natural periwinkle shine.

Dinky got up, her skin mending and healing, to see newly healed Coco fixing Spike's cast. Apparently when he had saved them, he had fractured it even more, so much that his arm bone was about to break in half.

Dinky trotted over to Spike, who was getting up, his newly casted arm hanging by his side. She trotted with him to his room. They reached it and Spike went inside, lying down in his bed.

"Uh, Dinky?" asked Spike warily. "I, uh, h-have something t-to tell you."

Dinky looked at him. Was he going to tell her that he knew about her crush on him and that it was creepy?

"Uh, Dinky, I, um, kinda like you."

===

Spike let the words sit in the air. He watched as Dinky's face flipped through so many emotions, rapid fire, that he couldn't tell what she was feeling. Spike started to sweat in apprehension, his eyes opening wider. This was going to be like Rarity again, wasn't it?

So he was happily surprised when Dinky leaned forward and gave him a soft peck on the cheek. Spike feel into his mattress, melting into pure bliss.

===

Coco trotted down the hall to the armory to sharpen he lance when she saw Spike's door was open. She looked in to see Dinky give Spike a soft kiss on the cheek. Coco held back a snort at the two little lovers. She couldn't hold back any longer and let out a snort when she saw Spike melt into the bed.

Coco took off, trying to reach the armory. She could hear Dinky galloping after her. They both reached theend of the hall. Coco was about to jump into the armory when Dinky used her magic to close the door and lock it from inside. Coco thought the lock spell was hard to master. So how had a cutie markless filly preform it?

But Coco forgot all of that as she watched Dinky slowly creep towards her, malice covering all her features.

Spike came out of his room and the other two mares came down the stairs. Roseluck had said earlier they were a few hours away from the next part of the weapon and that they were on the open sea for the next hour.

Anyways, Dinky advanced even more and then looked up at Coco, her face displaying pure anger.

"HAVE YOU EVER HEARD OF PRIVACY?! MAYBE YOU SHOULD LOOK IT UP INSTEAD OF SNOOPING AND PRYING, HAY FACE!" screamed loudly.

They all recoiled at Dinky's use of vulgar language. Then Spike said "Hey, were all friends. Maybe that was a bit to much, but friends don't keep secrets from each other unless it is really important."

They all nodded. Coco was happy. She had thought she was the only one who had begun to think of them as friends, but apparently everypony else had too. Dinky had retreated to Spike's side, and Spike had put his good arm around her.

"So," Coco said. "Are you guys a couple?"

Dinky was about to scream at her again when Spike shushed her, pressing his lips softly to hers. When Spike pulled away, Dinky fell to the floor, paralyzed in happiness.

After that, Roseluck returned to the wheel while Spike returned to his bed to sleep after helping Dinky up. Meanwhile Amethyst was fanning Dinky, trying to wake her from her fainting episode.

Coco entered the armory and sharpened her weapon. Afterward, she went on deck and sparred with Amethyst, who had recently woken Dinky up. Dinky had also retreated to her bedroom like Spike. Coco was almost tempted to go down there and tell them no funny business, but held back.

After sparring, she swabbed the deck and check ed the ballistae. Amethyst had put on "the Finder." They were a few minutes from their destination.

Two long, thin strips of sandy island enclosed a part of the sea for about three miles, forming a strait like thing.

Coco trotted over to the map. It said it was Hecate Straight. "Looks like the author of this wasn't the best speller." said Coco.

Spike and Dinky emerged from their naps. When Coco inquired about funny business, she got hard slap on the muzzle from Dinky.

They had now reached the weapon's location. But they weren't on land. No, the part was underwater.

===

Roseluck shook her head. The part was underwater? Sure, they had diving suits, but really? Roseluck was claustrophobic and hated to even put helmets on. They made her head feel cramped. But now she had to go into a tight body suit? No way.

Spike and Coco suited up, having volunteered, much to Roseluck's immediate joy. They were about to jump in when they saw movements in the water. They watched as several feet away, a fish-horse jumped out of the water. It was bright yellow, and had silver mane with a single black stripe through it. On its back was a large portion of silver armor, the words" Hippocampi of Hecate Straight" printed on it in gold plating.

More jumped out of the water, all clutching weapons like tridents and swords. They began to surround the ship, mostly in front of the Five.

One hippocampi that was bigger than the others came in front of the group. His body was gray and his mane raspberry red. A grisly light red beard hung from his chin.

"I am Clammer, leader of The Hippocampi of Hecate Straight." the bigger hippocampi said. "We do not seek battle, just peace. We will allow you to pass through, but do not dwell or we may become restless." Clammer smiled creepily.

"You know straight, like the water one, is spelled s-t-r-a-i-t? Not s-t-r-a-i-g-h-t?" said Coco.

Roseluck face-hoofed. They were doomed.

"Is that what you really want to say to the leader of a small army that could sink this ship in seconds?" said Roseluck sarcastically.

"Yep" said Coco. Roseluck face-hoofed again. Goodbye world thought Roseluck as the hippocampi stared angrily at Coco.

Chapter 7: Sink or Swim

Amethyst shook her head, preparing to drown as the hippocampi stared daggers at Coco. Their eyes were narrowed and Clammer's face was so red it looked as though somepony had spread ketchup all over it.

Oh thought Amethyst. Spike and Coco are lucky. While we all drown, they will get to live an extra minute before they get skewered on tridents.

Amethyst looked down at Dinky who was shaking, her pupils shrinking to the size of pins as she saw a purple hippocampus sharpening her sword.

"W-we will give you ten minutes. Leave after that, and well, you won't be leaving." said Clammer.

Roseluck called Coco a hay face, a bad seed, and wet wheat. Everypony looked in horror at Roseluck's use of bad words. Wet wheat! That was a serious insult!

The hippocampi left, swimming nearby. They planned it out, and had eight minutes left.

Coco and Spike hopped over the side of the ship, plunging into the crystal clear ocean. She saw Roseluck shudder. Amethyst just hoped the wouldn't be at the bottom of the sea, cut into pieces, in the next eight minutes.

===

Coco plunged into the freezing water. Even with the magically heated suits, she could still feel the wwater like she wasn't wearing thick material over her whole body.

She looked at the timer that had been put on the suit. 6 minutes left.

Coco dove at what looked like a gear, but was just a slimy moss covered rock. She could see Spike frantically swiping rocks out of the way and flinging up sediments out of his way as he dug.

Coco shook her head as she swam over to a large group of pink coral. She peered behind the pink sea fans, finding a moray eel and several sea slugs, but no bronze part. Coco looked at her watch. 4 minutes or they were all dead, and Equestria doomed from an unknown evil.

Coco shook herself. She saw a green glow coming from a small sea cave. She hesitantly swam over to it, peering inside. Inside was an old shriveled bag of a hippocampi. Coco recoiled. But in the corner was a glowing orb of magical energy, its green color pulsing and making the walls turn a disturbing green.

Coco knew it must be the part. A weapon couldn't be made of just gears, right?

Coco looked over to see Spike far away, making the water murky and brown with his digging. He was to far away. Coco looked down at the timer. 3 minutes.

She quickly ducked into the cave. The old hag became immediately alert. "Hello my dear." she rasped. Her voice was raspy and nasally at the same time. He coat was a lush neon green that had faded over time, and her mane was a faded dark green. Her eyes were pure black, like her eyes were just one huge pupil.

Coco swam forward. 2 minutes. "Um, can I have that green thingy?" asked Coco.

"Oh dear." she said. "I don't think you'll need it since you won't be leaving. Ever."

Coco watched in horror as the old hag's skin morphed and changed until she was a sleek black creature. It's body was like a cuttlefish with the head of a pony and an insectoid shell clinging to its back. It was strangely reminiscent of a changel-

"I am Tabitha the sea changeling. Meet your doom!" Tabitha screamed before launching herself at Coco, changing into Coco's mom, Fabric Bolt. The black body of Tabitha changed into a cream one. Tabitha's black mane became a red one. Tabitha's insect eyes became beautiful sea green ones. A cutie mark of a bolt of pink fabric sprung onto the pony's flank.

Coco just stared. She knew she had to kill her, but she couldn't. She knew it wasn't really her mother, but she just couldn't shake it.

Suddenly Coco realized her love for her mother was feeding the sea changeling. Tabitha/Fabric was smiling greedily with her mouth open wide like she was consuming giant bites of food.

Coco closed her eyes as she lunged forward, shoving her lance into Tabitha the sea changeling's heart. Coco opened her eyes. Tabitha, after death, had changed back into her shelled octopus self. Coco looked down at the timer. 1 minute.

Coco grabbed the object, flinging away rocks and coral out of her way as she raced around to find Spike. Then she saw him getting out of the water, having given up. They must be hoping they could speed away or fight them off. Which Coco knew and they all knew was impossible.

Her timer buzzed. 30 seconds.

Coco began to pant as she swam as hard as she could. She could feel herself start to become lighter, but her body felt weird, as though it was changing.

Coco realized that her blood was changing since she was ascending to fast. But she couldn't go slower. She couldn't. No way.

Fifteen seconds. Coco finally broke the surface, water cascading off her helmet. She could see the hippocampi closing in.

Ten seconds. A life raft was throw out. Coco grabbed on while the others pulled.

Five seconds. Coco collapsed ondeck and Roseluck got to the wheel.

Zero.

A sudden gust of wind made the surface of the water shudder. The ship zoomed out of the strait while the strong wind blew, never weakening or ceasing.

Coco turned to see Dinky collapse on the deck, unconscious. She must have summoned the gust. Wow thought Coco. That girl is amazing.

===

Wow. Thought Spike as he realized Dinky had summoned the wind. That girl is amazing.

Spike ran over to his new marefriend. They had made it official last night. No, there had been no "funny business" as Coco had put it. Just some cuddling.

Spike reached her and held her, whispering words into her ears until she woke up. Spike carried her to her room. Dinky collapsed onto the bed, the little strength she had when she became conscious leaving her as she fell onto the bed.

"Spike." she whispered. Spike sat down next to her, holding her. He brought her face to his, and they kissed passionately for several seconds before breaking apart, taking a breath, and plunging back into each other's mouths.

Spike hesitantly worked his tongue into her mouth. Dinky was to tired to fight back, just letting him explore her mouth. When they pulled apart again, Dinky collapsed onto Spike's shoulder. Spike rocked her to sleep before laying her under the covers and kissing her head, before leaving, retiring to his own room.

Chapter 8: It's a Jungle Out There

Dinky awoke in the morning refreshed and happy. Spike had been so... lustful kissing her last night. It had been pure joy. Dinky was surprised how serious their relationship had gotten, and in so little time, but she realized they had both been waiting for something like this for a long time. Spike had had Rarity to wait on, and Dinky had been denied by Pipsqueak, Rumble, and Button Mash. Pip went with Apple Bloom, Rumble with Scootaloo, and Button with Sweetie Belle. No wonder she had refused to join the crusaders. Having been deprived of this so long made them wanting, needing each others affections.

Dinky shook the thought as she heard a knock on the door. Hoping it was Spike, she sauntered seductively over to the door and opened it. She said "Hey Spikey." Seductively. And looked up to see Coco standing at the door.

Coco fell to the floor laughing and snorting. Dinky walked over her, making a point to step hard on Coco's chest before trotting away.

Dinky arrived at Spike's room. Dinky looked down the hall to see Coco disappear into storage to put the third piece away. Maybe she wasn't such a snoop after all. Dinky got along with everypony except Coco really well. She knew Coco was just friendly joking around, but Dinky always took it like she really ment it.

Dinky knew she had anger issues. She went to a therapist once a month to help it, but nothing could make it go away. Dinky had been doing really well until Coco. Coco just had all those traits that made her bristle with anger every time she met somepony with them.

Dinky knocked and Spike was quick to answer. He pecked her on the cheek. She leaned in for a kiss on the lips, but Spike pushed his way into the hallway.

"I'm really hungry." said Spike before running into the storage, probably to grab a box full of gems to stuff down his gullet.

Dinky bristled. Had he just ignored her? Wait. Dinky tried to calm herself. Were supposed to be happy all the time. Right?

===

Roseluck sighed as she steered between a maze of rock pillars that reached several feet into the air. This was the hardest sailing she had done. Ever.

After several more minutes of trauma, the ship finally left behind the forest of rock. Roseluck sighed in relief. She checked the map. They were in open water for about an hour.

Roseluck trotted a few feet away from the wheel to get a better view of the deck. Dinky sat on top of the tallest mast as lookout. She seemed a bit distant today. Must be something with Spike.

Anyways, Amethyst was napping in the sun, curled up on a pile of rope. Spike was below decks cleaning the rooms, and Coco was polishing all of their armor.

Roseluck hated to wake Amethyst, but Coco did it for her. Coco trotted out with the fixed and clean armor and shouted at the top of her lungs "Come and get it!"

Amethyst jumped to her hooves, pulling out her bow and firing. Coco ducked just in time and the arrow hit the deck behind them, hitting it with a loud thunk. Dinky rushed from her post to see if everypony was alright and to get her armor. Roseluck spared a few seconds away from the wheel to grab her armor.

Coco was making fun of Dinky again. That mare needed to go easier on the little filly. Roseluck thought that Coco forgot that Dinky was still a fragile filly, not a full grown mare.

Roseluck slipped on her armor quickly while running up the stairs to the wheel, Amethyst not far behind with the "Finder" clutched in her mouth.

They both reached the map. Rosleuck turned her attention to the seas, steering out of the way of a barely noticeable sand bar. They could of cruised over it, but Roseluck didn't want to chance tearing up the hull. Meanwhile Amethyst slipped the "Finder" on and the map's icons appeared. They were about an hour away from the next place, a large island with the head of what looked like a head of a pet deer that some ponies have emblazoned on it. It was labeled " Anteopolis,The Antelope Empire."

Roseluck shook her head as they sailed on. Spike came out from below deck and swabbed the deck while Dinky took post on the mast. Coco went below decks to make cucumber salad for them all to have for lunch. Amethyst retreated to her sunny pile of rope coils and dozed off again. She had been pretending to check if the ropes were fraying or not when she eventually floated into the land of dreams.

Roseluck sailed on. In what seemed like weeks but was only hours, the ship arrived at the shore of the giant island. Everypony suited up in their newly cleaned weapons and armor (Thanks to Coco. Turns out she wasn't so useless.)
Coco had also made sure everypony had a secret dagger stuck in their mane or armor somewhere. Roseluck placed her's carefully in the thickest part of her tail.

The group departed, their hooves hitting a pristine white sand beach. A dense jungle sprung up at the top of the beach. No pony (or antelope) arrived to greet them. So the group headed into the dense jungle, tense and ready to fight.

===

Dinky moved forward, trailing behind Spike at the back of the group. Roseluck was leading, and Amethyst and Coco were right behind her, talking avidly. Well, as avidly as you can in a creepy dark jungle.

They kept trotting on for about an hour, no sign of intelligent life or the jungle's end.

Spike swatted away a leaf that hit Dinky in the face. She fell backwards and fell tumbling down the hill they had been going over.

Dinky was about to shout when she saw some weird creatures appear in the trees. She jumped into a bush near the top of the hill.

Dinky tried to alert them, but they didn't hear her. Spike turned around to say something to her but stopped in his tracks. He was about to say something when Dinky saw the creatures raise wooden pipes to their mouths.

The creatures were all tan, with a white underbelly and a black stripe just above that. Two small black horns rose from their heads, but were much thinner than a unicorn's.

Spike fell as a dart from the pipe hit him in the chest. Everypony else fell soon, too, except for Dinky.

Spike was barely conscious. "Rescue us." he stated before falling unconscious.

Dinky said" I will." quietly and then giving him a kiss on the lips.

Then Dinky got out of the bush and scurried away into the underbrush. What was she going to do?

Chapter 9: Prison and Thompson

Amethyst Star trudged behind Roseluck, chained to her. Coco was chained to herself, and Spike was chained to Coco. Three "gazelles" as they called themselves were at the front of the group. The one in the lead was taller than the others and wore silver armor while the others wore none.

All the gazelles had adorned their faces and slender bodies with garish paints that twisted in strange patterns. There were also two gazelles at the back of the group. They all held those dart tubes that had made them unconscious.

Amethyst had woken up being dragged across the muddy jungle floor. She had moaned and opened her eyes. Coco and Spike had been still out cold, but Roseluck had been struggling to her hooves.

Amethyst had tried several times to get up but to no avail. She had just laid there for several minutes being dragged. Soon after she tried again, and on her second attempt, she had been able to stumble for a few steps before falling down.

It had taken her several minutes to finally regain her balance and be able to trot regularly. In that time Spike and Coco had become conscious.

It took several more minutes for the others to get to their hooves. And now the procession was slowing down. The trees were beginning to become more spread out. In another minute there was only a few small groves of small, young trees as they trotted in the open.

Amethyst trudged forward. They had reached the tree line again. They continued on for a minute before emerging.

Amethyst gawked, her mouth open wide. Giant step pyramids of stone painted in deep reds and blues rose from the ground, some almost as high as The Castle of Friendship.

Thousands of gazelles trotted around the pyramids. On top of all of them many gazelles were bowing as if praying. And also on top of each was an altar.

Amethyst recoiled as Coco covered Spike's eyes with her hooves. On top of the nearest step pyramid a sacrifice was being made. Amethyst tried to look away but couldn't as a gazelle dressed in white robes took up a dagger in its magic ( apparently the gazelle's horns were like a unicorn's.) He then thrust it into the chest of the victim, a young male gazelle.

The priest-like gazelle pushed the victim down the steps of the step pyramid. The body gushed blood, the dagger still sticking out of its chest as it rolled down the steps.

Amethyst screamed as the gushing body rolled to her hooves. She recoiled and pranced away, but her captors puled the chains, choking her.

The lead armored gazelle turned to one of his compatriates and saying "Take them to the prision. They will be sacrificed tomorrow.

The lead gazelle said it very loudly to make sure we heard. Amethyst felt a tear drip off her face. She looked around. Spike and Coco were staring at each other in shock, and Roseluck held her head high, not even seeming phased. That mare needed to show some emotion. No wonder she wasn't married.

But then Amethyst got back to reality and gulped. They were going to die tomorrow if Dinky didn't save them.

===

Dinky galloped away, tears leaking from her face. The caring part of her mind asked her Why didn't you try to save them? Why not to try and fight? For Spike! But the logical part argued You just would have gotten caught to, and then no pony could save you all!

But... the caring part of Dinky's mind began before interrupted by the other, and Dinky galloped as fast as she could while the mental battle within her head insured.

Dinky wiped the tears from her face as she stopped at a crystal clear stream. She dipped her canteen into the water and filled it to the brim before taking a refreshing sip of ice cold water.

Dinky continued on, her crying having ceased. She had been trotting for about ten minutes after filling her canteen when she stopped in her tracks at the sight in front of her.

A small, round cottage rose from the ground. It's walls were made of stones packed on top of each other. Its roof was made of hay and several small windows lined the walls. A crooked faded blue door was set into the walls of the house near her. Smoke drifted from a small stone chimney on one side of the hay roof.

But that was not what stopped her in her tracks, No, the old gazelle in the blue robes studded with runes was. And he was trotting towards her calmly, a long bronze sword held in his aura as he moved towards her.

===

Spike looked into the dark corridor that was the prison. His cellmate was a snooty female gazelle by the name of "Mademoiselle." Spike thought that might just be what you called a lady in these parts, but he wasn't sure.

Coco shared a cell with a young, loud, vulgar-language-spewing male gazelle. Her cell was across the hall from his.

Amethyst's was on his right. She shared it with a changeling who was so sad and depressed that it didn't even try to eat her love. It just shifted from pony to pony, sometimes gazelle to gazelle.

Roseluck's cell was on his right. She shared hers with an old unicorn mare who was whispering nonsense, shaking the bars of her cell as she began to scream and then quiet down when an armed gazelle guard held up his sword in front of her throat.

Spike sighed as he slumped to the ground. He could really use one of Dinky's kisses right now.

===

"And that is how I ended up here and why I need your help." finished Dinky. She took a deep breath as she looked into the unreadable eyes of Thompson, the blue robed gazelle who sat across from her.

Dinky picked up her cup of tea in her aura to her lips while twirling the saucer with her hoof.

Dinky could feel Thompson looking deep into her soul, trying to decide what to do. Finally he said "I will help you and train you."

Dinky sighed in relief.

They had come to meet when Dinky had stumbled upon his cottage. He was about o attack her when he realized she was just a scared, crying little pony filly that needed help. He had told her that he had once visited Equestria in his earlier years.

Dinky had explained her story to Mr.Thompson while sipping his homemade rasberry tea. She had had ten cups of it as they had talked. For some reason he called her "Dinky of the Doos" since she had told him her name.

Now Mr. Thompson the gazelle looked down on her. Then he said "It is time to start your training, Dinky of the Doos."

Chapter 10: Training and The Altar

Dinky started to sweat profusely as she began to wobble. After several more seconds she fell, screaming.

She was caught in Thompson's aura, who was training her. Dinky had been levitating herself up. She had gotten about ten feet up in the air when she couldn't do it anymore, and plummeted.

Mr. Thompson smiled at Dinky, and told her that they would move onto another spell. This one was hard, alicorn-awesomeness-level-hard.

Dinky stumbled as she trotted nervously behind Mr. Thompson. He turned around swiftly when they were a good distance from his house.

"Dinky of the Doos, you will now attempt to learn the Kaleidoscope Spell."

Dinky looked up questioningly at the wizened gazelle, her brow knitted. That sounded hard. And cool.

Mr. Thompson looked down at Dinky and said " The Kaleidoscope Spell is a spell that will produce thousands of shards of colored light. It will blind only your enemies, hurting their eyes and making them unable to think or do anything. Then you will be able to rescue your friends. Only this spell is hard, very hard."

"Why can't you preform it then, Mr Thompson?" asked Dinky, who was confused.

"I cannot. You see, you have to know the ponies or gazelles that you don't want to get hurt. You could tell me all about them, but I still would not be able to do the spell without hurting them."

Dinky sighed as she sagged.

"Mr Thompson, your training has helped a lot, but I don't think I am ready. Maybe you could sneak in and..."

"No." said Mr. Thompson firmly. " My brothers may have done me wrong before, but I do not kill or hurt unless necessary for my own survival."

Dinky began to brim over the top with anger. How dare he...But then she got control of herself. He was being generous enough training her.

"I will escort you to the gates. Then you will be on your own." said Thompson.

Dinky nodded solemnly and sat on the hard packed dirt as Mr. Thompson began to explain the Kaleidoscope Spell.

===

Coco sat on the grimy hay in the corner of her cell. Her cellmate, the loud, vulgar gazelle buck was laying on the ground moaning, clutching his groin.

The buck had been shouting and being overly annoying, not helping Coco let out her grief. She had wanted to cry but couldn't with all the obscene name calling and hoof gestures her cellmate was giving the guards only a foot away from her.

After several hours and more than several warnings, a guard came up to him and thrust his dagger onto the gazelle's neck, making sure to draw a little blood.

The buck had quieted down after that, only saying a few profanities a minute. (This was much improved: he had been swearing constantly before.)

Soon, though, the buck turned to her, a lustful gleam in his eyes. As he had approached her, she had turned around and bucked him in the balls, and now he lay rolling around on the floor, grunting and gasping in pain.

This quiet time gave Coco a minute to shed some tears. Soon it sounded like it was raining in the cell as her tears hit the cell floor with a pit pat, pit pat.

Now the buck had recovered. Coco's tears were thinning. She looked up with blurred vision to see the male gazelle, named Graffiti, having backed up to the other side of the cell. He gave her a mean glare before curling up in the corner and falling asleep.

After another hour, the guards arrived at their cell. Coco shivered nervously, thinking it was her turn to die. A young female gazelle had been taken away to be sacrificed about an hour ago.

So Coco was relieved when the guards hoisted the young Graffiti in their auras and carried him out of the cell. Coco felt a tinge of pity for him as the vulgar buck was pulled away in a magic wrapping, kicking and shouting. But the guards were stronger and their magic did not falter as they turned the corner, Graffiti's screams fading into the distance.

===

Dinky's eyes were open wide as she began to ascend into the air, her horn earning its third layer, the second overglow. Sweat was raining from Dinky's body as she focused, her body becoming rigid as the fourth layer came, the third overglow. One more, and she would complete the spell.

Tiny beams of light danced around her horn. Dinky was screaming from the pain and exertion as she tried to go farther. The fifth layer flickered over her horn, not fully there, but close. It was about to complete when Dinky screamed, sending flocks of birds up into the air as the volume of the scream washed over everything, making even the trees shudder.

Dinky fell, the spell having been almost complete. That had been her twenty first try, the best so far. Before this time, she had only been able to get up to three layers.

Dinky lay there, the world dancing with light as if she was being affected by the Kaleidoscope Spell. Her vision would almost fade to black before coming back, then repeating the process several times.

Finally a hazy figure galloped over to her and raised a steaming hot flask to her muzzle, forcing it down her throat. It tasted like swamp water with a hint of cinnamon.

Dinky suddenly became fully aware as she lifted her head up from the ground, rolling onto her back as she coughed and retched a little as she tried to get the disgusting taste from her mouth.

She finally got to her hooves as Mr. Thompson looked at her seriously.

He said "I am happy you are alright, but I am afraid your friends will soon be sacrificed at the ceremony of The Altar, a monthly ceremony to the most important god, Itzalulu, the god of the Earth."

Dinky visibly shook. Her friends needed her now, and she couldn't do the spell. What was she going to do?

===

Spike trembled as he was dragged out of his cell along with his friends and their cellmates, except Coco's, who had been taken away earlier.

Spike struggled and breathed fire, scorching the halls of the prison, but not breaking the hold of the guard's magic.

Spike finally gave up as they trotted out into the daylight, the light hurting his eyes, feeling like somepony was using a rusty dagger to scoop his eyeballs out.

Spike finally recovered, opening his eyes to tiny cracks as he watched as they reached a crowd of over ten thousand antelopes. They all were adorned with bod and face paints, and some wore masks or costumes. They all cried out in joy as Spike and the rest were carried up the steps of the nearest pyramid. It was painted in stripes of blue and red, and was far larger than the other pyramids.

Spike began to feel a few tears drip down his face as the crowd whooped and shouted as he and the other sacrifices were carried up the steps of the pyramid.

He watched as they finally reached the top, lining them up and shackling them to the ground. Up first was the insane unicorn hag, and then Spike. His cellmate, the snooty gazelle, was behind him and now crying as she shook visibly.

Spike watched as the guards bowed to a new gazelle who had just reached the summit of the pyramid. This gazelle was wrapped in pristine white robes, his legs adorned with golden rings topped with various symbols made of jewels.

The guards said, in unison," These are the sacrifices, High Priest Dragmar."

Priest Dragmar smiled wickedly at Spike and the others, and used his horns, which were also adorned in golden rings, to pick the crazy unicorn hag.

He laid her out straight on the large altar in front of him, calling out to the crowd. He said "The first sacrfice of The Altar, to the god Itzalulu!"

The crowd screamed their approval as the priest used his magic to keep the unicorn hag in place while raising a long, silver dagger over her chest.

Spike recoiled as he thrust the dagger into the hag's chest, blood spewing into the air and onto the ground. The priest turned around and bucked her off the altar, getting his hooves dirty with her blood. Spike watched the dead hag roll down the steps, her blood coating them.

Then Spike felt himself being unshackled and picked up. He cried out in shock as he was lowered onto the altar. Priest Dragmar lifted the dagger in his aura, raising it above Spike's chest. He smiled wickedly down at Spike, making Spike start to whimper and cry. All Spike wanted was Dinky, to be here holding his claws. That was all he needed.

Spike thought of Dinky, and then of all of his friends as he shut his eyes tight, awaiting the fatal blow from Priest Dragmar.

Chapter 11: Kaleidoscope and The Temple of the Sea

Dinky galloped through the forest, leaping over logs and running around plants and trees. Mr. Thompson was galloping behind her, wheezing, trying to keep up, as Dinky pressed forward.

In the distance, tops of some stone structures stood above the gigantic trees, reaching to the clouds like Manehattan skyscrapers.

Soon, Mr. Thompson called her to a stop. They were so close, but Mr. Thompson looked her in the eyes.

He then said" This is where I take my leave, Dinky of the Doos." He smiled sadly down at her, and Dinky embraced him in a tight hug.

When they split, he said "Remember the Laser Spell! It will help you fight your way to the temple. I believe in you!"

At that he galloped away, leaving Dinky alone on the edge of the forest limits. She could see the open lands of the city through the trees.

She then cantered forward, locking a guard in her sights as she powered up her Laser Spell, shooting it at him. He crumpled, his right foreleg blown off.

Dinky began to shake. She had almost killed him, but had shot his leg instead, just at the right time. But he was still screaming in agony. Dinky wanted to cover her ears with her hooves, but couldn't, or she wouldn't be able to move.

A female gazelle ran out in front of her, throwing a spear, Dinky ducked, and the spear soared over her, hitting a tree with a dull thunk.

Dinky powered up her spell and blew out the ground in front of the guard. The guard stumbled and fell into the newly made pit. Dinky cantered forward and picked up lots of dirt from the ground, covering the hole, making escape even harder for the gazelle guard.

Dinky pushed forward, her mane flying behind her. Soon she could hear crowds. And then see them too. They were surrounding a giant temple. She watched in disgust as they killed a purple unicorn, pushing it down the steps. Thankfully it wasn't one of her group.

Then she looked up again. And on the top of the pyramid, Spike was being chained down, a dagger held above his chest. Dinky's face flashed with anger. She tried to hold it back but couldn't. Suddenly she rose into the air, the Kaleidoscope Spell starting, She had to do this. For Spike.

Dinky effortlessly gained the first over glow, over the first glow, in a few seconds. No gazelle or pony noticed her as the watched the priest dance around Spike. It seemed as though he was a special prize. They probably had never even seen a dragon before.
But all thoughts left her mind as she concentrated on only the spell, earning the second over glow. She began to sweat and rise up even more as the third over glow flickered into existence. Sweat dripped off of her, forming pools on the ground. Her eyes were wide open as the fourth over glow began to flicker, not there yet. She felt herself giving out. But then she saw Spike, the dagger now raised over his chest. This time, though, it would actually strike. Dinky felt all of his hugs, his kisses, his words, all her feelings, rush through her as they poured out her horn, the last over glow coming to life, surrounding her horn.

A blast of light erupted from her horn, and all the gazelles toppled, blinded by the light as they screamed and writhed in agony. Dinky could see they priest fall on top of his own dagger, impaling himself, before toppling off the temple, smashing into the ground below.

Dinky's hooves hit the ground. They light was bouncing around, still strong. Dinky powered it back up to full power with a few Laser Spells as she cantered to her friends. When she reached the top of the stone pyramid, she quickly freed them, and called upon their armor and weapons with her newly enhanced magic.

Her friends gaped at her as their armor fit onto them, their weapons returning to their sheaths.

Spike rushed to her and gave her a long kiss on the lips. He started to try to slip his tongue in, but she pushed him away, signaling that they had to leave. The spell was starting to wear off, and a few Laser spells wouldn't fix it. But Spike then pointed to her flank. Dinky's eyes opened wide as she looked down at her once blank flanks. Each was now adorned with a single blonde star with a star for each color of the rainbow around it. She gaped and then squealed in delight. She had her cutie mark!

===

Roseluck cantered at the front of the group, the others not close behind. Dinky kept squealing every time she turned around, seeing her new cutie mark. Meanwhile Spike was looking at Dinky's flanks also. Roseluck held back a snigger. She pointed it out to Coco and the two erupted in a fit of giggles as the group stopped in a clearing for a rest. They had galloped all the way back to the ship before heading back out, following the path to the new part, making sure to steer clear of the antelope.

Spike blushed as over ten jokes were told by Coco at the expense of him and Dinky's flanks.

It all ended when Dinky got to her hooves, slapping Coco in the muzzle. It was loud, and Coco fell to the ground, clutching her muzzle.

Dinky looked at her and hissed, " I know were all friends, but can't you at least give Spike an hour after he almost got killed to joke at him?" Dinky's gaze were like twin laser beams, slicing through Coco.

Coco mumbled nonsense before slowly nodding and quickly getting up, and starting off. The others all followed behind, Roseluck staying at the back.

After over a half hour of watching Spike ogle Dinky's flanks, Coco stopped them. She stepped to the side and pulled back some palm fronds, her face wearing a look of awe.

In front of them a cliff rose, the beautiful blue sea crashing against it before dripping off, swirling back into the ocean before crashing against it again.

On the cliff was a beautiful old temple, painted the purest blue. Paintings of waves adorned the sides of it, and a giant golden trident stuck from the roof.

The part was located in the old temple. As they trotted forward, Roseluck felt uneasy, as if the temple didn't want them there. They then proceeded farther in.

Chapter 12: Princess Coral and Coraline

Amethyst Star looked at the cobwebbed walls as she and her friends delved deeper into the old temple. She shook away a large cobweb and ducked under a fallen pillar before hearing Coco scream.

She quickly became alert and found her friend screaming frantically as she swatted a dark shape with her lance. Amethyst took a step forward and reeled back. A giant spider was crawling over the web in front of them.

Spike was shaking as he stared, horrified, at the giant arachnid. It's blue star back gleamed in the light of Amethyst's horn. Amethyst had drawn her bow. She fired, the spider falling still as black blood seeped onto the floor.

Suddenly the walls lit up with hundreds of giant red eyes as over twenty spiders the size of full grown ponies scuttled out of the shadows, clacking their legs together as they crawled over their fallen brother.

One attacked Coco, who shoved her lance through it. Another one jumped onto the ceiling and crawled across it, landing on Dinky. She screamed as she swung her golden sword blindly.

Spike and Roseluck surged forward, Spike's twin blades and Roseluck's hoof axes slicing the spider's body to pieces. Spike hugged Dinky quickly before jumping at another advancing spider, chopping several of its legs off.

It took a minute for Dinky to recover. She then charged a spider, swinging her golden sword haphazardly, chopping a spider to bits.

Amethyst raised her bow, but in the enclosed hallway, she wouldn't be able to shoot without a high possibility of hitting one of her friends.

So she drew a small dagger in her armor and charged forward, digging it into the head of a nearby spider.

The skirmish lasted several more minutes as Coco put her lance through the last spider. They all took deep breaths as they surveyed the dark hallway that was now filled with dead arachnids.

Amethyst took the lead, her bow out and drawn, the others following single file behind her. She lifted up a large piece of rubble with her magic, allowing everypony else to trot under it.

After exploring the twisting and turning corridors for about a half hour, the group entered a large chamber.

The room was spacious, with light flooding in from several holes in the stone ceiling. Several tall, thin pillars held up the ceiling. Many of the pillars had toppled or cracked over the course of thousands of years.

In the center of the room a giant statue stood, water sprouting from its mouth and horn.

The figure was a dusty alicorn, painted in deep, rich blue hues. It's wings were flared and the water sprouting from its horn seemed to be like magic instead of water as the light hit it peacefully.

Written in twisting letters, the base of the statue read: Princess Coral.

Amethyst scrunched her brow a she stared, confused, at the statue.

But they weren't distracted for long as they saw a small statue of an earth pony. It's cutie mark was a bronze gear, akin to the other parts off the weapon.

Dinky surged forward and used her magic to pull the gear off the statue.

Suddenly all exits were blocked off as a siren sounded through the chamber.

The friends clustered together, making a small group, their weapons drawn as they waited for their new foe to appear. They were all scared, but ready to defend themselves.

So they were surprised when a simple pink female earth pony entered the chamber from the ceiling. Her mane was electric blue, and her cutie mark was a branch of coral.

She reached the floor and took a fighting stance, growling "Intruders."

Hundreds of giant spiders swarmed from the cracks along the walls and from the ceiling. The mare took out a golden spearr, pointing it at them before screaming"ATTACK!"

The Five scurried to the nearest exit, pounding on the barrier of stone.

Dinky powered up a spell to blast it away, but a giant spider came out of a crack and snatched her up, quickly climbing the ceiling and placing its prey in an intricate web.
Spike jumped onto a fallen pillar and began to work his way up to Dinky.

The remaining three charged the horde of spiders, yelling battle cries. They slashed and shot and swung, but the tide of spiders did not cease.

Soon the mare charged forward, into the midst of the spiders. She called out" Fight for me, Coraline. Fight for the fallen princess Princess Coral!"

The spiders' effort seemed to triple as the three friends were gradually being pushed back. Soon they had their rumps to the wall as they fought bravely. But they needed their other two friends to help them.

One of the spiders leaped on Roseluck's head. She screamed and spun around disappearing into the crowd of spiders.
Coco galloped onto a fallen pillar while Amethyst floated herself onto the pillar next to Coco. The two fought and could see Roseluck being carried towards Coraline. She was wrapped in webs and was out cold. Coraline raised her spear, about to puncture Roselucks heart...

Amethyst shot her bow, the arrow slicing through Coraline's neck neatly. The dead pony fell over, tumbling into the crowd of her minions.

Amethyst felt a void open up inside her as she watched the pony she had just killed fall into her minions, her blood splattering onto the stone around her. Amethyst would always remember that moment vividly, she would seek out mental help for that deed, she wouldn't be able to sleep for days.

But then the web Dinky had been brought into snapped and fell apart, the two young lovers and a dead spider toppling from it.

Dinky caught herself and her lover with her own magic. She set them down on the fallen pillar next to Coco and Amethyst's. Dinky gave Spike a soft kiss on the cheek before slashing her sword across the body of an advancing spider.

They fought for over an hour. Amethyst soon ran out of arrows and was forced to fight with her dagger only. It was hard and she would shy away a lot, trying not to get killed.
But finally they either killed or scared away all the spiders. They collapsed, tired, before galloping to the unconscious Roseluck.
They woke her and the Five headed back to their ship, a new piece of the weapon in their grasp. They had faced death twice today, and somehow had beat it.

Chapter 13: The Kraken and Cobras

Author's Note

Sorry for the wait- a bit of writer's block along with a busy everyday life. Enjoy! :)

Chapter 13: The Kraken and Cobras

Dinky sat on deck, sighing, as a small green island flashed by as the Hammerhead moved at top speed. She laid down on her belly before rolling onto her back, looking up at the clear blue sky. She took a deep breath of the briny air before getting to her hooves to travel to Spike's room.

Dinky found the door half open. Dinky pushed the door open to see no dragon anywhere in the small room. She heard moans and groans from the bathroom.

She cautiously trotted over to the bathroom, listening as the pony or dragon inside moaned louder. Dinky could not tell if it was male or female.

Then she heard a flush and a groan. Then the sink turned on. She could hear soft humming. It was definitely Spike from the humming.

Dinky dove into Spike's room as Spike left the bathroom. Dinky buried herself in a pile of dirty, old clothes. Spike entered the room, humming her name as he laid down on the bed, sighing as he leaned back.

Dinky waited for ten minutes before slowly slinking out from under the pile of clothes toward the door. But it was closed. Dinky furrowed her brow and turned around to see Spike smiling seductively, moving slowly towards Dinky, pressing his lips to hers in a passionate kiss, darting his tongue into her mouth, exploring it.

Dinky was taken aback, her eyes wide open as Spike pressed her up against the door, his kisses becoming deeper and more passionate.

Dinky finally closed her eyes and pressed back, her tongue wrapping around Spike's before pushing his tongue out of her mouth, both taking a breath. Then Dinky plunged her tongue into Spike's mouth, fighting his tongue savagely.

The two young lovers battled with their tongues as they melted into each other. Spike wrapped his arms around Dinky's waist, pulling her close to him.

Suddenly the door was pulled open by a curious Coco. The two kissing lovers fell backward, Dinky's back hitting the ground hard, Spike landing even harder on top of her.

Coco fell over laughing like a seal. Dinky and Spike blushed profusely. Spike picked himself gingerly off of Dinky, who's face was now red not from embarrassment but from anger.

She was about to slap Coco when yells sounded from the deck. Amethyst Star pushed the door open, screaming for them to come. The three followed her onto deck, weapons drawn.

With its giant tentacles wrapped around the hull of the ship, a giant Kraken squealed, an odd wet sound, and plunged its giant tentacles onto the ship, ready for a pony dinner.

===

Coco quickly scrambled about the ship, swinging her lance frantically at a Kraken tentacle, only making a small cut that healed instantly.

Coco watched as Dinky took to the ballistae, loading it before firing the large arrow. It hit the base of one of the Kraken's ten tentacles. sending the severed limb flying away from the rest of the body.

Dinky reloaded and shot again, the giant missile hitting the water several meters from the monster.

Coco slashed her lance across on of the nine remaining tentacles, severing the tip.

The small section of tentacle flopped around on deck before wrapping itself around Coco's leg. She screamed as she ripped it off, sending it flying away into the waves.

Amethyst took the other ballistae, hitting the Kraken in it's eye. The creature screamed and writhed in the water as it pulled the projectile out of its one and only eye socket.

Where a giant amber eye had been there was only mangled flesh, blood dripping rapidly down the creature's body and spreading in the water, the blood dying the blue ocean pinkish.

As the creature began to bleed out, Dinky fired another arrow, hitting the creature's lower body. Blood exploded from the wound drenching the side of the ship and staining the water red instead of pink.

The Kraken flopped around as it died. Hundreds of sharks began to crowd around the dying monster, biting off pieces and slurping up blood. Roseluck quickly got to the wheel and steered them away from the massacre.

Amethyst put the "Finder" on. The next part was located on an island only ten minutes away. Coco could already see it on the horizion. It was labeled "Co-a Island."

Nopony had any idea what that meant, but there wasn't any cannabils or gazelles in the description, so everypony was fine when they arrived, their hooves hitting brown sand as they ventured into the jungle, the heart of the island.

After a fifteen minute hike, the group reached a clearing. Tall, amber grass swayed in the light breeze. The group laid down for as short rest.

Soon they heard slithering noises from the tall grass. The group got to their hooves as shapes appeared from the grass, the trees, the bushes, everywhere.

Hundreds of cobras surrounded the Five, waiting to strike.

===

The dark, shadowy figure that had stolen the elements of harmony smiled as he paced. "My minions will bring down these Five."

He said it with disgust, as though the words tasted horrible as he spoke them.

He wore a long, black cloak. Giant gray feet were visible from under the cloak. A small horn and a bigger horn broke through the cloak, sharpened with metal closed around their points.

He twirled a golden amulet on his bigger horn. It was triangular, shaped like a pendant that had been crucial to Equestria's survival...

===

Discord's brow was furrowed as he searched for the amulet of Scorpan.

After the box had been unlocked and the castle had sprung forth, the keys returned to what they had been before. Twilight's key had been returned to the triangular amulet, the amulet of Scorpan.

When Discord had gained his own throne in the castle, Twilight had given it to him as a present.

Now it was gone, as if stolen...

That amulet had enormous power. It could suck ponies of their magic like Tirek's horns.

Scorpan had had no significant horns, so he was planning to use the amulet to suck up ponies' powers unlike his brother, who would use his horns.

Whoever had taken the amulet could end Equestria once and for all.

Chapter 14: Captured and Chained

Something has gone wrong. We don't seem to have an archived copy of that chapter.

Chapter 15: Tombs and Trials

Coco wiped her eyes, still struggling to breathe normally. Roseluck and Spike had stopped crying long ago. Roseluck had moved several paces away to be alone while Spike was comforting the still sobbing Dinky.

Coco got to her hooves and was about to take a step forward when she realized what was under her hoof. She picked up "the Finder", smiling sadly as she made her way over to Dinky, who had stopped crying and was hugging Spike so tightly as of her life depended on it.

"D-dinky, I need you to put the Finder on so we can keep moving."

This caused Dinky to break down in tears, mumbling incoherently as she sobbed into Spike's shoulder.

After ten minutes, Dinky recovered enough to put the bronze contraption on her horn and fire it up with light lavender magic.

On the map, the spot of the next piece was close. Coco counted the parts left. Five after this next one. Then they could go home for good.

The quartet quickly moved through the forest, anxious to find the next piece. Spike lead, hacking branches of trees and fronds of ferns out of the groups way.

Finally, after an hour, they found an entrance to a underground chamber. Or Spike just accidently fell into it and the others followed.

When everypony got to their hooves, they could see they were in a circular room covered in a thick layer of dust and many cobwebs. Except that their landing had made all the dust fly up and it was almost impossible to breathe.

When the dust finally cleared, the quartet was amazed by the intricate drawings and carvings scribbled over the wall. Coco went to take a closer look.

The nearest picture illustrated a scene of a giant gray creature with two horns, one bigger than the other. He was knelt before a golden shrine, a small candle burning beside him. There was also a few shapes carved next to the picture, like letters or words. Almost like hieroglyphics.

Coco's eyes swept over all the other pictures on the crumbling wall. All depicted gray bulbous creatures with two horns on their noses.

Coco quickly opened her saddle bag and pulled out the book "The Beyond" Princess Celestia had given them. The book was tattered and barely held together. It had become defiled from their long journey. Spike curled his upper lip at the sight. Coco thought it must have been Twilight's impression on him.

She flipped through the book, making one of the pages fall out. It was carried by the wind into the corridor leading out of the room they were in.

Dinky began to move towards it while Coco kept flipping. She soon found the page she had been looking for. The creatures covering the walls were called "Rhinos."

Coco was about to announce this when Dinky stepped into the corridor. Suddenly a giant metal box fell from the ceiling. Dinky screamed as it dropped. She dove farther into the hallway, the metal block trapping her inside and away from the rest of the group.

Suddenly other corridors opened up around the room. Then the walls began to shimmer, and bursting from the walls rock statues came, moving jerkily towards the other three, backing them up into other hallways. Coco cringed at the sound of Dinky's scream coming from within her corridor.

Soon Coco was forced back into a hallway, and a metal block fell. She could hear two other clangs of metal against stone, signaling that her other friends were blocked in as well.

Her first step forward caused a barrage of darts to explode from the wall, forming a much larger shape than a pony, the shape of a rhino.

All that saved her was her clumsiness. She had tripped while trotting forward, and all the darts had flown over her. She quietly slipped under the now hole filled wall, taking a few more steps before the next trap was sprung.

A giant wooden hammer came out of the wall, smashing down where Coco was. But Coco propped the hammer up and away from her body with her lance, giving her enough time to wriggle under and away from the giant hammer.

She faced another swarm of darts before she reached the next obstacle. She stepped on a loose piece of stone on the floor, firing up a trap. Suddenly skeletons of several alligators sprung from the wall. Coco screamed as one of the dead creatures acute jaws clasped its sharp teeth around her foreleg.

She shook the skeletons off, nursing her bleeding foreleg as she hobbled forward.

She had to jump across a giant hole in the floor before reaching a grid covered in stones. She put her hoof against the nearest one. It broke off from the rest and plummeted, landing in a pool of burning hot lava.

She studied the pictures. Most were of jewels. Rubies, jades, sapphires, and topaz covered the floor. But a few were simple gray or brown rocks. Coco placed her hoof on the nearest non-precious metal, a coarse brown sandstone. It held under her weight.

She skipped and flipped onto the boring rocks, slowly making her way across. Soon she could see light ahead. the end of the tunnel.

She cartwheeled a last few times before reaching the end. She huffed as she collapsed on the floor. But soon she forced herself to get up and move out of the corridor.

When she got there, she was in a room filled to the brim with gold and gems as well as impressive weapons and cutlery.

The other three were already there. Dinky had a large cut across her forehead, and Roseluck sported a burn mark across her chest, but other than that they were all fine.

They waded through the piles of things. Coco couldn't help herself when she found a beautiful silver and jade necklace and had to throw it in her saddle bag along with a matching horn ring.

After a half hour, Roseluck shouted. They all gathered around her. She held up a pulsing white jewel. Coco was immediately sure that it was the next piece.

They soon realized that they were trapped. But Dinky quickly solved the problem by shooting a hole in the ceiling big enough for her to lift them all through. To bad it made the whole room start to fall apart and crumble.

As Dinky shot them out of the underground death trap, Coco could see several golden coffins spill their contents, which were century old corpses of what had probably once been great rhino royalty.

They landed on the hard ground, twenty feet away from the crumbling tomb. Soon, like a giant sinkhole, the ground fell, making the quartet get to their hooves to avoid falling in.

As the four trotted away to the ship, Coco remembered their deadline. They had had two weeks. After today they would have a week and a day. They could find all the parts and Amethyst and get back home by then. Right?

===

Amethyst's eyes fluttered open. She groaned loudly as she flipped onto her side. She could hear the clang of metal. She rubbed her eyes to see herself chained to the ground.

Suddenly a dark figure loomed above her. Amethyst slowly looked up.

"Hello pretty," he said.

Amethyst's screams echoed through the forest along with mad, cackling laughter.

Chapter 16: Royalty and Rain

Roseluck was the last to step onto the ship. While Spike climbed the mast to unfurl the sails and Coco and Dinky cleaned weapons and armor, Roseluck made her way to the storage room. She opened the creaky door slowly, peering inside. A pile of parts had begun to grow in one corner. Roseluck placed the pulsating white gem next to the three gears and the glowing orb of green magical energy. Five out of ten, half way there, eight days left. Only eight.

Roseluck then returned to the deck, taking the wheel and setting off as soon as Spike finished unfurling the sails and and Dinky and Coco brought the anchor on deck.

Roseluck then asked Dinky to blow a bit off wind to set off the ship on course.

Dinky's horn fired up and soon they were off.

After checking the map with the Finder, they found that they were heading to the biggest island on the map, labeled with a weird head with floppy ears and a weird long nose. It was labeled "El-p-nt."

They set off. It took three hours. It was towards the end of the day when the island came into view. they checked the map again. There was actually two parts on the island.

After ten minutes they reached the shore. Roseluck steered the ship into a small grove mangroves. The shallow water was treacherous and Roseluck almost sank the ship several times. Soon they came to a good landing spot and Coco let the anchor plop into the waters.

The quartet disembarked, breathing in the smells of the jungle.

They moved passed hundreds of kinds of flowers and birds fluttering around the tree canopy.

After a few more hours of tireless trotting, they collapsed in a small meadow. As Dinky and Spike quickly drifted off, holding onto each other, Coco just lay on her back, staring at the starry sky while she tried to fall asleep.

Roseluck just really needed one of Amethyst's special hugs right now. But the only reason she was sad was because Amethyst was gone herself.

Roseluck took a small stroll through the thinning forest while Coco started to drift off to sleep.

She trotted along for five minutes before she reached the tree line. What she saw was incredible.

A giant stone castle surrounded by thousands of giant wooden and stone homes was encompassed by a tall stone wall.

Prodigious leathery gray creatures, clad in brown armour, guarded a giant metal gate and the stone walls.

Roseluck stared for an hour before she became to tired and headed back to camp.

The second she laid down she fell asleep, whisked away into a dreamless sleep.

===

Amethyst was huddled in a heap at the foot of the throne. Razor's eyes bore into her skull, making it hard for her to even breathe. Her eyes were as puffy as could be and her mane was matted with tears.

She struggled to look up at Lord Razor. He sneered at her, his snout curling in a disgusting manner. She felt more tears leak down her face as she looked into his amber eyes.

He threw a small bundle of moldy hay at her hooves.

"Wh-why do you feed me!? Just kill me. It's to miserable. Kill me!"

She rubbed her hide, which had been rubbed raw by a willow switch last night. The thoughts of last night prompted waves of tears to fall, slamming against the ground, trailing down her face and dripping off her muzzle.

"Bait." was all Razor said. He then took the switch and struck her, saying "Eat!"

She screeched and quickly swallowed the hay in a few bites. It was disgusting, but at least it was something.

He laughed manically as she curled up in a fetal position, weeping softly.

Soon it began to rain. Razor rolled his eyes and got off his throne to seek shelter under the trees, which seemed weirdly familiar, like she was near home...

But soon the drizzling rain came down in torrents. She cried out as the water hit her skin like bullets. She squeaked and screeched while she rolled around the painful rain.

She looked up at the rainy sky, her tears mixing with the rain on her cheeks.

Someone, save me.

She then shrieked loudly, hoping somepony had heard her. Suddenly Razor burst from the brush and slapped her over and over with the wooden switch. She screamed as loud thwacking sounds echoed through the forest.

===

Spike softly kissed Dinky on the cheek to wake her up. She moaned, wiping her groggy eyes. Spike got to his feet, practicing with his swords while Dinky woke.

Roseluck had woken them to tell them her findings. They had then planned to go the gate. It turned out both pieces were inside the huge wall.

Spike took the back once again. Dinky tortted next to him while Coco was in the middle. Roseluck took the lead.

They quickly reached the edge of the wood. All three except Roseluck gawked for ten minutes before Roseluck prompted them to move forwards.

They traveled through the plains for twenty minutes before the guards spotted them.

Ten guards galloped towards them. Spike had checked the tattered guide book earlier to see that these creatures were "Elephants."

The guards chained them up. The four immediately became worried as they were dragged to the city. they might be locked up soon, but at least they would be in the city.

The process was quick. The guards were silent the whole time. Twenty elephant guards pulled the giant metal gates open for the escort.

The guards, instead of putting them in jail, dragged them through the streets, towards the giant castle.

Soon they reached the castle, which had towering oak doors.

The guards hurriedly pushed them through.

They led them up innumerable swirling steps that led up. After a half hour, they reache da giant throne room. Two giant elephants sat on golden thrones, draped in purple robes.

"King Leather and Queen Mudhen, the intruders."

Spike stared up at the royals. King Leather's eyes were stormy with anger.

They were backed into a corner while the guards and the king and queen talked.

Dinky pulled the Finder out of her saddle bags and put it on, also pulling out the map.

The two items were in this very room/

Spike's eyes traveled up to Leather and Mudhen's heads.

Two matching crowns with shiny white pearls that had an aura about them sat on top of the jeweled wreath called a crown.

They needed to steal the two ruler's crowns.

Chapter 17: Debris and Death

Author's Note

Maybe you might have noticed the new cover art..SQUEEEEEEEEEEEEE! I finished it a long time ago, but just now have decided to make it the cover art.

Chapter 17: Debris and Death

Coco trembled as the guards turned back to them. One snorted loudly, adjusting the strap that ran across his back. It held a giant wooden scabbard for a wicked sword that had several twists and turns along its razor sharp body.

She glanced up at the crowns. They shone in the noon light that was spilling through the stained glass windows . The time of day reminded Coco of the deadline.

Only a week left.

The guard with the wicked sword, who seemed to be the leader, approached them.

"I am General Quicksilver of the Elephantopian's army. Me and my compatriots will lead you outside the castle to leave the city. We are peaceful people, but are none to slow to fight back."

The giant scythe on his back shifted, giving the quartet a better view of it. Several of its edges were stained crimson.

"You will have this one chance-leave on your own accord, and never come back to these lands as long as you dwarfed beings shall live."

"And what if we decide to stay?" Coco asked. She quickly covered her mouth with her hoof. She hadn't had the intention of saying such a thing out loud-it had just came out invoulintarily.

"Well then," General Qucksilver said, his gaze like a wooden dagger carving out Coco's eyes. "If you decide to stay, you meet your fate in The Melting Pot." He pointed to a giant brass cauldron the hung in the center of the square outside one of the big stained glass windows.

The cauldron was full of burning hot lava that was tinged a light magical lavender.

"Oh, I forgot! It's time for that nasty thief Tuber to be executed!" He then ordered several of his men to stay where they were and guard the quartet until he got back. He then barreled down the steps, calling out to the four remaining of the five.

"This will show you why you want to leave NOW."

Coco was rattled. She looked up at the nearest guard. He stood straight and erect. He snorted in her face before returning to his stoic position. She glanced at the barbed spear that was draped across his chain mailed back.

"I'm hungry," Dinky groaned after twenty minutes. The stoic guard next to Coco glared at Dinky. The rulers still sat idly on their thrones.

"Noon Court shall soon begin, Guards Splat,Crane, Sedimentary, and Stormy. Escort the filthy intruders out of here the second the demonstration is over."

"Yes, Queen Mudhen," the guard farthest from Coco piped. He clutched a small sword in his trunk, and his name, Crane, was carved on the blade.

"Look," one of the other guards, who had been referred to as Sedimentary in an earlier conversation, said. "It has begun."

The four moved towards the window and looked out.

A large gray elephant, his legs hogtied together with chains, his trunk tied in several very painful looking knots, was standing on a wooden platform above The Melting Pot. He was shaking. The watched as General Quicksilver pointed to him and gave a short speech. Then several guards dressed in black armor took giant axes and began to cut at the platform.

The thief being executed, Tuber, screamed his lungs out as the guards gave one final chop. The elephant topped into the flames, his screams echoing throughout the city as his body spasmed in the burning lava before it sank completely, melting into it.

Dinky was clutching Spike tightly while tears leaked down her face. The death of Amethyst was still very fresh, and just glimpsing death made the floodgates break open for the poor unicorn filly.

Coco looked up at the ruler's crowns while they were escorted out of the room. If they left, Equestria and everywhere else would fall to the mysterious villain.

But if they stayed, they risked ending there lives by lava pot.

What were they going to do?

===

Amethyst felt like she was dead. She was fed, but just enough to keep her from dying. She was starving all the time, and her throat was always parched. Her hide was now surely scarred from the many beatings of the willow switch. Several times her plot had even began gushing blood.

She cried softly into her own shoulder. Soon she heard a noise.

She looked up to see a young fawn fall to the ground, pale and immobile, its eyes glassy.

Razor seemed to be becoming stronger. He was sucking the life out of everything around him. Hundreds of dead trees surrounded them, and innumerable bodies of lifeless animals were scattered around. He was quickly becoming stronger and bigger, but not in the rapid way Tirek had. No his seemed slower, like he was easing his way into the flow of energy. At beginning he had only chanced sucking life out of blades of grass and bugs, but know was doing so with trees and pony sized animals.

She whimpered at the thought of all the animals dying and her body became racked with sobs.

The switch fell across her hide and she screeched again as a plume of blood shot from the scarred area of tissue.

Amethyst looked at her plot while Lord Razor galloped over to a sapling to suck life out of.

Her one flank, her left, was free of scars and bruises since she laid on that one all the time. It was caked with dirt and mud.

But her right flank was a mangled mess of blood and body tissue. it was so messed up that Amethyst could barley make out her cutie mark any more. She began to cry once again, curling up into a ball, her chains clanking, in the place of death that she rested in.

===

Dinky trotted down the street with her three friends. All three were deep into an argument about to stay or to go. All three wanted to stay and go at the same time.

Eventually, with a few choice swear words from Dinky telling them to figure it out, the verdict was that they would stay.

The quartet cantered into a small side alley where a family of dirty rats ate from the rusty trash bins.

They were just looking for a place to talk when an old oak door swung open, its hinges creaking loudly, like a moaning pony with a belly ache.

A male elephant stepped out. He clutched a rusty iron trident in his trunk. His eyes met theirs, and he opened his eyes wide.

Suddenly movement could be heard outside the alleyway. The guards had realized that the four weren't leaving, and were on the search for them.

"Quickly, quickly, inside!" the elephant bull whispered.

The quartet had no idea what to do. With no other choice, they dived through the rusty door way after the elephant. the door slammed closed seconds before guards came clattering down the alley.

A hard rapping on the door could be heard. The elephant pushed them into the kitchen and hid them under the table in a corner before he opened the door.

"Head Armory Director Debris, have you seen any sight of these four?" The guard, who Dinky recognized as Guard Crane, held up a quickly sketched poster of the four.

"I'm afraid not, Crane. I bet Shire a little down the way might have."

"Thanks for the lead, Director Debris."

"No problem, Crane."

Crane and several other guards then plundered away down the alleyway befor eturning a corner and disappearing.

Debris slammed the door shut and moved towards the four.

"I think I can help you. You see, I have a score to settle with the Government here. Especially those haughty monarchs. And General Quicksilver. Quicksilver the most."

The four still cowered under the table.

"So you're no-not gonna turn us in?"

"Of course not. This is the thing I've been waiting for."

"What?" Spike asked.

"Help."

Chapter 18: Hope and Haste

Something has gone wrong. We don't seem to have an archived copy of that chapter.

Chapter 19: War

"Wha-what?!" Roseluck sputtered, her eyes full of fear and confusion.

"Yes, and it will not be just us. I have recruited almost two thousand bulls and cows over the past decade, and I bet we'll be able to rally another thousand."

"And how many soldiers do they have?" Spike asked.

"Over ten thousand," he muttered, as if it were an afterthought.

"WHAT!?" the remaining four shouted.

"Um, yes..."

"I wasn't so up and tootin' for war out of the blue, but going up against an army with almost seven thousand more soldiers?! That is just crazy talk!" Rosleuck shouted, glaring at Debris.

"Hay, you want to go back out there? Die, go in prison, get dumped in The Melting Pot?!" Debris shouted.

Roseluck and the others cringed at his loud comments.

"Let us discuss this further," Roseluck said before she, Spike, Dinky, and Coco made their way down the hall, stopping a few feet away from the doors to the library.

"No," was all Rosleuck said. She eyed the others.

"I don't wan to, and I know it's a big risk, but we have to, Rose. If we don't, we might lose out on the rest of our chances. Heck, the crowns, and in turn the pearls, could get destroyed!" Spike piped.

Roseluck nodded slowly. She understood, but she was stubborn, no matter how good the opposing side's views could be.

In turn, Coco and Dinky both agreed.

"Okay, but in case we don't get to the throne room, make him promise he'll give us the crowns as rewards or some other horseapples. We just can't tell him about the quest. He'll flip, and he'll probably put us back in prison if we did after he ascended to the throne." Roseluck said.

The quartet agreed, and made their way out of the corridor.

"We have reached a decision," Coco proclaimed.

"We have decided to join you in battle, but under one condition. We get the monarch's crowns as a prize for fighting in a war in a foreign country over politics that we haven't even heard of before." Roseluck said.

"Oh, and we have to be fighting together!" Dinky added.

Debris groaned, shifting from one massive foot to the other.

"Oh, all right. You better be some good fighters."

"We sure are!" Dinky piped.

They waited for a minute before they heard a light rapping on the door.

Knock knock knock knock. Knock knock!

Debris opened the door, and a soldier sprung inside.

It was the guard Crane, one of the four that had been with them while they watched Tuber's execution.

"The zebra villages have accepted our invitation for a little fun. They'll arrive, armed and ready to fight, within the hour," Crane reported.

"Good. Have half of them join me on the main invasion on the castle, a fourth go to the barracks, and the last fourth run rampant on the streets causing destruction."

"Yes sir!" Crane cried, saluting. He then rumbled away, his bronze armor clinking against his short sword.

Debris slammed the door shut, turning to the quartet.

"You'll be heading with me, to the palace, to invade. We need the best fighters there, and if you say you got here all the way from the fabled land of Equestria from calve's tales, then I think you're suited to fight against some bulky, leathery foes."

===

The zebra villagers had showed up earlier than expected. Now they dashed through the streets, causing mayhem and making havoc of the homes and shops of the citizens.

Coco galloped in the front of their small group. Behind her was a zebra named Tenfold, and then Roseluck and Dinky ran next to each other. Spike sprinted at the back with a young elephant bull named Mudslinger.

Mudslinger spotted a swarm of soldiers, about five by five thick, charging a smaller group of elephant soldiers rushing in the same direction as they were; towards the barracks. Their purpose was to hold up the soldiers at their dormitories so that it would be easier to penetrate the main castle.

The six sped over to the small fight, which had caused the death of a female elephant.

Mudslinger, true to his name , had a piece of cloth he used as a slinger. But he used anything he could get her hooves on as ammo. Currently he was shuffling through his saddle bags. He settled on two rusty daggers and launched them into the fray, piercing on bull's hide in a spray of red.

The skirmish was soon tipped to their favor when another group all zebras, joined the fight. The guards were overwhelmed and either fought to their final death or scampered away in surrender.

Tenfold broke away from their group to join the horde of zebras, proudly brandishing his mace for all to see. He then struck it into the side of a building which one of his compatriots set on fire seconds later. The flame engulfed the home and then sped down the line. Soon the whole street was a light with flames, almost like a giant Hearth's Warming Tree.

Elephants screamed and raced from their homes only to become engulfed in crowds of rebels. The streets had become total anarchy, and the rest of the city, especially the palace, was soon to feel the blunt pain of the wrath.

The four and Mudslinger sped to the barracks where their post had been assigned. Elephant guards were shooting from the rooftops with mounted bows and crossbows while a good one hundred rebels repeatedly smashed the battering ram into the front doors of the dormitory.

The four and their elephant compatriot were at the back of the sprawling force attacking the soldier's homes. They were playing a vital piece; if they failed, all of Elephantopia's army would be unleashed and the rebels would surely fail in their mission.

The elephant rebels struck the front doors again with their solid iron battering ram. The doors exploded in a flurry of wood shards that joined the rain of arrows down upon the small army below. Rebels steadily streamed into the building, and the sounds of singing blades and screaming, dying elephants echoed into the exterior of the barrack complex.

After most of the army had filed into the barracks, the four and Mudslinger were let in to fight. The last two hundred were stationed outside to keep guard. As Coco entered, she saw the limp bodies of the archers from the roof rain down. The rebels must have already stormed the roof.

The inside was total chaos. Dead elephants were strewn across the floor, and arrows and weapons flew through the air.

It was almost entirely impossible to find out who was on which side. A rebel could easily kill one of his own kin, and the same could happen for the soldiers.

But at least the four were safe from possible rebel murder. Their pastel colors stood out from the rest of the mottled gray and brown bodies, making the rebels know that they were friends.

But it also made them targets.

The four screamed as they charged forward. They stood by each other, but Mudslinger darted off somewhere or another.

The four galloped into the fray, swinging the blades around as they fought for the elephant's freedom (and their own.)