The Destroyer of Worlds

Chapters

Nightmares
Feelings
Time for a Talk
Party invites
Surprise
Monsters
Vacation!!!
Shīdoragon Hotel
Vision
Shopping
Mission start
Glow
Party pooper
Strange Creature

Nightmares

On a small town near the beach, in Japony, lived a quaint little town. It was not particularly notable, being small and out of the way. Peaceful residents spent their days here relaxing, fishing, or just doing their jobs. At one such warehouse, at the docks of the beautiful and peaceful city, scientists were creating a weapon so chaotic, that even Discord would shudder at it.

"I have to say, I'm surprised." A figure mumbled to her coworker, looking at the data scrambled across her screen. It was the dead of night, most had gone home to sleep or spend the nights with their families and loved ones. Two figures, one being a dragoness and one being a stallion, sat there, inspecting the new data. The building they were in was well lit, trying to keep the peaceful dark away from the two tired scientists. The dragoness hummed, staring at the object in front of them.

A large aquarium sat there, full of colorful fish, a few eels, and a crab. Fake coral and rocks were set up inside there to make the creatures feel more at home. The dragoness hummed, then glanced at the stallion, as if reading his mind. The stallion nodded in return, writing down a few things on his board.

"Commencing test G-53. Results from the last one varied, the one before did not work. We are hoping to perfect it soon." The stallion said into the recording device, giving a straight face. There was no time for friendly banter, no time for fake smiles or forced jokes. What they were working on would change the world, forever more. They would save this world from him once they unleashed their weapon. He allowed a small smile to grace his face and looked over to the dragoness, seeing her push a few buttons, then give him a look. "You ready?"

"As ready as I'll ever be." She responded, then flashed him a grin, hovering her hand over a green button, her grey eyes returning to the aquarium.

"Five." The stallion began, staring at the small fish in front of him. They swam about, ignorant to the dragon and pony, ready to plot their deaths. "Four." As if sensing the incoming danger, an eel slid back into his humble abode. "Three." The crab scuttled across the rocks, its claws snapping in the air, muted by the water and thick glass. "Two." The dragoness gave a small smirk, her sharp, gem crushing teeth. "One."

She pressed the button, the lights flickering as energy filled a strange machine. It hummed to life, causing the lights in the tank to flicker, then shut off. The building was pitch black, the stallion and dragoness casting a wary glance around, as if something were to happen to them. The lights flickered back on, a light popping in the background, causing the dragoness to flinch, though the stallion showed no reaction, staring at the pitch black tank.

"Did it work?" She asked, staring at the tank, as if expecting something to jump out, only to hear the stallion sigh and sit back in his chair, rubbing his eyes with his hooves. The lights flickered back on in the tank, everything was unharmed. Fish swam to and fro, the eel started to poke it's head out, expecting something to happen. The crab skittered along, back to its business, only pausing to feed at extra bacteria.

"No, it didn't..." he said, closing his eyes, covering the bridge of his snout with a hoof. The stallion had a lab coat on, having a grey coat of fur. His mane was combed back, being a black color with white tips at the end. On his flank was a picture of a few bottles, filled with chemicals, his Cutie Mark. His eyes were a light brown, currently bloodshot, and having bags under them from the constant work.

The dragoness was a white in color, having grey spines run along her back, with large wings folded at her sides. She had a long scar on her maw and walked on all fours, her ice blue eyes watching the stallion, giving a sorry look.

This was Doctor Parting Glass, and his wife, Warm Stone. They had been married for over four years now, proving everyone wrong about dragon kind. They had met when she kidnapped him and planned to eat him, only to find he shared her scientific curiosity. They had talked for hours on end, before she let him go and settled on becoming a vegetarian. He could come visit her often, and soon they started dating. One thing led to another, and now they were trying to save the world.

No evil plans, even if it was a weapon, were to be made. They had planned to let Celestia know of their work once it was ready, and let her know of the incoming threat. However, with these results, they were going no where, fast, and he was afraid that they would fail.

Warm Stone walked over to her husband, being twice as tall as he was, and gave him a loving kiss on the cheek, bringing a tired smile to his face. Their eyes met, she giving him that toothy smile, her fangs showing. While most ponies would have soiled themselves at the sight, Parting Glass only gave her a kiss on the snout, his worried melting away.

"I'll go make some tea." She spoke, causing him to nod, then stare at the data. She nuzzled him, before walking off to their kitchen, ready to make two cups of tea. She quietly pulled the cups out, humming a soft tune as she filled the kettle with water.

"I don't know what we are missing..." Parting Glass mumbled to himself, scanning the sheet for any errors in the plan. They had already checked depth, and found no problems with it working, even at the bottom of the ocean. Finding test subjects was rather easy, they lived right next to the ocean. Of course, they had fixed the machine up and looked it over. Multiple times, in fact! He just did not know what was missing. He eyed the sheet, then paused, as if something hit his very soul.

Warm Stone blew a small burst of blue fire under the kettle, heating it up just right, and pulled out two bags of raspberry out. She poured the steaming water into the two cups, and got ready to place them into them, only for her husband to rush in, the stallion looking as if he had found out the secrets of the universe.

She paid him no mind and continued with their tea, h er husband bouncing around her in excitement, like a hatchling who discovered to to breath their first flame. She gave a motherly smile to her husband, putting some sugar in their tea, before setting them both on the table. She started to sip, then decided to humor her husband, giving him a questioning glance.

Parting Glass gave her no time to react and put the data on the table, she casting it a wary eye at it, then looked up at her husband. "Check out the data on the composition in the water."

She rolled her eyes, then looked over the data, setting her tea down for a moment. Her eyes scanned over the paper, then looked back at her husband setting it down, responding, "I know what water is made out of, honey. Two hydrogen and one oxygen atoms."

He gave a giddy smile, then pointed to a specific line on the paper, chuckling, as if this was the easiest answer in the world. "Yes, it's so simple, we overlooked it. But what if our G-53 was missing on, crucial detail. It destroys oxygen, correct?" She gave a hum, waiting for him to get to the point. "But water is not only oxygen, is it?"

She gave him a deadpan stare, then raised her cup, asking, "Your point is?"

"What if the hydrogen was shielding the oxygen from G-53?" He asked, giving a knowing smirk. His wife looked at him as if he had told her he could turn water into wine. She took a sip of her tea, then gave a throaty chuckle.

"We missed something that simple?" He nodded rapidly, causing Warm Stone to give a short chuckle again, before seeing him down his tea in one go, and run back into the lab, she following after him. "So, do you want to destroy the hydrogen and the oxygen?"

"No, no, no...we need the hydrogen." He rubbed his chin with his hooves, looking over the machine. He then smiled, looking back at his wife, saying, "We could have it go through the hydrogen atoms! Live water going through cracks in the concrete."

Warm Stone smiled, then stood up, drinking the last of her tea, cracking her knuckles as she walked over to him, and said, "Commencing oxygen destroyer, codenamed G-54!"

Parting Glass rolled his eyes at his wife's antics, giving a smile to her. "You sound like you're in one of those cheesy monster movies."

Spike opened his eyes, witnessing a dead, rocky world. He had never seen this area before, but the ground looked like it had been burned, centuries ago, but volcanic activity. He could smell smoke, and looked behind him, seeing a ruined city. Large corpses of buildings sat there, creaking and groaning in stress. A building toppled over, sending dust and rubble into the air.

He couldn't help but note this looked familiar. Spikes young, emerald green eyes trailed down to his body, seeing his pudgy, scaly belly, having a light green underbelly and purple scales. He inhaled, feeling dead air enter his lungs, and looked again. He gasped in shock.

The city was replaced with a ruined Ponyville. The Mayor's house was caved in, Sugarcube Corner was covered in dusts, the top gone and the windows broken. Carousel Boutique laid on its side, half of it burning, smoke filling the air. In the distance, he could see Sweet Apple Acres, the barn was fine, but the house was crushed. He started to look behind him, seeing the ruined Crystal Castle.

His knees felt weak, and his eyes burned with liquid sadness. He sat on his knees, his ear frills picking up a crackle in the distance. Was it a storm? Why should he care? He then got up and rushed inside. The throne room was filled with the stench of death, causing him to gag. He looked around, feeling bile rise in his throat, but swallowed it.

There, sat everyone in town. Everyone had died. Their bones and shreds of clothing showed they died suddenly, but the air was deathly still. He looked around, tears falling from his eyes, he gave a loud sob as he spotted the bones of young ponies. Fillies or colts, the bones had been there long enough where he could not tell. However, hope still swelled in him.

Twilight was not there. Neither were the others. That means they survived! They had to! They must've survived. Despite the doubts that gnawed at the back of his mind, he was so sure of it. He walked over the bodies, being as respectful at he could, avoiding them and carefully stepping over them.

Once he entered the throne room, he stopped, spotting the mares he was looking for. He quietly sobbed, then walked over. The smell of death was here as well, but not as strong. He looked at all of them, trying and hoping that this was a joke. A clever scheme to stop the bad guy.

Applejack slumped across the steps, her eyes closed in some odd peace, her hat was gone and her hind limbs were bent at an odd angle. His tears soaked her mane, running a hand through her blonde mane, kissing her forehead. His heart broke in two as he let go of her, new emotions worming his way through his heart, but he forced them down, wishing he had admitted so many things to her.

Spike looked over, his eyes widening at the sight; Rarity had a long, sharp gem through her chest, which had killed her instantly. Her eyes were wide and glossy, as if the gem came out of nowhere. He walked over and shut her eyes, as if he was letting her rest. He gave her a sad smile, knowing she would abhor the thought of him crying over her, thinking he would be selfish mourning only her.

He looked over, seeing the bodies of Fluttershy and Rainbow Dash. Long since friends, it was no surprise to see them die together, but Spike sobbed louder, new tears stinging at his eyes. Rainbow Dash was in Fluttershy's hooves, her left wing nothing more than a bloody stump, her right wing bent at an angle. A large, black, mark was on her back, between her wings. Spike looked down to see Fluttershy's hooves, still holding onto her dead friend. A black mark was through her chest and her eyes were closed shut. He noticed long, wet marks down her cheeks, which had dried.

Spike gave a long glance to Pinkie, who had a long pipe going through her chest. She died in a dramatic pose, as if in an opera, and Spike would have giggled if it were not so gruesome and heartbreaking.

Spike rushed to the throne, Twilight slumped in front of it. Her grown was on the floor, cracked in half, a sad smile on her face. Her eyes were glossed over, but Spike put his fingers to her neck, checking for a pulse. She suddenly grabbed his hand, making him jump out of his scales.

"You could have saved us..." Twilight spoke, her glossy eyes staring back into his. She coughed, letting in ragged gasps of breath, before letting her eyes tail back to the ceiling, letting a sad smile out. "You should have done something. Now...we're all going to die. And it's all your fault."

And with that, Twilight's head slumped back, the cackling sound becoming louder and louder. Spike felt fury fill his sto mach, a burning sensation filling his body, before he raised his head and gave a primordial roar that cracked the ground and divided the heavens.

"Spike."

Spike jumped at the deep, booming growl, his eyes strung with tears. The castle faded, and he was sitting on the ground, Twilight disappearing from his arms. Spike looked up to see a towering creature. It stood there, bipedal, and covered in scales as black as the night. Large, jagged, dorsal plates erupted from its...no, his back, the same color as his scales. His head was bear like, his jaws so powerful, that even a single bite would destroy a dragon. His arms were big and powerful, holding four claws that could destroy buildings just by brushing into them. Gills were on the sides of his neck, and a long, massive tail surrounded Spike, as if in the arms of a caring father.

Spike looked down from the towering God, and uttered a single word, his voice cracked and full of sadness. "Why?"

The creature gave a throaty rumble, it's head turning to the sky. Spike followed his gaze, seeing a star, flickering in the skies. He gave the God a questionable look, only to see large shapes take form around them. He gave a gasp, seeing another version of it, staring up at the sky, at the flickering light.

This creature had a long, blunt tail that waved around behind it, small spikes running along it. Large, white, dorsal fins ran down its spine, smaller plates running nineteen the three main rows. It's head was less bear like, looking more like a dragon. It's head lifted, giving a deep, guttural shriek that shook the earth below it. The two Saurian creatures gave a low growl, but Spike did not understand why.

"Spike!"

The crackle echoed out, as the Saurian with white dorsal plates slammed his feet into the ground, anchoring himself. His tail followed, before he rose his head to the sky, giving a deep inhale, small, blue dots appearing, going into his mouth. Waves of heat exploded from the creatures back, as long, ethereal tendrils entered his mouth. His plates started to glow brighter and brighter, and the Saurian stopped, everything going still.

His jaws opened, and with it came-

"SPIKE!"

The young drake jumped up, knocking his head against Twilight's, both of which groaned in pain, Spike falling back to his bed, clutching his now sore noggin. He gave Twilight a look, checking her over, and let out an internal sigh, realizing he had awoken from a nightmare.

"Spike, you slept in again." Twilight said, her wings tucked against her sides.

Having recovered, Spike gave a sheepish smile, trying to forget the sight of her and her friends, dead, in the throne room. "Sorry Twi, I've just been having some...nightmares."

Feelings

Applejack opened the door to her barn, the evening sun on her back as she entered. Her honest, green eyes scanned the barn for a moment, before she nodded to herself. She came in, giving a soft smile as she examined her surroundings. She nodded, before pulling in a basket full of apples.

It was boring work, pulling in the buckets and checking the apples, but Big McIntosh was working the fields, Applebloom was sleeping over at Scootaloo's house, and Granny Smith was too old for this type of work. But, it was extremely important, and Applejack was finished with most of her chores already.

A small gust of warm air entered the room, but Applejack paid it no mind, busy pulling out the bad apples and setting them into the basket. The air was felt again, and the door gave a groan as it opened a bit, causing Applejack to look over, her left ear flicking up. She gave a small chuckle, brushing her blonde mane out of her eyes, before going back to work.

Predatory eyes watched Applejack, the creature slithering across the rafters, making no noise as he scanned his prize. She had her guard down, that would make an easy target. His forked tongue quietly slipped out, tasting the air, his slitted pupils eyeing her up. His claws helped keep a hold, his padded bottoms quieting his foot steps.

His tail quietly writhed behind him, his skinny, but muscled, frame quietly circling her. He gave a smile, his fangs showing as he gripped onto the wall, quietly creeping towards her. His tongue slipped out again, as he grabbed onto one of the support beams and practically slid down it, his serpentine movements helping him out in sneaking up on his prey.

Applejacks ears flicked as a creak echoed out. Her head swivled around, her fur standing on end, quietly smelling the air. She stood there for a few moments, calming down, seeing nothing happening. She shrugged, playing the sound off to the wind. She still felt like she was being watched, despite her best efforts to calm down.

She hummed softly as she continued, glowing green eyes watching her from behind. His body lowered onto the ground, looking like a large cat of some sort. His foot landed on some hay, a softly rustling sound echoing out throughout the barn. He paused, seeing the mare stop humming for a moment. She then continued humming, causing the creature to let out a silent breath.

He got closer, within striking distance, and lowered himself, stalking closer to her. His inhaled slowly, right behind the mare, and stood over her, dwarfing her. His chest was puffed in, and his claws were primed, ready for the strike.

"Hey Spike." Applejack spoke out, causing the creature to let out a loud spitting noise out of his mouth, his arms falling to his side's, giving a sigh of disappointment.

"How did you know it was me?" He asked, seeing her turn her head, standing on her hind hooves. He lowered down, both having a tender kiss, Applejack gave a knowing smile.

"Ah'm your marefriend, Spike. Ah know everythin'." Applejack said, giving him a peck on the snout.

He gave a sheepish smile, rubbing the back of his neck. "You heard the creaking, didn't you?"

She gave a chuckle, getting back on her hooves, replying, "Ah could smell ya when the gust came in. But, yes, you were right, I knew it was you with the support creaking."

Spike gave her a loving nuzzle, standing on all fours. He grinned slyly, and grabbed her flank, causing her to give a soft gasp. "The others are away. Twilight is hanging with Rainbow Dash. She won't be looking for me for awhile."

Applejack shuddered, feeling a familiar heat between the back of her legs, feeling Spike grab her hips, something prodding her back legs. "Ah reckon ya might wanna close tha door, before some pony walks in?"

Spike gave a small growl, his muzzle right next to her ear, causing her to shiver. "Maybe I should let someone come in. Everyone will know you are mine."

He positioned himself, making Applejack giggle softly, her face bright red. He growled and pulled back, then sped forward, ready to-

A sudden knocking woke Applejack up, the heat between her legs still there, as hot as ever. She buried her face into the pillow, giving a muffled groan. She really had to see someone about these dreams. The knocking came again, not dampening her anger in the slightest.

She was having a great dream about Spike. Ever since she met the young Drake, she had felt something spark in her chest. Now, ever since Twilight became a Princess, she had been dreaming about him. Some were just cuddles and kissing dreams, of them with a family. Others were...not to be mentioned in public, to say the least.

"Applejack? Ya were supposed tah wake up an hour ago!" Applejack gave another muffled groan, sweat matting her fur, making her feel cold. She mumbled something that would make a few blush, and opened the door, the worried face of Applebloom greeting her.

"Ah'll go take a shower. Then we can go, alright?"

"And that is how I got my Cutie Mark!" Pinkie yelled excitingly out, waking Spike out of his silent dozing. His nightmares had gotten worse and worse. He was lucky to get any sleep at all, and Twilight. would often catch him glancing to the sky, as if searching for something out of the ordinary. "Equestria to Spike! Hello?" Spike was snapped out his musings, giving a confused hum to the pink pony that was Pinkie Pie.

"Sorry Pinkie, just a little...tired. What were you saying?" Spike assured, but she stared at him, frowning a little, her blue eyes filled with concern. She looked him up and down, as if studying him, causing some sweat to run down Spike's neck.

Pinkie opened her mouth, ready to ask something, only to close it, hearing hoof steps behind her. "Oh, hey Pinkie! What're you doing here?" Twilight's asked, looking at the pink mare, allowing Spike to sigh inwardly. Starlight Glimmer was not far behind Twilight, giving Spike a friendly smile.

Pinkie cast a quick, worried glance, before setting herself to ask what was wrong with Spike. "Hey Twilight, hey Starlight! Just telling Spike the story of my Cutie Mark. Which reminds me, are you guys ready for the SUPER DUPER SURPRISE PARTY?!"

"Surprise party?" Spike asked, causing Pinkie to pause in mid bounce, floating in the air. "Who's it for?"

Pinkie gave an unconvincing smile and look around, as if he asked where babies had come from. "You know? A pony from around."

Spike raised his eyebrow, seeing Starlight and Twilight avoid making eye contact with him. "Some pony, huh? What's his name?"

Pinkie gave a strained smile, trying to avoid his gaze. Out of nowhere, Pinkie gasped, drawing her hoof up, yelling out, "Meteor!"

Spike froze, then looked up, his eyes full of fear as he scanned the skies. The blinking light? Where was it? After scanning the sky thoroughly he gave a sigh and looked back, only to see all three of them gone. He gave a confused look around, then grumbled something about "too tired" and "random physic defying ponies".

Spike's stomach gave a low rumble, his mind full of questions, the nightmares becoming more detailed every night. He did not feel like going to Sugarcube Corner, and he was not going to bother his old crush, Rarity, for a gem. His mind wandered to Rarity for a moment, his hunger forgotten.

Rarity, a beautiful mare. His ex crush. Beautiful alabaster fur, a purple, cooling mane, and three diamonds for a Cutie Mark. Seemed like he was describing a princess. He had once thought about asking her out, confessing his feelings, but as time grew on, he eventually saw he was not the one for her.

It did hurt him, realizing he was not what she was looking for, but, he eventually moved on. She was dating a nice stallion now. He knew not his name, nor his profession, but what once made Spike jealous, now made him happy. Rarity deserved a nice stallion to make her happy.

His stomach roared with attention, Spike finding himself in the market place. Ponies were just setting up their shops, a few of the early ponies buying their wares before the rush that came at noon. His slitted pupils scanned the enviornment, before spotting the familiar apple sign.

He gave a soft smile, walking over to see Applejack setting her stall up. Her apples and Apple filled foods were behind it, she busy trying to set the sign up. Applejack was a beautiful mare as well, but many would not admit it. He was not part of the "many". She was strong, dependable, honest, and a good listener. It did not hurt that she was physically attractive, having grown lean and sporting muscles from her farm work. A blonde mane, tied to the back, a old, brown Stetson upon her head, orange fur covering her body, and three, shiny apples on her flank, her Cutie Mark.

She would have food to sell, since Twilight was out here for shopping anyway, but bailed on him, he decided to buy something from her. Or...at least help her out. She was a good listener, maybe he could tell her about his nightmares?

"Hey Applejack." Spike said, causing the mare to jump and trip over herself, smacking into the sign. He gave a wince, seeing her stand up, rubbing her snout, quietly muttering some words to herself. "How are you this morning?"

Applejack looked back, and Spike thought he spotted a blush, but it may have been a red mark from her smacking into the sign. "O-oh! Hey Spike! H-how're ya doin'? Me, Ah' m doing fine, just setting up the stand." She gave a nervous chuckle, Spike raising an eyebrow at her odd behavior.

Everyone was acting strange around him today. First, Pinkie was giving him a weird look after he told her he was tired, and now Applejack looked like she was a filly being asked to prom.

"I'm fine. Just coming by to see if you need help." Spike replied, giving a soft smile to the hardworking mare. She smiled back, chuckling a little, shaking her head. Spike noted the muscles in Applejack's legs, and her body seemed to be fit to a point where quite a few mares wished to be her. Spike glanced at his pudgy, "baby" body. As if she needed help from a small dragon that barely reached her neck.

"Sure. Just set it up right here, Spike. Ah'll get ya somethin' for your trouble." Applejack spoke, pulling Spike out of his thoughts and doubts.

He picked up the sign, seeing Applejack disappear under her stall, and placed the sign into the ground, seeing a drawn Apple pie on it. His stomach growled again, causing him to frown a bit.

"Here ya go! On the house!" Applejack spoke, causing Spike to look over, a small basket of apples, and a small apple pie with a medium sized emerald in it. Spike looked up at her confused, some pink dusting her cheeks. "Granny decided to thank ya for helpin' us last week. Ah've been savin' it for ya, since ya told me the green ones were ya favorite."

Spike couldn't help but grin, his fangs showing, eyeing the gem baked into the small pie. "Applejack, I...I don't know what to say!" Spike spoke, his heart feeling warm, feeling some heat rush to his cheeks. "Thank you so much."

Applejack gave him a smile, before coughing in her hoof, asking, "What're ya here for, anyway?"

Spike snapped his claws, giving a look around, responding, "I was here with Twilight and Starlight to do some shopping, but they ran off when Pinkie asked them about a surprise party for some pony."

"A surprise party? Well, Ah haven't heard anythin'." Applejack confessed, her eyebrow raised in confusion.

"Thanks anyway. I better go back to the castle, I gotta catch Twilight and ask who the party is for." Spike said, grabbing the basket in one hand and the pie in the other, heading off.

Applejack sighed once he was out earshot of her, rubbing her face with her hooves. "One cute drake and you act like a school filly."

Time for a Talk

The world was burning, that much she was sure of. She looked around, giving a simple smile at her work. This species was highly advanced, space fairing, enjoying peace on their colonies. She started with their furthest colonies first. One by one, they were being destroyed. Immediately, they sent ships to investigate. Her body ached, her belly filled, she had not felt this way in a long time.

She looked up, one of the moons was in pieces in orbit. That was her work, and she was proud. She was getting off traco. They had sent ships to investigate, and of course, she destroyed them. She was a Goddess, and they needed to learn their place. Their weapons barely left marks on her armor, and they tried to talk peace.

They had no idea that they were tipping the cosmic balance. She had come to their home planet, and they tried to attack her with their "advanced" weapons. They were like small beetles, literally insects, and made large robots to try and stop her. It took her a year to destroy most of the planet, cities left in ruins. She had left the forests and strange biomes alone, their animals were nothing more than specks compared to the creatures.

She looked down, seeing the remains of a large ship. It was almost her size, and she destroyed it in hours. She had left some of the colonies alone. They were almost as bad as those filthy mammals. What were they called again?

Ah, yes, Humans.

Too bad that Saurian was protecting them. He would have made a good ally. Her brother was foolish enough to go there and destroy him, but that flying lizard and Goddess stopped him with that creature. She gave a wistful sigh, her arms cracking slightly as she went into her armored form.

She felt a shiver run down her back, and she looked up, giving a hiss of happiness. She could feel the balance shifting towards another. She had to reset it so it balanced back in her favor. She looked up, her red eyes staring at a distant star.

She gave a frown, she could feel the Saurians presence on the world. It felt...weaker? Perhaps another of his species? It felt a lot younger than his. Perhaps she could use it to her advantage.

She gave a crackling roar into the air, as if giving off a signal. She jumped onto the air, her twin tails trailing behind her as she exited the atmosphere of the ruined world, giving a smile as she started to fly to the distant star.

She would get that creature and tip the balance back into her master's favor, if it was the last thing she would do.

Spike sneezed, giving a confused look around. He returned to his musing, silently cursing himself for not telling Applejack about his nightmares. Perhaps he should write a letter to his mom, she would know what to do. She would likely send aunt Luna into his dreams to help him.

He smiled at the thought of the Goddesses, the princesses, Celestia and Luna. Celestia, who he called mom, his aunt who he called Luna. They seemed to have all the answers, and it certainly helped that they could keep it a secret.

He looked up, seeing a few stormclouds coming from the Everfree. That reminded him, the weather team had scheduled a storm. He would not admit it out loud, but he absolutely loved the rain. People would think dragons hated water, but it was quite the opposite for Spike.

He loved swimming, hearing the ocean, standing in the rain, feeling the water on his scales. He was snapped out of his musings when he ran into something big and red. He shook his head and looked up, smiling at the big red object, apologizing quickly.

"Hey Big Mac!" Spike said, the big red stallion giving a nod of his head. Big Macintosh was one of the few people Spike considered to be trustworthy. Even without knowing him, even when they first met, Spike knew he was trustworthy. It was one of the few things that made Big Mac...well, Big Mac.

"Mornin' Spike." Big Macintosh replied, looking back at the town. He was sitting down on the grassy hill, and that was when Spike noticed he had traveled outside of town, unconsciously. Big Macintosh looked at him for a moment, then spoke, "Somethin's botherin' ya."

Spike sighed, sitting down, his tail curling in the grass behind him. Big Macintosh was a quiet pony, never gossiped, but had plenty of friends. Spike also knew that, since he was quiet, he seemed to study and spot thing most would not. Spike might as well have been a diary that said "READ ME" in big, bold letters.

"Just been thinking, Mac." Spike responded, watching over the quiet town. Big Mac gave him a glance, waiting for him to continue. "I've been having these...dreams."

"Nightmares." Big Macintosh said, not skipping a beat. If Spike was surprised, he didn't show it.

"I dunno. They seem more like...visions, really." Spike clarified, causing Big Mac to nod, following along. "They get more detailed as time goes on, and I feel like they are trying to tell me something."

Big Macintosh said nothing for a moment, as if he was thinking about something. He suddenly asked, "These nightmares are telling you something? Mind if I ask what happens in the nightmares?"

Spike sighed, afraid Big Mac was going to ask him that. A small voice in the back of his head told him to keep it to himself and tell a lie, but Big Macintosh would be able to tell instantly. He was Applejack's brother.

"The end of the world." Spike spoke, his emerald eyes staring off in the distance. Big Macintosh looked at Spike, as if trying to read his mind. "In my dream, the world is burning. Ponyville is in ruins, buildings crushed and on fire. Everypony...everyone is gone. I go into the castle, and...you are dead. All of them are dead, but that's not the worst of it. I feel like I killed them, even when it isn't my fault."

Big Macintosh said nothing, but stared at the young drake. Spike looked up, a small tear trailing down his face as he watched the grey clouds roll over Ponyville, feeling Big Mac's stare at him, almost as if he was reading his soul.

"But that's not the worst of it. You, them, all dead. It leaves me haunted, seeing all of their bodies...their voices calling to me, saying I could have saved them. But when they lay there, the worst part is that...the worst part is..." Spiked choked back a sob, before feeling Big Macintoshes hoof on his shoulder, making him look at the stallion.

"The worst part is that ya didn't." Big Macintosh said, causing Spike to nod, his eyes red, as he choked back another sob. "Ya are worried that if ya aren't there, they'd lose. That they would fail, and you'd be tha only one left."

Big Macintosh quietly pulled Spike into a side hug, his eyes kind and understanding, a small smile on his face. Spike wiped his eyes, hugging the quiet stallion back. They sat there for a few minutes, an air of understanding around them.

"Spike, Ah ain't some hero. Ah don't have tha answers to all ya problems. But Ah know that you should not worry about tha future. Ya may not believe this, but some kids look up to ya. Applebloom constantly talks about how you go around town, helpin' other creatures. Ah see ya helpin Granny cook, keep an eye on tha Crusaders, and even help Applejack with apple buckin'. Ah don't magic, don't read minds, Ahem not some all powerful God. But I know that ya aren't a bad dragon." Big Macintosh spoke, looking over the quiet town, giving a soft snort. "Ya worry, that's normal. Tartarus, I get those dreams sometimes. But Ah know they'll never happen. Ah trust them. Ah trust ya."

Spike nodded, wiping his eyes free of tears. "Thanks Big Mac. I needed that."

"Anytime Spike. Ah always have time to listen to a friend."

Spike got up, free from the stallions hug, and smiled at him, scratching the back of his head. "Mind keeping this between us?"

Big Macintosh smiled, then said, "Ah won't tell a soul." Spike chuckled, then started to walk away, only to stop and look back at Big Macintosh, a question pestering him.

"Hey, you wouldn't happen to know why Applejack is acting so weird around me, do you?"

Big Macintosh gave a straight face, sweat running down the back of his neck at the question. Big Macintosh knew that Applejack had feelings for the drake, but had not said anything about it. Spike was a good drake, hard working, funny, honest, wise and intelligent for his age, but had hoped Applejack would tell him of her feelings.

"Nope." Big Macintosh said, an uneasy look in his eye. He was a bad liar, his family was known for being honest.

Spike gave him a look over, then shrugged, giving the stallion a smile. "See ya."

Big Macintosh gave a sigh, nodding to himself at the lie. He felt bad for lying to Spike, but it was Applejack's job to tell him, not his. He shook his head, then looked up at the clouds. The calm before the storm.

Party invites

Celestia hummed in her hoof, looking over the mountain of papers she was writing on, her magic carrying a quill dipped in ink. She heard hoof steps, her ears flicking a little, and didn't look up, knowing that it was just Luna, her sister. She appeared to be in a frantic state, pacing back and forth across Celestia's carpet, but the older sister paid her no mind.

Signing another paper, she glanced up at Luna, taking her reading glasses off of her snout and waited patiently for Luna to come back from her frantic state. "What bothers you so much, Lulu?"

Luna flinched, in her blue aura was a scroll, with a strange Japonies symbol on it. She looked around, before her horn lit up, soundproofing the room, and practically slammed the scroll onto the desk.

Celestia gave it a look, then sighed, before lifting a white envelope to her, seeing Luna's confused look. "It's for Spike. It's his birthday today."

Luna gave a soft sigh, then rubbed her eyes with her hooves. "Tia, we believe the problem at hoof should be dealt with."

"Lulu, slipping back into the old tongue." Celestia reminded her, ignoring the sigh of impatience from her younger sister. "Is your nephew not important enough for you to just sign a card?"

"Tia, I do love Spike, very much so. He is family, even if not by blood...or species." Luna said, giving a sigh, honesty ringing in her voice. "However, I believe you should read the scroll."

Celestia gave Luna a smile, then unrolled the scroll, reading the strange symbols. Living for over a thousand years helped her learn the languages of the world. Whether it be a city state to a large country like Equestria, she learned it.

As her eyes scrolled to the page, the middle started to crumple a little under the force, her smile dropping and her eyes widening. Luna quietly sighed the card and put a small emerald in it, closing the envelope and putting it on the table. Celestia gasped softly, then threw the scroll back on the desk.

"But...I thought..."

"I know, sister." Luna said, her wings rustling a little in the uncomfortable atmosphere. "They have also invited us to test fire it."

Celestia grimaced, then stood up, the envelope quietly turning to smoke and disappearing from the table. "We will send Twilight and her friends tomorrow. Right now, we must prepare for the party."

Luna gave a small smile, rolling her eyes, saying, "Of course. What son would want to have his birthday cake when his mother can have it?"

Celestia pushed her with her wing, giving a fake pout. "Why, Luna, I'm sure Spike will love his mother attending his birthday. Besides, I'll only get a slice....or five."

"Of course, Tia."

----------------------3 Hours Before---------------

Applejack gave a soft sigh seeing Spike's spades tail around the corner, her stomach full of butterflies and her chest pumping miles in a few seconds. She was smitten with the Drake, no doubt about it. She wondered briefly how he'd look with a tuxedo on, and wondered if Granny Smith's old wedding dress would fit her.

Her mind started to wonder, before imagining what he would look like, a small bundle in his arms, a goofy smile plastered on his face. Applejack shook her head free of those thoughts, blushing a little at herself. She had asked Twilight and found out dragons could impregnate ponies, and vice versa. Well, she found out dragons could impregnate pretty much anything they could, and that would have been a mess to try and explain had Spike not entered the room to interrupt.

She gave a look around, breaking from her thoughts when a mare sped past her. Applejack was not dumb, and knew many were skittish, but the mare looked like she saw a ghost. She looked around, noting a stallion who kept looking at the homes that had been rebuilt after...

She gave a small, grimace, remembering Spike's greed growth. She wanted to tell him of her feelings, but Twilight caught her and asked her to bring a rope. Applejack laughed at her face, of course, until the teenaged Spike ran past her. She would not lie, she fantasized about that greed growth form, but what came next gave her nightmares.

He turned into an adult. Or, forced into a bigger body, Zecora told them. He had not truly aged, but his body was trying to hoard as much as it could, his insists taking over. Zecora rhymed to them later that he basically turned into a mutant dragon, not his true adult form. He was nothing more than a mindless beast. She shuddered to imagine if Spike's intelligence grew with him, he would have grabbed everything and ran off without disturbing a soul.

Applejack glanced over, before doing a double take, seeing Pinkie Pie, the town party mare talking to another mare. The mare backed off, smiling nervously, then sped off, leaving Pinkie in the dust. Pinkie had some strange paper in her mouth, but from Applejack's point of view, she could still see the party mare frowning. Her hair flattened and she seemed duller than usual, still holding the papers in her mouth.

She spotted Applejack and seemed to light up, grinning, then started to hop over to her, her mane all bright and curly. She stood in front of Applejack, before spitting out a piece of paper. She started to wipe her mouth, then gave Applejack a giggle.

"Howdy Pinkie." Applejack greeted, leaning on the stall, smiling at her. "Watcha got there?"

"Invites for a party!"

"Really now? Who's the lucky pony?"

Pinkie gave out a loud laugh, then pushed one of the papers to Applejack, who looked them over, raising an eyebrow. "Not for a pony silly! It's for Spike!"

Applejack blinked in surprise, before asking, "For Spike? What did the little fella do?"

Pinkie shook her head and gave her a smile that would be physically impossible on ant pony else. "No, silly! Today is his birthday!"

Applejack froze, a cold sweat going down her neck, replying, "It's his birthday? The anniversary of the town gettin' crushed by said greedy dragon?"

Pinkie gave a strained smile, then sighed, it drooping as she did so, saying, "Yeah, I knew it was a bad idea to send invites out."

Applejack winced, then smiled half heartedly, responding, "Don't you worry none, Pinkie, Ah'll come."

Pinkie giggled, then put grabbed the other invites. "Of course you'll come, Jackie! He's your love interest in this story!"

Applejack's face drained of color, giving Pinkie a surprised stare. Pinkie Pie winked at her and bounced away, Applejack staring after the party mare.

"That girl is so strange..."

Surprise

Warming Stone gave a small hum as she sat on her couch in the humble abode. Parting Glass had left to help some friends of theirs, and they were ready to test the weapon. She frowned a little, giving a soft sigh. Despite what many believed, she was not that greedy. She often gave up gems to organizations to help feed the homeless or to help cure a certain disease. Being a scientist helped with the second one, but she felt like she would never change ponies minds about her.

Parting Glass was a different story. He was so serious about her when they were dating, even now, she caught him stealing glances at her, a smitten look in his eyes. He didn't care about what others thought about her, they might as well be living on an island. Warming Stone chuckled, remembering she was on, basically, a large island.

She startted to rub her belly, giggling softly at the thought. He was going to be so surprised when he got home. She thought it was impossible, yet here they were, having their first hatchling. Or foal, She quickly reminded herself, knowing ponies were so stuck up with the names of their young, she often got yelled at because of calling a young one a hatchling.

Her wings rustled, and she looked at the clock, giving a soft hum in thought. They had sent the letter to the Princess a few weeks ago, it should have been there by now. Warming Stone heard that one of the Princesses had a dragon assistant, and he could send messages with fire. Perhaps she should ask Celestia about that when she came here to see the test?

She got up, looking around her home, noting the pictures hanging on the walls. She and Parting Glass had been married for years now, and she couldn't get why he insisted on taking pictures. She thought she looked horrible in some of them, but he loved them and kept them on the walls. Now that she think about it, none of the dragons she knew took pictures at all.

Her train of thought was broken when Parting Glass opened the door, giving a tired sigh, a smile on his face. He shut the door behind him and pulled his coat off, yawning a little. They said nothing, but Warming Stone simply ran over and hugged her husband. He gave a smile, her claws grabbing his hooves as she looked down at him, her ice blue eyes staring into his brown ones.

"Well, hello to you too, honey." Parting Glass said, leaning up and pecking her scaley lips, being released from her hug. "Sorry I'm late, I got caught up with Obelisk about G-54 and how we should use it."

Warming Stone made a look of disgust, her snout scrounging up at the thought of Obelisk, the Minotaur. To say she disliked Obelisk was an understatement, and they had different ideas to handle the weapon. Parting Glass and her wanted it in the hooves of Equestria to handle the incoming threat, where as Obelisk wanted to seek it for the highest bitter and live off the riches.

Being a dragon, at first she liked Obelisk's idea, but soon found out he was profiting off of the wars that the weapon would bring. She disagreed with that, choosing to live the simple life than start a war.

"That minotaur has his horns screwed in too tight if he thinks that'll work." Warming Glass spat out, her throat glowing from the fires that had ignited from her fury.

She calmed instantly when Parting Glass kissed her forehead and gave a smile, replying, "Now, what did you want to tell me?"

Warming Stone wasn't surprised, Parting Glass could read her like an open book. "You remember when we had the talk."

"About what?" He asked going into the kitchen. He grabbed a mug out of one of the drawers, gently pouring some coffee in, pouring the creamer and adding a spoon of sugar.

"About foals."

Parting Glass looked at her, confused, then set his coffee on the table, eyeing his wife carefully. "I thought you didn't want to adopt."

"No, honey, I don't."

"Oh. Then what's this about?"

Warming Stone took a deep breath in, and said, her voice overflowing with joy, "I'm pregnant."

Parting Glass looked at her, then a smile split his face, his heart filling with joy. "I'm gonna be a dad. I'm gonna be a dad!" Parting Glass shouted, bouncing around his wife, then suddenly stopped. "I'm gonna be a..." He slumped to the floor, causing Warming Stone to sigh, rolling her eyes.

He had fainted, the joy took too much out of him, add that with the work they had been doing, and his body needed to rest. She grabbed him, carrying him in her arms, and walked over to the bedroom, setting him in bed. He would probably ask so many questions and tell everyone. Maybe even faint again.

She should get the camera when he wakes up.

Spike hummed softly, feeling something drip on his spines. He looked up, only for another drop to hit his snout. He scrunched his nose, looking up at the clouds as the rain continued to fall down. He started to pick up the pace, heading towards the crystal palace, trying to outrun the storm. The water continued without a care, but Spike felt his heart relieved after the talk with Big Macintosh, knowing what he needed to do.

He ran up the steps, hurriedly opening the door as the rain continued to pour, lightning exploding outwards, scaring Spike out of his scales. He jumped into the door way, closing them behind him. He shivered quietly and shook himself, the water flying everywhere. He quietly reminded himself to clean that later and started to walk around.

"Twi?!"

Nothing answered him back, causing him to hum in confusion. He started to walk around, his tail twirling around behind him. He sniffed the air, before shrugging, resigning himself to just go to his room. He started to walk up, thinking about his day so far.

Almost everyone he knew avoided him, which was strange. Not only that, but he could tell Applejack was hiding something from him, considering whenever he talked to her, she looked like he asked her to the Gala, blushing and stuttering. He would ask her about that later, right now, he was ready to sleep in his bed, his body aching and his mind tired.

He was about to open his door when he heard shuffling behind it. He gave a glance around, then pressed his ear fin against the door, waiting a moment. He could hear nothing else, and shrugged to himself, opening the door. A blast of confetti hit him, and a chorus of voices met him.

"SURPRISE!"

Spike had to swallow back the fire that would spill from his mouth, keeping a hand over his chest, trying to calm his beating heart.

"Happy birthday Spike!" Pinkie yelled out, bouncing out to him, pulling him into the room, giggling happily, "I told ya he'd be surprised."

"It's my birthday?"

"Jeez Spike, you'd think you'd remember your own special day?" Rainbow Dash commented, Twilight pulling the young drake into a hug.

"Happy birthday."

Monsters

Spike couldn't help but give Pinkie a bone crushing hug, hearing her giggle and give the hug back with the same force. Spike smiled up to her, before mouthing a 'Thank you',then Twilight pulled Spike into a side hug, giggling softly. Spike looked around, seeing eight presents on the table.

Not too much, not too little. "So, how does it feel to be an adult?" Twilight teased, seeing Spike roll his eyes at her.

"Pretty good." Spike said, then gave Twilight a knowing smile. "Maybe you'll finally let me read the books under your-"

Twilight put a hoof over his mouth, blushing and coughing a little. "What books?"

Spike pulled the hoof out of his mouth, giving a knowing smile, then felt Twilight push him back, giving a chuckle.

He was so hungry, his belly begged for food. Ever since he showed up in this colorful place, his belly had been empty. The strange, hooved creatures gave little meat, and he had not gotten big enough to take down the larger creatures. He had to eat the scraps the big creatures left behind or snag the unlucky hooved animals, who made noises, much like the two legs.

His mandibles clicked over his teeth, before taking another bite out the small, quick animal. It had horns, but they barely even scratched him. His claws curled into a fist, before he slammed it into the wall, giving a furious roar into the air. Flames billowed from his jaws, before he cut off the stream, small wafts of smoke erupting from his jaws. He looked around, then started to stare at the sea, giving a snort.

His planet did not usually have these large areas of water, and that was the first indication he was not on his world. The second being the creatures; He had never seen any of their ilk, before, and were worse than the two legs. He gave another snort, before his long tongue came out and lapped at the blood on his face, then tore off the leg of the said animal, quickly downing it.

The two legs called his kind "Goliath". While he did not understand the word, he felt that it gave him more power, having that name. He supposed he would keep it after tearing a two leg in half while he was screaming at it. His mandibles clicked softly, before he sniffed the air, giving a look to the strange metal things those hooved creatures lived in. They seemed extremely similar to the two legs dwellings, but he cared not.

From one, near the water, was quite large. He could smell the scent of flesh and bones, and his stomach rumbled happily. His other meal forgotten, quietly leaped into the night. Landing a few meters away, he jumped again, crashing into one of the many rocky stacks. His claws held on as he started to climb, his mandibles clicking softly as he got to the top. He pushed a tree over, sending it into the forest below, birds flying off to avoid being hit.

He gave deep inhales, looking at the structure near the water. His long tongue dragged across his lips, before he gave a snort. He hopped down, the ground cracking under his weight, and started to run to the scent. His belly rumbled at the thought of a carcass, and stopped before the pavement, crouching down. His tail whipped around behind him, and his jaws opened, a bit of ash falling onto the log, thankfully not catching it on fire. He started to crawl forward, resting his knuckles in the ground, before giving a low growl.

He snorted, before roaring into the air and slamming his fists into the ground, metal denting. He slammed into the metal door again, before and opening showed itself. His tongue coming out, licking his mandibles, before he pulled at the door. Giving a roar, he pulled the door off of its hinges and crawled inside, barely fitting into the basement. He gave a happy rumble, seeing the loads of skeletons and dead flesh. He gave a deep inhale, before flames erupted out of his mouth, spraying over the corpses.

The sound of flames was heard, the door slamming shut behjind him. Goliath turned around, putting his hand on the door, only to roar and pull his hand back, the metal turning orange. He backed up, seeing his only way out had been welded shut, turned back to his meal. He would feast and evolve, then rip the door off again. The bones of a fish was swallowed whole, Goliath feasting on the burnt bones.

Celestia opened the door, her fur dry and clean under her umbrella. She gave a short giggle, glancing behind her. Luna walked in, soaked to the bones, her mane matted against her face, and shut the door behind her, huffing lightly. Luna opened her mouth, before Celestia rose her hoof, her ears flicking slightly. She waved her hoof, her umbrella put to the side, Luna's anger forgotten.

"Oh, sister, how do you think he will react?"

"Knowing Spike? He'll probably calm down a freaking out Twilight." Celestia said, both Princesses sharing a giggle.

Luna paused, her left ear flicking slightly, while Celestia gave her a concerned look. "What is wrong, Lulu?"

"I sense that someone has been having quite a bit of nightmares." Luna muttered, her face darkened slightly, before snorting a bit, then started to trot up the stairs. "I shall investigate later."

Celestia shook her head, following her sister. She heard laughing upstairs, and pressed her ear against the door, Luna standing behind her. She held her hoof up to her lips, signaling her sister to be quiet, before peeking in. Luna shook her head, her ear flicking again, sensing the source coming from the room. Celestia opened the door, clearing her throat, before a purple blur slammed into her chest, causing Celestia to giggle.

"Mom!" Spike shouted happily, his small body wrapped around the tall, Alicorn princess. Luna narrowed her eyes, looking at Spike, noting the bags under his eyes and his tired look.

So, he was the source? Luna hummed softly, before giving a mock pout as Spike hugged Celestia tighter. Rainbow Dash, when hearing Spike yell out "Mom", spat out her drink, ignoring the disgusted look from Rarity and amused giggles from Pinkie and Applejack. Spike hopped down and gave Luna a bone crushing hug, nuzzling her, the Alicorn giggling and kissing his forehead in response.

"How is my favorite nephew?" Luna asked, nuzzling him, much to the embarassment of Spike, who blushed and groaned.

"Auntie!" He groaned out, hearing Pinkie gutter in the background. He would likely be teased for weeks after. He let go, and asked, "What are you two doing here? I thought you were busy in Canterlot."

"Well," Celestia began, the chatter of the party returning, Fluttershy trying to calm the hyperventilating Twilight in the background. "We felt bad for not visiting for your birthday last year. So, I thought we could visit you for this birthday and make up for lost time." Celestia nuzzled Spike, a warm, motherly smile on her face, and whispered, "Between you and me, I'd rather spend the time with my little Spikey instead of going to day court."

Spike gave a chuckle at that and nuzzled her back his arms wrapped around Celestia's head. Pinkie then took the time to inhale a deep breath, then yelled out, "LET'S GET THIS PARTY STARTED!"

The guests went among themselves, but Luna kept her eyes on Spike. Celestia did not need to look her way to know she was planning something, but brushed her won't against Luna, catching her younger sisters attention. Luna gave Celestia a glance, both sisters eyes met, and as if a sentence was spoken with no words being said, Luna nodded, her sight returning to the young drake.

"I shall check on him tonight. Something is affecting his dreams and it is not me." Luna muttered, Celestia humming softly.

Luna looked back at her sister, then followed her gaze, landing on Applejack. Said farm mare glancing at Spike every so often. Celestia gave a knowing smile, before glancing at Luna. Luna opened her mouth to say something, before closing it, rolling her eyes, giving a smile. She levitate a cup, pouring some punch in, then started to sip it, her star covered mane billowing in the nonexistent wind.

Twilight sat next to the Princesses, the Alicorns sitting in silence. "Is there trouble?" Twilight asked, to which Celestia sighed.

"Ever the observant one, Twilight." Celestia said, the smaller Alicorn blushing at the praise. "I shall reveal it when the party is over."

Vacation!!!

Spike sat in the carriage, watching the clouds lazily drift by. His thoughts turned to last night, how Luna asked about his nightmares.

It was...odd, if he was being honest. She seemed so concerned over him. As far as he knew, it was just a couple of nightmares, but...

Spike shook his head, before looking over to see Fluttershy and Rarity talking between themselves about...mare stuff.

He drowned most of it out by the jittery movement of Rainbow Dash. He looked over to her, worried that she was about to have a heart attack in her seat. She bit onto the seat, her wings flaring up as she stared outside.

He understood she had a problem sitting still. Tartarus, he was bored out of his mind as well, but at least he was watching the clouds. He kept his mind busy.

"Dash, you okay? You look like you drank twenty cups of coffee." Spike tapped his foot against her hoof, snapping her out of her impatient look.

"Oh. Yeah, totally fine!" She replied, nonchalantly, before staring back outside, forcing her body to relax on the seat.

They sat there for a moment, before he leant forward, giving her a curious look. "Hey, you know what's up with Applejack?"

Rainbow Dash gave him a glance, opening her mouth to say something. She quickly decided against her, then huffed. "I dunno, man. All I know is she is crushin' bad on someone."

Spike hummed a little, before staring at the clouds. "You know who it is?"

Rainbow Dash looked sideways at him, before gaining a playful smirk.

"Oh? Gave up on Rarity, now looking for a bit of southern comfort?" She lightly teased, before, looking at Spike, immediately dropping her playful attitude at the look in his eyes.

She may not be Twilight or Pinkie, but she knew when someone had a lot on their mind. She looked at Fluttershy, who was sitting next to Spike. She walked over, brushing Fluttershy's wing with hers.

Fluttershy looked at her, then Spike, before nodding and moving over to sit next to Rarity. Rainbow Dash sat next to Spike, both Fluttershy and Rarity sparing them a glance, before slowly returning to their conversation.

Rainbow Dash sat next to him, trying to think if what to say. She wasn't much of a touchy, feely mare, but she was loyal. She gently wrapped an arm around him, pulling him into her chest, her wing also wrapping around him.

Spike was jolted out of his thoughts by Rainbow Dash hugging him. He looked up at her, her smile chasing away his dark thoughts. She was a good friend.

She immediately gave him a noogie, making him squawk out in surprise, then try and free himself from her grip.

"Nuh-uh! You in a bad place, little dude! I am gonna make you feel better!" She exclaimed, making Fluttershy and Rarity giggle.

"N-no! R-Rarity, Flutters, help!" He squeaked out, making the two mares giggle as he squirmed in her grip.

Applejack sighed as she stared at the other chariot, behind them. In their cabin was Twilight, Pinkie Pie, Luna, and Celestia. Pinkie was snoring loudly next to Applejack, much to the farm mares discomfort, though she was completely distracted from the whisperings of the Alicorns. Luna herself wasn't fairing much better than Pinkie, her head drooping every few moments, before jolting awake.

"I still feel kinda bad. I mean, lying to the girls is one thing. But lying to Spike? On his birthday?" Twilight said, staring down at her hooves nervously.

"You and I both know he needs a break." Celestia whispered back, then smiled at the young Alicorn. "Besides, some change in scenery for your gals would do some good."

"Yeah, but this is for a mission. Not a vacation."

"Yeah, not a vacation for you, Twilight." Celestia responded, before flicking one of her ears. "Haven't you noticed how odd Spike has been acting lately."

Twilight stared up at her, then responded, "He has been tired lately..." She looked up at Celestia, who shot her a questioning look.

"Luna said he has been having incredibly violent nightmares." Celestia said, catching Twilights attention, Luna nodding at the statement, though she was half awake.

Spike has been having nightmares? Why didn't he tell her? She was his sister, he should tell her what was wrong.

"He needs something like this." Celestia said, though, some part of this mighty Alicorns mind knew Spike wasn't telling them everything. "Just give him some time."

"I...I guess you're right." Twilight mumbled out, rubbing the back of her head in nervousness.

Applejack just sat there, staring back at the other carriage, her thoughts turning to Spike. Oh Celestia, she was head over hoof in love with him. She bit her lip as she thought about that dream. Pinkie awoke when Luna jolted awake again, before rubbing her eyes with her hooves. She peered around, before peering at AJ.

"Hey, Jackie!" Pinkie yelled at her, spooking Applejack out of her thoughts.

"Wuh?! Oh...ya scared me, Pinkie!" She took her Stetson and swatted her a few times with it, huffing as she set it back onto her head.

"Sorry! You were in deep thought and no one wants to tell me what we are doing!"

Applejack frowned, then looked at Twilight, her mind drawing a blank as well. "Hey, Twi, what are we doin' in Japony?"

Twilight hummed, then gasped, "You forgot already?"

"You kinda dumped a lot on us back there." Pinkie said, pulling a bucket of popcorn out of her hair, much to the confusion of Applejack and Twilight. Celestia just giggled softly, before returning to her reading material.

"Well, basically, we are going to a small town on the beach in Japony. The day after tomorrow, I shall reveal some...important information to you girls."

Pinkie sighed, then spoke, her voice muffled through the popcorn. "Twilight, you make an epic monster fight sound boring."

"What?"

Twilight just stared at Pinkie, before looking at Applejack, "I heard the beaches there are beautiful this time of year."

"Ah wouldn't know. Never heard of...anything to do with Japony..." Applejack admitted, cringing as she realized what was going to happen.

Twilight gave a squeal, before pulling a book out, clearing her throat. Celestia smiled warmly, Luna dozing back into sleep, and Pinkie was busy stuffing her face with popcorn, so that left Applejack at the mercy of Twilight.

Shīdoragon Hotel

The sun was reaching midmorning when they had arrived to the large island of Japony. To say Spike was stunned by the beautiful buildings and the beach would be an understatement, as the young dragon jaw was dropped seeing the gentle waves lapping at the shore.

The smell of salt was in the air, sea birds singing and giving their calls as they went on their daily routines, ignoring the strangers to their island home.

Pinkie jumped out, gasping and pointing at everything, talking a million miles an hour. Had she been paying attention, she would have noticed she bowled over Spike in her excitement.

Spike got back up, before being distracted by the beach nearby, his anger with Pinkie forgotten as he stared at the gentle, lapping waves. However, that didn't stop Twilight from scolding Pinkie, who was still so curious and happy.

"Holy Celestia..." Rainbow Dash mumbled by Spike, the dragon barely taking notice of her as they stared off into the ocean.

"You can say that again." Applejack said, sitting next to Spike, pulling her Stetson off to stare.

A nearby sea bird cried as it flew overhead, and a small turtle was clambering its way to shore, ready to bask in the warm light of the sun.

"C'mon girls. We'll be staying at a hotel." Twilight said, grabbing Rainbow Dash and Pinkie Pie, who grumbled and whined.

Applejack got up to follow, Rarity busy retrieving her one suitcase from the carriage, she was told to bring only one by Celestia, while Fluttershy was admiring a beautiful butterfly.

Applejack stopped, before staring back at Spike, flicking her right ear. "Hey, Spike, you comin'?"

Spike shook out of his gaze, then smiled at Applejack. "Y-yeah! I'm fine. Just...just fine." He started to follow, sparing a glance at the calm sea.

Something seemed so...familiar. It was like the sea was calling out his name, to bring him back home. He shook his head, dispelling the thoughts as he started walking behind Applejack.

Applejack stared worriedly at Spike, so distracted that she had nearly bumped into Fluttershy, who was busying herself by talking to a beautiful, tropical bird.

Spike stared at the statue in the front, raising his eyebrow at the coral reef shapes that it took up. Underneath was a gold name plate, written in the language the Japonese spoke. Spike felt these corals looked familiar, the maple leaf like designs made his eyebrow raise.

He looked over to see Celestia, talking to the receptionist, Twilight busy writing down with a pen and paper, studying the walls and the beautiful aquarium at the end of the room, filled with strange fish and reptiles inside of the tank, the bottom a coral reef, designed to make the animals feel more comfortable in their home.

His gaze returned to the statue. The statue itself was a sort of bronze like material, some of the bronze was turning a gold like color at the tips of the coral. The coral itself was arranged into three rows, two smaller ones and one larger one, which made Spikes eyes narrow at them.

'That looks like...'

"Haruo Nakajima." Spike gave a frightened gasp, turning around him to see a unicorn mare. Her body was a beautiful white coat, her mane was a mixture of orange, white, and blue, and her cutie mark was that of a beautiful butterfly, which had wing patterns that matched her mane.

"Oh, uh...s-sorry for staring. It's just...the statue, it looks...beautiful." He finally admitted. Although it was the stuff of his nightmares, he had to admit that they looked beautiful in a strange way.

"Do you think so?" The mare asked, making Spike nod. "It is a legend on how a hero, named Haruo Nakajima, saved our city from certain destruction."

"Really?"

"Yes, perhaps I should tell you about it. If we meet again."

"Spike! Who are ya talkin' to?" Applejack asked, seeing Spike jump, then look back at the southern mare.

"Oh, just this mare right...here?"

She was gone, leaving no trace she was every there. Spike flicked his forked tongue out, then looked back at Applejack, who fixed him with a worried glance.

"There was a mare here." Spike said, then cleared his throat, "So, what's up?"

"Well, Ah was gonna tell ya that we're bunkin' up together. Celestia said they have the rooms set up."

"Oh. Okay, I'm right behind you." He said, letting her turn around. He looked around, flicking his forked tongue out, confused that he could still smell her there, though not see her.

He shook his head, then started to walk away, following his love interest. Had he been watching, he would have noticed two pairs of glowing eyes.

"Are you sure he is the one? He seems a little short." The being belonging to one pair asked, glancing at the other pair with worry.

"I am sure of it. He has the same aura. We must prepare him."

"I don't like this. Basing the future on a hunch doesn't sit right with me."

"It wasn't a hunch, it is- ugh, nevermind, just...just come on."

The first pair disappeared into the brush, but the second stayed behind, staring at the dragon walking away.

"リトルドラゴン、私はあなたが3つの頭を持つ悪魔の準備ができていることを願っています."

Vision

Spike sat on his bed, staring out the window, his claws relaxed against the bed as he saw the ocean. He did not know how or why, but the waters seemed familiar to him. Almost as if...he had been there before.

He shook his head, realizing how silly that sounded. He had never been to Japony before, yet, there seemed something so...beautiful about this place.

He felt safe.

He looked over to Applejack, who was quietly snoring, her hat on the headboard. Her face was peaceful, patting the spot Spike was moments ago. She shifted in her sleep, causing Spike to return to her side.

She wrapped an arm around him, smiling in her sleep, nuzzling into his cheek. "Spike..." She mumbled out in her sleep, making Spike blush happily.

He nuzzled into her chest, slowly letting sleep overtake him, his breathing slowly turning soft and rhythmic.

Had anyone noticed, a small, cute butterfly perched itself on the window. It walked around on its six legs, spotting Spike, fixating its gaze on him.

Another butterfly landed beside it, giving the first one a look, then fixing its gaze on Spike.

"Are you sure this will work?", asked the second butterfly, its wing twitching nervously.

The first one responded with, "Of course it will! It worked on him a long time ago."

The second one gave the first one a stare, then reminded her, "That was eons before us! And because it worked on him, does not mean it will work on this young one!"

The first one tore her gaze away, staring at the second one, only to say, "It will work."

The second one only sighed, before clambering into the open window. The first one started to fly in, exploring the room for a quick moment, before fluttering over Spike. The second one joined it, both staring down at the young drake.

"He looks so peaceful. I...almost feel bad.", said the first one, sparing a glance to its sister.

"We both know what must be done, sister. He must learn."

The first one sighed, then nodded. They started to fly around the young dragons head, small, sparkling particles hitting him. He grumbled in his sleep, not knowing the butterflies' presence, blissful in his sleep.

Spike gasped as he sat up, then started to pant softly as he looked around. Wasn't he on a warm, sunny beach with Applejack?

He looked around, then glanced back at the ocean. He was on a beach, but it was night time now. And Applejack was nowhere to be seen.

He looked over to his right, give a startled yelp as he backed away, seeing the massive creature sitting next to him.

Instead of a being of his nightmares, the creature sat there, staring up at the stars. It gave a low rumble as it watched the sky, its tail flicking to and fro. Spike gave it a curious, yet fearful look. Had this monster finally stopped toying with him, and decided to kill him, once and for all? He stood there, staring up at the massive beast, waiting for something to happen.

Five minutes passed when nothing happened. Then ten. Then fifteen.

Spike finally walked over to the creature, tapping it. It turned its massive, square head at him, making him jump. Instead of roaring or blasting him with blue fire, it just stared at him. He pulled his arms down, staring up at the beast.

Their eyes met, its toxic yellow ones meeting his emerald green eyes. Suddenly, Spike relaxed, sensing no danger from this creature.

It returned its gaze back to the sky, allowing Spike to admire the beast. Its head was boxy, almost like a bears, and held teeth that could pierce through anything. Gills were on the sides of its thick neck, attached to a bulky body. Along its back ran thick, jagged dorsal plates, and its feet were thick, like tree trunks, and its arms held hands with three normal claws and a thumb claw. Its tail was long and curled around the two, almost as if a single swipe could crack through a mountain.

Spike stared up at the sky with the beast, admiring the stars. The gentle lapping of the waves were the only sounds, other than the twos breathing, as they simply just admired the stars.

"Why is this happening to me?"

The large creature turned to Spike, seeing tears stream down the young drakes face. Spike looked down, tears dripping to the sand, giving a soft sniffle.

"Out of all the dragons in the world...why me?"

The massive beast gave a low rumble as it stare at him. Its tail slowly curled around, then, the very tip of its tail, started to wipe away the tears.

The tail quietly cupped under Spikes chin, lifting his head up. He looked up to the massive animal, giving a soft look of surprise. Instead of a reprimanding glare or a tough look on its face, a warm, fatherly smile was shown.

The two just looked at each other, Spike wiping a few stray tears away at the massive monster leaned down, nuzzling the young drake. It gave a soft rumble as it stared into his eyes.

Suddenly, Spikes vision was filled with scenes from the monsters. A large butterfly with brilliant, glowing wings and a beautiful screech filled Spikes senses. He couldn't help but stare in awe of this beautiful creature, thinking the colors on its wings seemed...familiar.

Suddenly the scene changed to a volcano erupting, massive wings erupting out of it. A strange, reptilian bird clambered out, standing on all fours as it glared out over the land. It lifted its wings, cracks of magma and fire dripping from the wings being shown, then gave a hellish scream as it took off, flattening everything under it.

It changed to a creature digging out of the ground, a beak like face erupting out. It gave a short, high pitched roar as it walked out on all fours. Its body resembled that of a four legged dragon, with armor running down its back, and a large, club like profusion on its tail. It roared again, slamming its tail on the ground, looking like a digging Ankylosaur, then clambered off.

Finally, the vision shifted to show a thunder storm, lighting flashing to show a shape within the clouds. With a mighty flap of its wings, the clouds cleared to show a three headed dragon, its frame even larger than the creature Spike saw. One of the head gave a loud, cackling roar as the other two gave hisses, its wings suddenly erupting lightning as the other two joined in its hellish cackle.

Spike gasped when the creature pulled away, its bear like head returning to the sky. It gave a tired snort, then glanced at Spike.

It was...a lot to take in.

Spike suddenly looked at the creature, making it rumble softly, Spikes chest vibrating with it.

"You...you want me prepared. For...when they arrive?"

The creature nodded, then looked up at the sky. Spike quietly clenched his claws, gaining a determined look.

"I-I'll be ready for them!"

The creature gave Spike a look, then smiled. It inhaled, its chest, puffing out as it took a deep breath, then roared into the air, making Spike fall back.

It finished its roar with a low rumble, then looked at Spike. Instead of feeling scared by the roar, he felt pride well up in his chest, feeling as if he could face any challenge head on.

"Thank you." Spike said, smiling at the older creature. His vision started to turn white, the creature looked down at him, giving a warm, fatherly smile.

"Good luck."

Spike slowly awoke, feeling well rested, then looked outside, seeing the sun rise. For the first time in a long while, he felt...amazing after the rest.

He looked over at Applejack, who was snoring peacefully, then gently cupped her cheek, brushing his thumb across it.

"I'll be ready."

Shopping

Spike blinked he looked around the busy streets of the market district he was in. Ponies zipped to and fro, with the odd griffon, minotaur, and goat sprinkled in. Spike walked past a stand with strange bowls and plates, Twilight quickly walking over, a book in her magical grasp, reading it, then looking at the pony running the stand.

"Do you have anything in purple and green?" Twilight slowly spoke, then looked at the pony running the stand.

"No, sorry." He replied, making Twilight smile kindly, and walk away after thanking him.

"Why are we here, Jackie?" Rainbow Dash asked Applejack, which tore said farm mare from admiring Spikes smiling face.

"Twilight said we could get souvenirs for ourselves. We don't meet this...whatchamacallhim until later today."

"Right...so why are we here?"

"So we can buy something to help us remember our trip here." Rarity said as she passed by, humming softly as she inspected some kimonos.

"Ah...right." Rainbow Dash said, then zipped away to a stall, making Applejack shake her head in amusement. When she turned around, she saw Spike staring up at a strange little figure on the shelf.

She tried to walk over, maybe to talk to him, before she was pulled away by Pinkie, who was talking a mile a minute.

Spike was, currently, staring at some artwork; a strange piece showing a raging sea and, in the middle, a familiar figure was roaring. It's plates were glowing blue as it roar, glowing smoke erupting out of its angry jaws.

Spike shook his head, shaking his thoughts away as he walked away, walking up to Twilight.

"Hey Spike. See anything you like?" Twilight said, staring at all the rubies, saphires, and other assorted gems.

Spike looked through the rings and gems, before stopping at a necklace, giving it a soft stare. On the necklace was the emblem of fire, though this was colored green, like his own flames.

Spike looked over at Twilight, tapping her flank. She blinked, brought back to reality as she looked at Spike, then asked, "You found one?"

"Yeah. This necklace."

Meanwhile, Applejack hummed with Pinkie, looking through different knickknacks and other assorted items.

"What do ya think Spike would like?" Applejack asked, looking around.

"I dunno. He's your romantic interest, I assumed you knew what he liked." Pinkie said, hopping after her, her mane bouncing along with her.

"Well, Ah wanna give 'im somethin' that'll knock him off his feet." Applejack mumbled as she looked through, giving a confused look as she saw a little toy robot with a shield, before moving on.

"Well, I suggest you get him something shiny and colorful." Pinkie said, staring through the glass aquarium, seeing lobsters laze about. "Ooh, pet lobsters."

Applejack looked through all the options, humming softly. Seeing all the options, she stopped, took a deep breath, then slowly let it out.

This wasn't some meat head or prince from another nation. This wasn't some warrior general or rock star celebrity. This was Spike. She was sure that, whatever she got Spike, he would absolutely love it.

That's when she spotted it. She squinted at the necklace: a cute little red apple on the end of it, with a small, golden dragon claw print in the middle of it.

"That'd be lovely." Rarity spoke from right next to her, a bag of kimonos held in her magic.

Applejack smiles, flicking one of her ears. Handing the bits over to the mare in the stand, she grabbed the bag with the necklaxe in, and smiled, even though she was holding it in her mouth.

"You shnow Shpike better than anyonesh, think he'll likes shis?" Applejack spoke, the bag giving her a mixture of a lisp and muffled sound.

"Oh, darling, I am sure he'll love it. Now, come along, we have more things to look at."

Parting Glass sighed as he stared through the paperwork, tapping his hooves impatiently. Normally, he would be happy to do this work, but now, he felt...a sinking feeling in his stomach.

Something was wrong, he could feel it.

Warming Stone noticed this and slowly walked up, her snout nuzzling against his, giving an affectionate rumble.

Parting Glass smiled, nuzzling into hee snout, before staring at the papers again, clicking his tongue.

"Something on your mind?" Warming Stone asked, gently rubbing his shoulder with her claws.

If any animal put rheir claws on any normal ponies shoulders, they would have screamed and ran. However, Parting Glass was no normal pony, as he happily leaned into her touch.

"Just...I just have this feeling that something is wrong. I cannot place my hoof on it, though." Parting Glass said, his worrying gaze traveling to the window outside, the soft waves crashing against the docks nearby.

"Well, I am going to go home and sleep. Wanna come with?"

Parting Glass chuckled, then said, "I wish I could. I still need to do all this paperwork for the princesses arrival tomorrow."

"Well...there is a blanket in the closet, in case you get tired." Warming Stone walked over to the door, then looked back at Parting Glass, saying, "Don't pull an all nighter again."

"No promises." Parting Glass smiled playfully at his wife, before returning back to his paperwork.

She walked to the door, flashing him a soft look, before walking out. Had she noticed, the door was held open by a hand, the individual silently sliding in.

Parting Glass sighed as he stretched out, before humming as a shadow fell over him.

"Waming Stone, I told you, I'd be fi-"

THWACK!

Parting Glass fell the floor, giving a groan as his vision started to darken. He looked up athe figure, seeing it put a finger to its lips and make a quiet shushing sound.

Parting Glass slipped into unconsciousness, his last vision showing the strange figure grabbing ropes.

Said figure gave a dark chuckle as he tied the unconscious pony, wrapping a rope around his hooves. "This was too easy. You think a pony who created such a weapon would at least take more than a punch to knock out."

"Quit your blabberin' an' tie him up! Boss says we need to get ready." A second figure spoke, tapping its claws on the ground.

"Where is the boss anyway?" Spoke the first figure as he wrapped a rope around his mouth, before lifting the pony over his shoulder.

"Preparing the surprise for our guests."

Mission start

Luna sat in front of Celestia, giving her a look. The sun princess only calmly ate a slice of her pancakes, paying no mind to the lunar princesses looks. She opened her mouth, as if to say something, before closing it, trying to find the right words. Celestia opened her eyes and gave Luna a soft look.

"Are you sure you do not wish to accompany us, dear sister?" Luna asked, her eyes alight with worry.

"Lulu, you know I cannot condone such weaponry, meeting with this Parting Glass would send the wrong message to ponies. And you know I can't just leave Spike here." Celestia spoke softly, speaking quietly as she spared a glance at the other table. "Besides, I rarely ever spend time with Spike nowadays. Some mother son time would do us some good."

"Tia, we...I am not sure this is such a good idea. Spike is already really tired, and I can tell he will get curious about us disappearing."

Celestia looked at Luna with a twinkle in her eyes. "Do not worry, my dear sister, I have a plan." Luna, however, glanced at the young dragon, who was currently staring at the pancakes he was given.

"I have a bad feeling about this." Luna mumbled out, staring at the drake. "He is still getting nightmares...I can tell...but I cannot intrude in his dreams as of late." She admitted, before looking back at Celestia.

"Very well, I shall speak to him. However, you and Twilight have a much more eventful day...telling the others why we are truly here."

Spike peered into space, his slit pupils rounded and unfocused, poking at his pancakes, barely any bites taken out of it. He heard something move and glanced up, seeing Princess Celestia sitting there, wrapping a wing around him. He gave her a tired smile, returning to his pancakes and eating them.

"Spike, my little one?"

"Yes, m- I mean, princess Celestia?" Spike fumbled, giving her a curious glance.

"Would you like to spend the day with me? I know I am not fun at my little ponies here, but I wish to spend some one on one time with my little Spike." Celestia said, making the drake blush brightly.

"I'm not that little." Spike mumbled out, making Celestia giggle into her hoof.

"Of course. Now, I heard this hotel has a spa, would you mind accompanying me to it?"

Spike looked at the others, his eyes lingering on Applejack for a moment longer than the others. Celestia caught that look, giving Spike a glance. On one hoof, she was happy her son was interested in someone else, and she wished to help.

On the other hoof, a small part of her brain told her that she should turn into sun goddess mode and hide her baby from this mare forever and keep him safe. Of course, this was a very small part of her mind, but a part nonetheless.

"Would...you like to invite Applejack?" Celestia gave an innocent look towards her son when she asked, Spike freezing up. "I am sure she would enjoy the spa as much as you, Spike."

"No!"

All eyes turned to Spike, though he only gave an embarrassed and shy smile, waving them off. "She said she wanted to go on the tour Twilight planned for them. Said she was curious about the city..." Spike whispered out, scratching the back of his neck. "Besides, I never would want to intrude like that."

Celestia nodded, watching the group giggle and talk amongst themselves. Her gaze returned to Spike, seeing him poke at his pancakes with his fork, her eyes scanning over her son. Of course, he was insanely tired, even she could tell when she was this close to him. However, she sensed something else in there.

Powerful magic.

She grimaced, realizing why Luna could not interfere. It seems someone else has decided to meddle in his dreams and had booted Luna out. They must be a very strong magic user for that to happen, and if they were showing Spike what they wanted, what was the purpose? Was it nefarious?

She didn't like this, though she was interrupted in her thoughts when a loud gasp rang out, catching everyponies attention. "Oh dear, we need to rush, the tour starts in a few minutes!" Twilight quickly ate her pancakes.

"Oh, Twilight, can we ask the kind pony when we get back for his pancake recipe?" Pinkie asked, though hopped along with Twi.

Rarity rolled her eyes and trotted alongside them, a.knoeing smile dancing along her lips. Rainbow Dash and Applejack followed behind, Applejack glancing back at Spike before she walked out the door. However, Fluttershy walked next to Luna and whispered something to Luna, making Celestia raise an eyebrow.

"Of course, young Fluttershy." Luna responded, making the shy mare smile and walk out after her friends. Luna turned to her sister once the others were out of earshot and gave her a smile. "She wishes to help Spike once we return from our...tour."

Celestia smiled and waved her off with a hoof, before returning to Spike. "Well then, my little dragon...how about we go to those hot springs?"

They walked quite a distance, Twilight passing by the tour place in her trot. The other mares looked at each other, wondering where Twilight was going. Rainbow Dash looked at the map in Twilights grip, furrowing her brow in thought.

"Uhm...dude, we passed by the tour zone."

"Yes we did."

Rainbow Dash looked back at the other mares, all of them shrugging at her, before she turned back to Twilight and Luna, speaking again, "Any...particular reason why we didn't stop by the tours?"

"There is, little one." Luna answered, looking around, humming to herself.

Twilight pulled a map out and read a street sign, muttering something to herself, then peered around. She gave a smile and tapped Luna with her wing, pointing towards a nearby park. Plenty of space, trees, perfect for the conversation they will have. Twilight looked both ways, before crossing the street, the other mares following.

She walked around the massive trees through the pagoda garden, finding a nice spot in a shady area. Twilight and Luna both sat down, sharing a look, before Twilight gave her an unsure smile. The rest had gathered around them and got comfortable, Twilight sighing softly as they gave her questioning glances. "Okay girls...now the reason we are really here."

"So...it's not a vacation?" Fluttershy mumbled out, making Twilight nod. "Why are we really here then?"

"Yeah, Twi, I thought this was gonna be a vacay for Spike!" Rainbow Dash scratched her scalp, looking around. "The little dude has been super down lately."

"I didn't even get to throw him an after birthday party!" Pinkie exclaimed, before she realized everyone but Twilight and Luna were staring at her. "What? Spikey-wikey needs some good stuff! He's been through a lot because of the author!"

They ignored her and looked back at the alicorns, Applejack opening her mouth to say, "Sorry Twi, I'm sure Pinkie don't mean nuthin by it."

"No, no, this is a vacation for Spike." Twilight assured the other girls, making them glance at each other. "I'm just having trouble putting this into words...Princess Luna?"

The lunar princess nodded, before getting a bit more comfortable, her star filled mane blowing in the soft wind. She sighed, then began, "My subjects, it is not easy to say...we have been sent here on a mission to protect life itself. A dangerous pony and his dragoness have invented a weapon so powerful and so chaotic that even Discord dare not touch it."

"Oh my." Rarity whispered out, before seeing Luna look away.

"However...they did not create it for ill intentions." Luna specified, seeing the confused looks of the mares around her. "They said they created it because of a vision of a looming threat. They believe it is safer for everypony if we safeguard it until that threat arrives...and we must agree."

"What about the pony and the dragon?" Rainbow Dash asked, stomping here hoof. "What vision did they see, huh?!"

"That...we don't know." Twilight admitted, scratching the back of her neck with a nervous smile. "We were hoping to contact them, but they haven't answered our scrolls."

"You don't think-" Fluttershy started, before loud laughing nearby cut her off, making her look around. "Oh, we...should probably...leave them alone for another day."

"No, Fluttershy, we must act now." Luna spoke, before standing up, rustling her wings as she thought. "We must hurry, follow me."

Spike stared at the spa mares, his eyebrow quirking an eyebrow. They seemed...familiar. He was brought out of his thoughts when Celestia brushed him with her wing. "Come, Spike."

"Phrasing."

"Oh, hush, just come inside." Celestia walked inside, Spike giving the mares a glance, then waited a second.

"Phrasing." Spike whispered, before walking in as well. The hot water welcomed him, his tail waving to and fro as he sank into the hot water and giving a groan.

The two mares at the desk looked on as Spike walked through the doors, before glancing at each other. They seemed almost identical, if not for ones cutie mark being a butterfly of darker colors, red, dark blues, and strange, green eyes.

The other mare had a butterfly with white fluff, blue eyes, and glowing wings with eye spots at the tips, the butterfly glowing a blue. The second mare sighed softly, then turned to the first, "This is an awful idea. He should learn this on his own time."

The first mare glared at the second, speaking softly, "We have to do this. His friends are in danger if we do nothing! We have to speed things up."

"This is still a bad idea."

"It's the only one that will work!"

"Who are you two?"

Both mares froze and looked over to a stallion who was giving them a confused look. They turned to each other, before looking back at him. The suddenly sneezed dust at him, before disappearing from sight, the stallion giving confused noises as he wiped his eyes.

"Crazy mares!"

Glow

Applejack scratched her chin with her hoof as she looked around the road, noticing the waterfront and giving a hum. The gentle lapping of the waves surrounded them, the cry of seabirds echoing out as they relaxed in the breeze, and crabs skittering to and fro as they did their daily business.

"I have a bad feeling about this."

Applejack was shocked out of her thoughts by Fluttershy, before nodding in agreement. The group of mares murmured their agreements, Rainbow Dash stretching and punching the air with her hooves, giving a determined look.

Luna stared at the warehouses, her wings rustling as her eyes landed at the door. She looked at Twilight, who nodded at the map and looked back at the building. She raised a hoof, ready to knock, but hesitated a moment. Was she ready for this? Were they ready for this? If what they planned was true, they could wipe out all life on accident, or their weapons could fall in the wrong hooves.

The door opened to a brick wall of a minotaur, Obelisk, the bipedal creature staring at the group. He noticed Princess Luna and Princess Twilight, before bowing in respect, both princesses sharing a glance.

"Princess of Tsuki, princess of Yūjō. I am Obelisk, one of the scientists, I apologize, but you have come at an inopportune time." Obelisk spoke, looking around for a moment, before nodding. "I apologize, but we must cancel this demonstration."

"Oh? Whatever for?" Luna asked, staring at the minotaur, her eyes narrowing as she stared at him.

The minotaur gave her a panicked look and whispered, "One of the beasts that we had captured earlier within the week has been freed. I am duty bound not to let harm come to you or your party and must seal this area off, for everyponies safety." He started closing the door, giving an apologetic look as it clunked shut.

Applejack stared at the door, squinting as she heard his hooves stomp away, her eyes scanning the door a bit. The others turned, conversing amongst themselves, wondering if they should intervene or if they go get Princess Celestia first.

"Well, we are here, what shall we do?" Rarity asked the others, adjusting her mane with her hoof. "We should help him restrain the creature, shall we not?"

"I'm not sure...perhaps we should go get Princess Celestia." Fluttershy offered, Princess Luna giving a soft hum as she watched the group.

Twilight gave Fluttershy a soft look, her voice barely above a whisper, "Well, nothing has gone wrong yet, and I'd rather not."

"Besides, we can beat up any monster they could throw our way!" Rainbow Dash punched the air with her hooves, her wings helping her hover there. "Heck, we should just lure the monster out and beat it up!"

Luna scanned the group with a bit of concern, before her eyes landed on Applejack, who was standing in front of the door, still staring at it. Princess Luna walked around the group of friends talking, before looking at the door. "Applejack."

"Huh?" The farm pony was snapped out of her trance, before adjusting her hat, looking at Luna. "Oh, sorry Princess, did ya ask somethin?"

"I wish to know what is on your mind, my little pony."

Applejack looked back at the door and gave it a squint. "There's somethin' that Minotaur ain't tellin' us. I say we take a gander on what exactly that boy is hidin."

Princess Luna hummed in thought, before using her magic. The door shuddered loudly, interrupting everypony and making them stare, before the door opened up, the lock bent and broken.

"Well, the door seems to have opened by itself. I think, as concerned ponies, we should make sure there is nothing wrong with this situation." Princess Luna spoke, walking in, Applejack staring at her in surprise.

Applejack smiled and walked with her, trotting along side the lunar mare, before speaking, "I like tha way you think, Princess."

Spike stared at the walls of the hot spring, the drake flicking his tongue out, tasting the air. He looked at the stones around him, before Celestia nuzzled him, drawing him out of his thoughts.

"Come Spike." Celestia said, before sinking into the warm water. Spike stopped for a moment, his back aching a bit, stretching out in the water, relaxing. It was nothing like a lava bath, but it was a little relaxing, and he was able to share it with the mare he saw as his mother. "So, my little dragon, you seem to have a lot on your mind."

Spike gave her a confused look, sitting up a bit, "How can you tell?"

"I'm your mother, Spike, I can tell when something bothers you." Celestia answered, slowly pulling Spike into a hug, squishing him into her fluff, making him smile. However, unknown to them, two mares watched them through a door, curious at the sight of the dragon nuzzling into the Princess. "Now, would you mind telling me what is bothering you?"

The young dragon gave a soft noise, before rubbing his cheek, "I'd rather talk about much happier stuff."

"Spike..." Celestia began, before hearing something behind her, making her quirk her head, seeing two mares behind her. She was curious, before giving a soft smile as they waved her over. "We'll continue this conversation in a moment Spike, it seems I am needed. Just a moment, okay?"

Spike looked at her, quietly thankful for the distraction for the moment and smiled, nodding a bit. Celestia stood up, the water droplets landing on his head and making him giggle a bit. She lit her horn, making her mane fluff out and billow in the wind. He watched her disappear around the corner, before turning to the water, scratching his back a bit, feeling the scales on his back, itching at them more and more. He shook his back a bit, his scales falling off onto some rocks and giving a happy sigh as the itch finally stopped.

He was shedding, it seemed this warm water helped him lose his loose scales. Though, if he had a sort of magical mirror, he would have noticed the extra rows of spikes tunning down his back, the dragon snorting out some steam into the misty air.

Had he been paying attention, he would have noticed a bright flash where Princess Celestia disappeared to, quiet mumbles of apologies being whispered out, before a peaceful silence slid throughout the area.

He allowed himself to float a little, his tail lazily pushing him away from the wall, before lying on his belly, giving a deep, happy rumble, his eyes closing. The flap opened for a moment, before quiet flittering echoed throughout the springs, Spike, however, was far too relaxed to even notice, as he was lazily swimming in the pool. He only noticed something when he opened his eyes and saw something glowing in the mist, his pupils slowly rounded as a sense of familiar calm washed over him.

The glowing object came closer and closer, before landing on his bose, finally close enough that he could see: a giant silk moth! It was glowing a soft orange as it flapped its wings, beautiful blue eye patterns on each wing. A mixture of oranges and yellows were painted along the wing, giving the feeling of a beautiful sunset, and its adorable fluffy body tickled Spikes nose. It would have been such a beautiful moth to see in nature...however, the one thing that stuck out to Spike was that it was glowing!

Spike blinked a bit, before the moth took off in front of him, flapping its wings as he watched. He rubbed his eyes to make sure he was actually seeing what he was, before giving a confused noise. "You...you aren't dreaming, Spike." He spoke to himself, before seeing it give a few flaps ahead of him, before waiting for him, turning and watching him.

Spike felt a pit in his stomach, looking back to see Celestia had not returned, his worry growing a bit in her absence.

"スパイク."

Spike froze, his eyes widening a bit, looking back at the glowing moth. "Uh...hello?"

"Come."

Spike felt calm whilst the voice spoke to him, though he spared another glance backwards, towards the door. He waited for a moment, before looking back at the moth, obeying the voice, knowing she meant him no harm.

"We must hurry. Your friends will need your help, and soon...so will the world."

Party pooper

Spike gave a gentle hum as he sipped his punch, staring up at the raging storm. He felt that his soul was akin to the monster in the sky, roaring and pushing out torrents of rain. So chaotic, with no order, so confusing. He gave a soft snort, a small ring of smoke appearing out of his nostrils. He heard someone clear their throat, and glanced behind him, seeing the orange fur, green eyes, and a Stetson.

"Mind if Ah sit 'ere?" Applejack asked, an honest smile on her face. Spike couldn't help but smile back, though his heart was not in it. He nodded and she sat down next to him, releasing a short hum. "Thanks."

Spike looked back up at the maelstrom of clouds that circled ahead, rain pouring out of the clouds.

"Somethin' on yer mind?" Applejack asked, gently scooting closer, staring at the tired purple dragon. Spike looked up at her, giving a soft smile that made Applejacks heart flutter.

"Just sleeping troubles." Spike replied, looking back up at the storm.

Applejack could tell he wasn't telling her the full truth, but didn't push it. She hummed as she adjusted her stetson, before gaining a playful smile. "So...ya seein' anypony?"

Spike nearly spit into his cup, his cheeks burning at the question. "N-no."

Applejack leaned in, giving soft chuckle, "Well, you an' Ah both know ya ain't after Rarity no more, and Ah know you ain't after any of the others."

Spike sat in silence, feeling as if he was on fire. As if someone above heard his silent prayers, Pinkie Pie jumped inbetween them, saying, "Spike! The Princess keeps staring at the cake, I think it's time for the b-day drake to get his b-day cake!" She then brought a hoof to her chin, giggling softly. "Hey, that rhymed!"

Spike quietly thanked Faust, then walked away from the frowning Applejack. Pinkie suddenly pushed her nose against Applejacks, who went crosseyed, confused. Pinkie hummed as she stared at Applejack, her baby blue eyes staring into her green ones.

"What?"

"You like Spike." Pinkie finally stated, gasping in surprise, then smiled. "Didya tell him?! Didya tell Spike you lo-"

Applejack gave her a terrified look, then pushed a hoof into her mouth to shut her up, Pinkie still muffling out the rest of the sentence.

Spike looked at them, before asking, "Tell me what?"

"Uh...tell ya...happy birthday Spike! Ah hope ya open my present first!" Applejack thought up, giving an unconvincing smile. Spike stared at her, cocking an eyebrow, before walking back to what he was doing, going to the cake. Applejack released a nervous sigh, before pulling her hoof put of Pinkie's mouth.

Pinkie gasped quietly, before leaning in to whisper, "You haven't told him yet?"

Applejack whispered back, giving a soft glare, "Of course not! Does he even look remotely interested in me?"

Pinkie looked at him, then smiled, saying, "He is totally interested in you."

"Ah know, but she is more- wait wuh?"

Pinkie Pie smiled knowingly, then giggled, "He has a crush on you. You didn't know that?"

"Of course not!" Applejack whisper yelled back, her heart filling with joy as she realized he liked her back. "How could Ah 'ave known?!"

"The author made it really obvious."

"Wut?"

"What?"

"What?" Spike asked, staring up at Luna, as if she grew two more heads.

"Young one, I asked if you are having any bad dreams."

"Uh...yeah. But everyone has bad dreams, auntie." Spike replied as Twilight took the cake, walking into the kitchen while the two were distracted, while Celestia followed, a well known cake lover.

"Right...Spike, do you mind telling me what you see in these nightmares?"

Spike looked around nearvously, his mind split between telling her the truth and straight up lying to her face. He wouldn't do the second, he considered himself better than that, but he couldn't do the first, lest he disturb the night princess. So...he would go half ways.

"I see...a meteor, crashing into the planet. Massive monsters and a three headed dragon that has a crackling roar. That's it." Spike didn't lie, but did not reveal the whole truth.

Luna almost sensed this, but did not push it. "Three headed dragon? Not a hydra?" She asked, leaning in to stare into his eyes.

"It had wings and breathed lightning. Not a hydra." He confirmed, seeing Luna stand up, humming softly.

That sounded familiar, but from where?

She was brought out of her thoughts as Spike leaned against her. She gave a soft smile, her heart fluttering at the sight of her adorable nephew. She sat next to him, letting him nuzzle into her warm, black fur. She leant down to peck his forehead, making him smile.

"I love you, Spike."

"I love you too, auntie."

Twilight put the cake on the counter, sighing as Celestia sat there. "So, you want us to go to Japony. Tomorrow?"

Celestia nodded softly, then sighed as Twilight walked up to her. "Unfortunately, I cannot come to Japony...officially. That is why I am sending Luna with you."

"What is exactly so important that we have to pack and leave so soon?" Twilight asked her, sitting next to her old mentor.

"A...pony has created a weapon. A weapon that, if my fears are correct, could wipe out civilizations." Celestia said, and let it sink in. "However...he has told us that he believes something evil is heading our way. So, he wants us to take the weapon to safeguard it until said evil arrive."

Twilight rubbed her temples with her hooves, then flicked her ears. "You know...Spike won't be happy being left alone in the castle."

"That is why he is going with you." Celestia said, her wings rustling a bit. She looked at Twilight, who gave her an incredulous look. "You cannot tell him there is a weapon there. Tell the others it is a vacation. I have heard Japony is quite lovely this time of year."

"You know I can't lie to them."

"I am not asking you to lie to them. I am asking you to lie to Spike. I have seen how hard he works, Twilight. He needs some relief and relaxation. Besides...it is a day after his birthday. He won't question it."

Twilight sighed, then grabbed the cake in her magic, seeing Celestia lick her lips. "Well...the birthday boy does need his cake before we stop an civilization ending weapon."

Strange Creature

Parting Glass sighed as he stared at the tank, his brown eyes tracing over the figure. This being was strange, covered in burn scars and littered with arrows. Its lower jaws had strange mandibles attached to them, small bumps ran down it's back, while its arms were long and spindly, its fingers were almost like that of a skeletons. Its head resembled that of a komodo dragon mixed with a snake, and its jaws opened up to show fangs, long enough to pierce through someponies arm. Its jaws opened to breath fire at the glass around it, merely darkening under the heat, before it stopped, glaring at Parting Glass.

He hummed as he started to draw the creatures characteristics, ignoring its hisses and roars.

"The creature stands at three metres tall, and five metres long. It is covered in scars, perhaps by territorial disputes or prey items, and seems to have mandibles on its lower jaws, perhaps to keep prey from escaping its bite?" He spoke into a device, walking close to the case. The creature stopped, then stomped its four toed foot as it rushed.

It head slammed against the glass, making it roar out in pain, slowly backing up to shake its head. It gave a garbled hiss, then started to lie down.

"Subject 3 seems to be highly aggressive and intelligent. How intelligent, I cannot say, but it has been watching me. Studying me. I think it waiting for the perfect time to strike." Glass said, then walked over to another glass case.

This one was full of flying reptiles, with strange, moss like protrusions coming from its skin. Its head turned, its leather wings helping it walk around, like a bat. Its head look like that of a strange reptile, while the front of its face looked like someone had put a chainsaw on it.

"Subject 2 is a strange reptile, that looks like a dragon but acts more like a bird. Its face seemed to have some sort of biological saw on it, perhaps for cutting off branches for a nest, or cutting apart meat to eat?" He spoke into the device, walking closer. The creature stared at him, before rushing forward, slamming into the glass case.

It gave out a clicking shriek as it slammed against it again and again, its saw like protrusion slamming against the wall of the glass case. It finally stopped and clambered back it is four friends, who looked similar except for the biggest one in the group, which was covered in scars, the most on its body was more extreme than the others.

"Subject two seems to follow a patriarchal approach when it comes to groups. Smaller females serve a large male, who seems to fight over the females."

Parting Glass walked over to the last glass case. Inside was water, filling half, a large shape took place in the water. It quietly swam around, its slitted pupils focusing on Parting Glass. This crocodilian looked normal, other than the gills it had on the side of its neck. Some of its teeth were jagged and out of place, as it gave a hiss, staring down at the pony.

It stood underwater, its head poking up, just staring at him with its orange eyes. It opened its jaws, its top and bottom jaws splitting apart as it gave a soft hiss, glaring at the stallion.

Parting Glass shivered at the glade, noticing its eyes following him as he paced softly.

"Subject 1 seems to be a strange, bipedal crocodilian. Incredibly intelligent, seems cautious while in its tank." He mumbled out the last part, noticing that it lazily traced its claws along the tank wall.

Three large fish were dropped into its tank from above, so it suddenly clambered up, biting into them, its jaws clapping together, eating all three fish in one bite, before sinking into tank, giving a deep, throaty rumble as it stared at him.

"How Obelisk got these creatures I may never know, but something tells me he knows more than what he is letting on..." He turned off the device, walking away. He placed it on the table, then hummed as he stared at the letter before him.

It had the symbol of a sun on it, and he sighed, deciding to open it without his wife present. He knows Warming Stone would be cross, but, this was too important.

He looked over, seeing Obelisk giving a chuckle. "Wonderous monsters, aren't they?"

"They are not monsters. They are animals. With thoughts and feelings." Parting Glass said out loud, making Obelisk scoff.

"Like the animals you feed them? Or the pests you test your weapon on?" Obelisk countered, staring at the strange reptile, it flaring its mandibles at him, opening its monitor like mouth to hiss loudly. "Face it, doc, these things are not animals. They're monsters, to be destroyed at the first sign of trouble."

Parting Glass turned to the Minotaur. To say Obelisk was intimidating would be an understatement; one of his horns was broken off in an old scuffle with a dragon, and one of his eyes had been clawed out by the very same dragon. Large scars of weapons and beasts alike littered his body. His fur was black, though was starting to grey at the edges, and a long, ugly scar travelled from his shoulder to his wrist, gained from fighting a manticore, catching its tail during its attack. Luckily, its venom never injected into the wound...that was the last mistake it ever made.

"I am doing what I must to stop him. And this weapon is purely for defensive measures, not for war." Parting Glass reminded, glaring at the large minotaur.

Although Obelisk stood twice as tall as Parting Glass, he was not intimidated by him. And Obelisk knew this, which pissed the minotaur off immensely, but he could do nothing about it, as Warming Stone would rip him apart.

"You know, you could sell this weapon. Make a ton of bits for it. Tartarus, I know dragons that would give their wings just to have something like this." Obelisk said, making Parting snort in annoyance.

"For the last time, we are not selling it!" Parting stood up on a chair, standing eye to eye with Obelisk. "We are using it for our protection! So everything on the planet doesn't die off! Do you understand now?!"

Parting Glass was seething I'm rage, making Obelisk back away a little. He started to walk away, grumbling as Parting Glass stared at him as he left the room.

The stallion sighed as he sat back down, staring down at the letter. He slowly unrolled it, reading its contents.

Dear Doctor Parting Glass,

It has come to my attention that you have a new weapon to show to us. Although we are glad you are cooperative, we must advise you that we do not agree with any acts of violence.

When we appear, we would like an explanation of why you are creating such a weapon, and why you decided now would be a good time to tell us.

Best regards
Princess Celestia
Princess Luna

Parting Glass let out a sigh of relief, then rubbed his eyes. "I need a vacation."