Is all Hope Lost?

Spike was finally awake and he looked at Roseblood, and he was. It longer afraid even in the slightest fear. He slowly got out the bed that she tucked him in, and calmly took a breath before walking up to her in a bold fashion with his fists clenched.

While Zecora and one of the guards were busy punching each other, the zebra noticed the baby dragon bravely walking up to her.

"Spike?!" She said in recognition before delivering another punch to the brainwashed guard. "What do you think you're doing?! She will murder you!"

Roseblood noticed Zecora's screaming and looked behind her, and Spike was, indeed, awake. "Heh Heh Heh, well well well. Look who's awake." She had a smug look on her face.

"Hello, Roseblood." Spike said in a voice as calm as the summer sea. "I am awake."

"How did you manage to get out of that spell I out on you?"

"Does it matter?" The baby dragon raised his right eyebrow.

"Ah, of course not." Roseblood replied in a modest tone of voice. "What matters is thsy you are awake and I would like to know if you are ready to join me fully as my newest pet that serve only me."

"Roseblood," Spike said. "Please, there is good in your heart, and I know what you really want."

"Pfft. I know I know, you know very well that I want power and authority over Equestria." She boasted.

"You want a friend."

"A friend?" The evil mare began laughing at what he just said. "Puh-lease. Sure, I have Chrysalis to help me, but, what other friends could I possibly need?"

"Well, you're jealous of Celestia and Luna."

"Oh, that was a long time ago." The evil mare brushed off. "And besides, this was never about envy. This has always been about power and control over the land of Equestria. And now, I've got it at last."

"Is this what you want?" Asked Spike. "Having power in Equestria, and killing anypony that disagrees with you? Think of those ponies you imprisoned and torturee in the dungeon; they have friends and families that they love so much, and might even have kids to raise."

"Perhaps. But, apparently, they were not successfully under my control, and they are all just traitors and loose ends. What other purpose could I have for those ponies in the dungeon?"

"You can let them go and let everyone go."

Roseblood laughed again. "Let them go? You must be joking. They will just warn the resistance and plot against me! I cannot take any chances."

"They would only do that because of how badly you treat them. A true ruler wouldn't torture prisoners Just for fun, or execute anyone who disagrees with them. That would make you look more like a.... a..."

"A dictator?"

"No... wait- yeah, a dictator, that is absolutely right. But, the point is, everypony loves Celestis because she is a very benevolent mare and she treats everypony as equals."

"Kindness and playing nice is for weaklings." Roseblood argued. "Celestia and Luna were weak since they were easily put under my control all of these years in Hell, which they have imprisoned me in for a thousand years!"

"Was there a reason why they put you in Tartarus?"

"Well... I wanted to be loved and adored by everypony, but no! They just have to place it on Celestia and Luna instead." She sounded quite bitter about that statement.

"You just wanted everypony to like you?"

"Loved, respected, and felt adored by everyone like their own goddess of everything. Alas, I was one of the most powerful allicorns that ever existed in those days, and I tried showing the whole world how great my power was."

"By trying to take over Equestria?" Spike asked

"Yes! And I would have been successful if not for those two interfering! Grr, that time i would have had it all since the Elements of Harmony, and yourself, were not around here at that time. They then banished me to the pits of hell for the crime of 'high treason' and 'espionage', and all the other most heinous crimes that ever exist in this dimension."

She had a very bitter look on her face again. "I've been trapped in hell for a long time ever since that day."

"It's no use, Spike." Discord said. "You can't save everypony. She's too beyond her sanity to recognize that."

"Oh shut up, Discord." Roseblood flatly said to him. Back to the baby dragon, she then asked him: "look, what exactly is your point being, Spike?"

"My point is: it doesn't have to be this way." Spike continued. "You can think back on all that you have done and see the light in you. Please, try to let all those feelings go."

"You really do not get it, do you?" Said Roseblood with her eyes narrowed down at him. "I am evil."

"Are- are you sure?"

"I am certainly positive. Besides, I love being evil. It makes me happy. The feeling is just so amazing and it let's you forget about other troubles in the world." She began circling around him. "I do have my own friends, but, you? No. You are my new pet, nothing more."

The baby dragon wouldn't give up, and, he knew that there was some light inside of her that Celestia told him in Limbo. "Come on, Roseblood." He begged. "Have you ever tried friendship before?"

The evil mare had a small look of doubt on her face. She didn't really show it that much, but she did have that thinking face on her. "I... I have." She admitted. "But, I discovered this power and, while I do have Chrysalis, I see friends as things that will hold you back."

"No. It's powerful."

The evil mare laughed at his statement. "Can it give you world domination? Can it give you all the respect you deserve to be the leader of everything?"

"Well.... I mean.... it's not that...." Spike began stuck and stammered.

"That's exactly what I thought." She had a smug look on her face. "It just holds you back and it is just meaningless."

"N-no." The baby dragon tried reasoning again. "Friendship is more powerful than you know, Roseblood. It helped my friends defeat Nightmare Moon before, and King Sombra."

"Only because they were weak." She corrected him. "No, I am far above them both, along with that annoying clown named: Discord. I am far superior than anypony else in Equestria. Matter of fact, Celestia and Luna are under my full control, thanks to my dark and sinister magic." She smiled with a proud evil grin. "Now, with them under my control, and, officially out of commission, nothing will stop my plans!" She began cackling evilly and triumph once again.

"Who needs friends, besides me, when you can have anything you want?" said Chrysalis.

"Right you are, my dear friend." she turned her attention back to Spike, then Roseblood remarked: "I have tried giving friendship a chance, and there was not enough respect from anypony i could come in contact with. So, I decided to become the most powerful mare, and I was ALMOST equivalent to Celestia and Luna before they threw me to Tartarus."

"But, respect is earned, not given. You need to treat others the way you want them to treat you. That's the only way they will give you the proper respect."

"Pah! What do you know about respect?" the evil mare brushed off. "Look at you. I mean, you have never been respected by anypony in your entire life."

"And, controlling your subjects worked with me when I was the queen of my subjects." Chrysalis reminded.

"Can you stay out of this, you evil bug?" Spike barked at her

"Bug?! How dare you call me such a name! In my home, it is very derogatory and foul to call a changeling such a name!"

"Peace, Chrysalis. Peace." said Roseblood, intervening. "Now, Spike, if all of your subjects are afraid of you, then that is how they will listen to you. For instance, it was how King Sombra rose to power those years ago."

"And looked where it got him!" Spike pointed. "I defeated him all by myself, and... I had help with Cadence to save the Crystal empire. You see, i did something heroic and it got me all the respect I needed, because i have done something heroic and good. Controlling your followers out of fear is not the answer."

"Well, I can have and get whatever I want." Roseblood pointed.

"No." Spike said flatly. "You can't. It might sounds fun, but... nopony wants whatever they want."

"He has a point, Roseblood." said Imari. She and the baby dragon looked at him. "If you just have whatever you want, there will be nothing special to you anymore. If you keep getting whatever you want every day, it would be boring."

"What would you know?" Said Roseblood, almost sounding like shouting at him again."

"Look, my point is, this is not the answer. Come on, just open up your heart and let go of all that hatred and anger in you. Just let it go and try and see that you are going about this the wrong way."

"Pfft. Nonsense." She shrugged. "I know exactly what I am doing right now." Roseblood was looking a little haughty and arrogant by saying this. "This is anything I could want: to be loved and adored by everypony around you, under the control of your magic or not."

"But do you have to kill anypony that opposes you or disagrees with you?!"

"Yes! And you better watch your tone with me, mister." Roseblood snarled at him like a guard dog about to attack a burglar in his house.

"Look, they didn't do anything wrong. They just want to speak their opinions. And, there is nothing wrong with a little criticism."

"Wrong! I am supposed to be the greatest pony in all of Equestria! Not Celestia, that ball of sunshine, or Luna, the little doom and gloom queen of the moon."

"They are respected because they are nice and kind to everypony. How many times do I have to say that?"

"Oh, let it go, Spike." said Thorax. "There are some ponies you just can't persuade. Roseblood's too far sanity to be helped."

"That's just the point, so-called Changeling king. I do not need saving at all! I am perfectly in control of my actions and emotions, and I have all the power of Equestria now."

"Look, you can make amends for your mistakes if you just see what you are doing to all of Equestria."

"I know exactly what I'm doing." The evil mare retorted.

Spike was running out of words to try and convince what she is doing is wrong. He sighed in defeat, and realized that Roseblood was far beyond sanity to be helped at all.

"I see. I was just trying to help you see what you are doing." Said the baby dragon. "I guess you are truly evil after all."

Yes, it did seem like Roseblood was more stubborn than a hundred donkeys and she was probably too far beyond saving after all.

"Well, sorry to disappoint you, sweetie." Said Roseblood. "But, indeed, I am one with evil and I love being evil."

"I believe you." Spike looked to his left and right, and saw one of the Klugetownians swords, and picked it up in a slow, nonchalant manner. "I guess there's... only one solution to this now."

"Oh ho, isn't this too precious?" Said Chrysalis. "The baby dragon is going to stab you and kill you."

"Heh. That runt doesn't have the guts to even do that, considering the fact that he was raised by ponies." Garble taunted cruelly.

"Do it, Spike." Said Ember

"Make her pay in retribution for l that she has done!" Spiral added.

"Put an end to this." Said Zuberi after hurting one of the Klugetownians.

The baby dragon slowly walked up to her and readied himself to give Roseblood the final blow with the blade. "Can you at least see that what you are doing is wrong?"

"I have told you before sweetie." Said the evil mare flatly. "I love being evil. It makes me happy."

Spike felt like shedding a tear or two, knowing that she could probably not be saved from the darkness in her heart. "I see. That's a pity."

He raised his head and readied the sword, aiming the tip of the blade at her heart. He was holding it in the right position, but, he has never killed anyone before in his life. His hands were shaking and sweat was running down his face.

"What are you waiting for?" Roseblood said with a smirk. "Go ahead, tryband kill me."

"Pah, he doesn't have the guts." Iron Will noted. "He's a kid who's afraid to kill even a fly."

The bad guys all laughed with the blue minotaur and the heroes urged Spike to kill her with that blade once and for all."

"What are you waiting for?" Said Imari. "Do it."

"Come on!" said Prince Rutherford. "Make her pay for hurting yak home!"

"We can put an and to this." Disxord urged.

"Please, just try and end this." Zecora added. "She must pay the consequences for her villainous, atrocious acts. Roseblood doesn't even deserve to live after all she had done."

One side of Spike was telling him to kill her, and the other side told him not to and try and get any good from Roseblood's evil heart.

"I don't see a look of a Killer on you, Spike." The evil mare continued taunting him. "Just give up and, as my pet, you will have more gems than you can-"

She was interrupted with a loud "Shing!" Noise, and a stinging pain was piercing her chest, right where her heart was.

For a moment or two, everything stood still as if time had stopped flowing in existance. Zecora, Discord, Silver Horn, Kifaru, Ember, Thorax, and the other heroes were surprised to see that kind of act.

Roseblood's own followers were just as stunned with disbelief as the good guys were. "W-what?" Roseblood said.

"It's... finished." The baby dragon remarked before letting out a sad sigh. Before falling to the ground and have it the sword pulled out of her chest by Spike, she fell with a loud thud, and had a smile on her face.

"What do you know?" Roseblood smirked. "I guess.... I was wrong about you after all. Maybe you do have a brave heart and a strong mind, after all." She then died and her mouth was agape and blood was slowly oozing down the wound where the sword stabbed her.