Spike walked out of his room where the cutie mark crusaders, Rumble and Pipsqueak were. He had a far-away look on his face, thinking about what Rumble had told them. He could tell that his friend wanted revenge; that much was clear judging by the sound of his voice.

But that did not mean that Spike would be okay with Rumble getting careless in battle. He had heard stories from his ancestor of warriors who grew careless because they wanted vengeance. Sometimes they won ... and sometimes they lost ... horribly.

He did not want to repeat the mistakes of the past, he wanted to move forward as much as he possibly could than to make mistakes that he knew he would regret later. But It then would be too late to change them.

Spike walked past Crystal Guards who were inwardly saluting him straighter than when they do so for the Princess’. They saw him as a hero and would follow him to the end of time. Spike, not looking at where he was going, found himself outside the palace, walking by the many houses in the Empire that had been built to make room for every creature who was fleeing the Umbrums wrath.

At first, Equestria and other kingdoms had fought back; believing that King Sombra would grow arrogant like countless other times but he didn’t if anything, he seemed to have gained more strength than any of the rulers inside and outside Equestria anticipated.

The sheer power King Sombra displayed when he sent his forces to take over the Crystal Empire was unfathomable. Even Luna could not match King Sombra’s strength in the battles she fought him. She felt his strength, and it frightened her.

But that did not mean that she would grow scared again, it only meant that she was at a setback.

Spike knew all of this, any creature was willing to tell him, trying to be as useful for him as possible, not wanting to disappoint their hero.

“There must be some weakness he has, no creature is perfect ...” Spike said out loud only for him to hear. “He must be hiding it very well, the way he displays his magic and army suggests that he is not afraid of showing what kind of power he holds, but there must be another reason as to why he is willing to allow his soldiers to do everything for him.”

King Sombra when he ruled over the Crystal Empire, never allowed anypony but himself to do everything; paranoid that somepony would try to kill him or at least try to end his reign. He was right to be afraid, The Ghost was after him. But why would he allow his soldiers to do everything by themselves if he never trusted any creature but himself?

It could be that he wanted to throw the rulers off their hinges; trying to make them believe that he trusts them, or it could be that he does indeed trust them since he has that spell on his fellow Umbrums. That would explain the certain arrogance he shows the world.

Spike had climbed on top of a roof of a house near the border to the Crystal Empire and without any creature seeing; left the safety of the empire. Thinking about King Sombra was giving him a headache, he did not understand the creature at all, as soon as Spike believes he figure him out, he proves him wrong and it was making him irritated.

The way King Sombra kills any creature who puts up a fight is the same way some creature else did in history. It reminded him of Khothun Khan’s methods. Spike had learned about the tactics that the Khan used to enslave his victims, the same method he used to fight. Everything pointed to King Sombra being fascinated with how Khothun Khan went about his invasion of Hoofshima. It made sense that he would have picked up inspiration from previous leaders who were somewhat successful but did not make it all the way. The Khan may have taken over Hoofshima for many months, but that did not mean that the Khan succeeded to the extent that he had wanted to succeed. Of course, King Sombra has ruled Equestria with an iron fist for over a year now, but that did not mean it would remain that way. Spike would make sure of it.

*** *** ***

Spike was making his way to the fort that he had liberated and his eyes were scanning the areas like a true predator looking for its prey. His mouth was clenched, his claws were ready to grab the katana and fight if he needed to. But there was nothing he needed to worry about and that was a very small relief for him.

It was small because it meant that the Umbrums were doing terrible things in other places but it could mean that they are plotting something. That is what was setting him over the edge.

When he took a left, heading towards the fort, he did not notice that there were dead Umbrums on the ground in pools of blood smearing over the grass. Even if he did, he would have applauded the creature who managed to do it.

When he was halfway to the fort, he heard some creature scream for help; “Some creature! Help!” Spike looked from the left to the right, trying to find the source of the voice, and saw a mare who was greenish brown coated with green mane and tail. Her eyes were chocolate brown with evident fear in them.

Spike started jogging to her, intending to see if he could help in any way he could. She was outside her home, the home had a staircase leading up and the house was one-roomed with everything in one space. The mare was wearing a maidens suit that was covered in dust and other mucky things.

When Spike reached her he saw that she looked relieved that some creature had stopped to make its way over to her. She had not believed she would be able to get any creature’s attention.

“What’s going on?” Spike asked in a calm voice, but the mare knew that he was anything but calm, she could practically feel his anger radiating from his body like a heating charm being placed on her. But this was different, this sort of heating was not comfort, it was something that she did not want to see or feel.

“My daughter,” the mare began, hoping he would help her. “She’s been missing for days. We last saw each other at a restaurant that had been liberated by The Ghost she told me she would catch up but she never came back. I’m fearing the worst.”

Spike listened to her, his mind was running thousands of miles per hour, thinking about what could have happened to the daughter of this mare. He would help of course.

“I will help you, do you know any creature that might know of her location or know her on a personal level?” He asked, intending to see if he could find the source through her inner circle of friends and acquittances. The mare looked at him, thinking for quite a long time, and then shook her head.

“Not that I know of, she never did have many friends, but I have seen her be near some mercenaries sometimes but I was never concerned because where we lived was filled with them—walking up and down the streets as if they owned the place and to some extent, they did.”

Spike understood that. If he had grown up in a place like that, he most likely wouldn’t be too concerned about it.

“I will see what I can do, but first; what is her name?” He asked.

“Her name is Strawberry Twister.”

before he bowed in respect and left the mother outside of her home. It was then he noticed that there were quite a few mercenaries where the mother lived. Spike walked into the territory not intending on starting any fights.

The small town or village looked to be somewhat hostile but not to the point where he was drawing his blade. The buildings were built from wood with heavy signs of magic, there was hay for roofs and there were mercenaries who were walking up and down the dirt roads, looking quite intimidating.

A few hundred feet ahead he saw a dragon who was wearing black robes and a straw hat. He looked to have a katana for a sword and Spike decided to ask him if he knew anything. The dragon was looking into the fire, not noticing that Spike was making his way over to him, or if he did, he did not show it.

“Hello,” Spike greeted, making the dragon look at him. “I am looking for a mare named Strawberry Twister, have you seen or heard of her?” His question was simple, but he had not anticipated the answer her received.

“Fillies. Colts. Chickens. I have it all. For the right price, call them whatever you like.” He answered, no emotion in his voice.

“Fool.” This is what Spike responded with before he left the dragon to stare into the flames as he had done before.

The rest of the village was the same, the mercenaries walked up and down the streets not sparring a second glance at Spike who walked among them and showed them some respect for protecting their village that must be known for its illegal business’.

The creatures who lived there did not seem remotely alarmed by the fact that there was a creature among them that were not from there, but that could be because they thought he was a mercenary or ronin—as they are mostly known as—which would not have surprised them the slightest.

Spike was making his way to an inn that was the headquarters of a mare that Spike knew was dangerous. He had met her once but that had been before he became The Ghost. He shuddered at the memory, not intending to indulge the small voice in his head with the memory.

The inn was a partially quiet place, the main room was spacious with tables filled with food and water, mercenaries were drinking, chatting, or just hanging around before they headed to where they needed to be.

He looked around and walked over to a ronin who was by himself, drinking something with alcohol in it. He was visibly drunk and Spike hoped he could use that to his advantage by asking if he knew where Strawberry Twister was. “Hello, I am looking for a mare named Strawberry Twister, do you know her?”

The ronin gave a light sneer his way, presumably from all his drinking. “I do not know any creature’s name and I don’t want to, leave me be.” He responded with irritation. Spike looked around and saw some dragon who was squatting over a table and looking at his food.

“Excuse me, do you know a mare by the name of Strawberry Twister?” Spike asked, to his surprise the ronin responded kindly.

“Yeah, I know her, haven’t seen her in days though.”

“I’m trying to find her, do you know where she is?” Spike desperately asked, hungry for information about her whereabouts.

“Sorry, can’t help you.”

While Spike was disappointed, he still felt like he was going in the right direction. He looked around the small inn and decided that it would not hurt to stay a little while. But before he could sit down and relax and start thinking about his next course of action, another ronin came and whispered loudly enough for him to hear;

“Samurai! Over here!” Spike turned and walked over to him. The ronin was another dragon who wore the same outfit just like the others, it was some sort of dress code that they have. That was the assumption Spike made anyways, but what he found very odd was the fact that they dressed the same way as the Straw Hat Ronin did back in Hoofshima back in the two hundred.

Before Spike could even ask what that ronin wanted, the mercenary spoke again; follow me, we can speak in private near a rundown house.” He said with his voice being very hard. He turned around and started walking towards the location, Spike following him behind.

Spike noticed that there were a few houses that were destroyed and were left to rot away in peace. The ronin led him inside one of them that were very private and perfect to have serious deals with clients that would be paying hefty sums of money.

“Do you know Strawberry Twister?” Spike asked and the ronin nodded.

“Yes, she is a friend, she told me about a Griffin who had offered her a job at an inn not far from here. She wanted to surprise her mother and made me promise not to tell her which I did. I am very worried about her.” He admitted.

Spike understood the concern the mercenary felt for his friend. “Do you know where the inn is at?”

“It’s located near the border to the Badlands.” Was the curt response before he turned around and walked away from Spike, believing that the purple scaled dragon would save his friend. And Spike would.

*** *** ***

The sky became gloomier than it usually was and it was sort of irritating to see that it might rain again but at the same time, it was a blessing from the usual manifesting darkness that usually covers the sky by King Sombra’s red horn that is filled to the brim with dark magic that could simply corrupt even the kindest of creatures.

One thing that Spike was trying to find out was why King Sombra was doing what he was doing, of course, it could be power, but no creature would go that far unless if there was something else at play, something so sinister that it would make him shiver in either fear or disgust.

But if it was simply power he was after, then Spike could almost guarantee their victory. Almost. He can’t exactly go around and say that he would win because there was a very large chance that he would fail as well, and he had accepted that; he is not perfect, he cannot guarantee anything in war and battle.

It was foolish for any creature to do so.

The border to the Badlands was not very clear as to where it exactly was. The sands might be one thing, but it was not enough to put the line for the actual border. The art of politics can be dangerous at times, especially when it comes to borders between kingdoms.

One little bit of mistake could mean war against one another, which was why only a very select few could handle such pressure, but there is only one problem; no matter what kind of politics a kingdom has, it will always be Psychopaths and Sociopaths that will be able to handle the sheer pressure the station provides and that is something every creature knows but are too afraid to mention.

This, of course, did not mean that his mother, aunt, and cousin were unstable, but it meant that they have to in some way shape or form endure prejudice and being questioned by creatures that does not like them. But the problem is that some of the things they write about the rulers of Equestria are the truths that have been hidden.

Spike used to read articles of a news company that was not illegal but at the same time, not legal either. You could suffer a hefty fine if caught with the paper. Spike had read many articles from them and even found information that not even aunt Luna knew about which worried him.

The things they pointed out were things that could be questioned if Princess Celestia was fit for ruling the kingdom. She is but there would need to be any creature that would have to keep an eye on her to make sure she was not breaking any of the laws that she herself helped create.

It was funny, there had even been an article about Spike how he was the secret prince of Equestria. How they had come to that conclusion was beyond him but he had a good laugh because they pointed out a few things that did make sense like how he was able to give hugs to the princess in private. How the royal guards from the sun and moon bowed to him in respect as if he was in some way superior. With this, Spike had noticed that some ponies outside of Canterlot had been looking at him strangely as if they were silently judging him to see if they could accept him as their prince. It was only the noble houses of Canterlot that knew the truth; they had to because they would be in one way or another through the blood adoption related to each other.

Spike shook his head out of his line of thinking and made his way beyond the Everfree forest. He could start there and work his way through the entire border, it would be both time-consuming but it was better than nothing. He could jump from the tree branches over to the other branches to save time and cover more ground.

He climbed to a tree branch and scouted the area, the Everfree forest from the top was even more terrifying, the trees, bushes, grass, everything there seemed to be hostile against you; simply looking for an excuse to get rid of you by force. But it was not just that, it was the air, the animals, everything. The magic there was unnatural, the magic seeping the roots was not evil but it was not good either.

It depends on what sort of intentions any creature has for the forest or intends on doing in the forest that decides one’s fate. Usually, it wasn’t pleasant and could be torturous.

*** *** ***

He jumped from the different tree branches, not stopping until something caught his eyes in the distance; a very large wooden building with creatures walking around on the outside with weapons armed and ready for battle from the looks of it.

He had been searching for the inn for the past several hours with next to no success, the large house he was witnessing was the first one he’d seen in hours.

This had to be it, there were no other inns nearby and Spike had not even known that there was an inn near the border to the Badlands. But Spike had a feeling that this was the place, there were no other buildings for several miles, the terrain revealed no creatures.

Spike was crouched by the tree branch that overlooked the inn where there were creatures all around guarding it. He suspected that they were bandits. The way they dressed proved it. They were simply wearing a cloth over their upper and lower bodies but nothing else.

Spike swung himself to another tree branch and saw that there were two bandits by a fire who were cooking something, one of them had a stick and was trying to make the fire hotter. The other bandit was drinking some beverage.

Spike pulled out his bow and two arrows that were flaming. He aimed carefully at the two bandits, his facial expression even without the mask unclear. He then released thee two arrows that hit them spot-on, lighting them aflame.

They started to scream, their voices were not heard however or the other bandits were fed up with them for whatever reason and continued with their tasks. But that did not mean that Spike would not kill them, oh no, he most certainly would.

He pulled out one normal arrow and aimed it at an archer who was watching over the terrain, making sure that no enemies knew about what they were doing. They would not allow any creature to stop their line of business. They had worked so hard for this. Too hard.

The archer never saw the arrow that came flying at his head that pierced his brain and made some gagging noises before his soul went over to the next life.

Spike surveyed the inn, looking for any other lone bandits who were alone and had not spotted their friends getting killed from seemingly out of nowhere. But he did not find any other bandits on his side, but there were a few several hundreds of feet away from him.

He jumped off from the tree branch and stalked his way over to the inn, intending on saving the daughter. He jumped inside of tall grass where he could hide from unsuspecting enemies. Spike used his hearing to see if there were any bandits around and he felt his heartbeat faster when he heard;

“Enemy Archer!”

Spike looked around frantically, trying to spot the one who alerted the others and saw that there was a bandit with a spear who looked over the terrain with a threatening gaze. He did not notice Spike the tall grass who was now aiming at his head, intending on killing him first then the other.

spike released the arrow, it flew through the air before it hit the bandit in the throat and the bandit immediately started to choke on his blood. The scene was not a pretty sight, the blood gushing out of his lungs and the bandits who saw it naturally became terrified of what they witnessed.

Two bandits fell on their rumps before they turned around and ran as fast as they could away from the inn, not bothering to take the weapons they had dropped with them. Spike looked at the other bandits who were there who looked angrier than before, believing that Spike was playing a game with them.

There were only twelve bandits left in the vicinity, the bandits who stayed were the ones who were walking around with their weapons drawn, the weapons looked not at all intimidating, they just looked incompetent with the ones who were using them.

Spike—in his crouched state—made his way over to some goods where he could be shielded from the other bandits who might be looking his way. From what he could hear from the other bandits, he must have been seen by some bandit but had not bothered to walk in his direction to see if there were any intruders, that would be the bandit’s mistake.

He aimed his arrow at him and waited for quite a long time before he released it and heard the bones that crunched when the arrow hit the bandit. He screamed in pain as he felt the arrow hit, he was bleeding a lot, too much to be able to save his life and before he knew it; he was dead.

Spike snorted at the bandit.

The other bandits were either inside the inn or on the other side of the property, so he made his way to the other side of the property, his katana in his left claw, dangling dangerously at his enemies.

On the other side of the property, there were nine bandits scouted in different areas not far from one another. There was some tall grass that could be lit aflame that could cause a distraction while he picks them off one by one but Spike decided something different. He wanted to watch them burn as he stood there, seeing them look his way, realizing that they could not possibly be safe from him.

No creature is.

He did just that, when two of the bandits walked into the tall grass to use it as a shortcut, he fired off a flaming arrow that lit them aflame that made them scream like lunatics. The other bandits looked in their direction and came to their aid but it was no use, they could not possibly fight against the flames that had burnt their friends to death.

“Watch out for enemy archer!” One of the bandits barked at their friends. The bandits were a mix of different creatures that came from many different kingdoms originally. They must have snuck inside Equestria or they left their kingdoms to do their crimes in another one.

“Come here and fight!” Spike said, his voice holding pure loathing for what they had done to the daughter. The bandits turned around, spooked, but when they saw Spike they felt their anger rise as they could see how arrogant he acted. Wearing armour as if it would protect him from their wrath.

Spike waited for the bandit who would start the duel to come. A grey Griffin stepped forward with his spear that was made from wood. They stood there, facing each other, staring each other down as if that would end the duel alone. But then the Griffin tried to attack Spike—initiating the duel. But Spike cut through the Griffin, the flesh wound coming from the right leg up to the heart. Then another bandit came his way but Spike sliced down from the same length but the katana came from a different direction and the last bandit did not stand a chance. Spike rushed towards him and shoved him enough to go off-balance and stab him in the back—making the bandit die instantly.

The bandits fell to the ground, their gurgling subsiding as Spike walked away from them. He looked around the area quickly, trying to see if there were any more bandits on the outside, but he could not find any creature.

It was a possibility that they had seen the bodies of their friends and decided to leave the area, their tails between their legs. When he was satisfied with the terrain, he decided to finally enter the inn to find Strawberry Twister.

When he opened the first door to the inn he noticed that there were plates everywhere with some old food on them, suggesting that they had been there for quite a while. Some beds were scattered here and there but nothing fancy to suggest that something is going on.

He walked into three different rooms on the first floor but found nothing, there wasn’t anything out of the ordinary, it must have been a normal inn before the bandits stole it from whoever built it. Or it could have been them who built it. The longer Spike thought about it, the more sense it made; why would any creature build an Inn on the border to the Badlands? The only ones who would have any sort of benefit would-be criminals because they never speak about the crimes they commit.

Spike saw a ladder by the entrance and he started climbing, trying to be as quiet as possible as to not startle any creature who might be inside of the inn—especially, other bandits who might be sleeping or doing whatever inside. When he reached the second floor, he looked around and tried to find any materials or anything he could take.

His ancestor once told him that sometimes that in war, you have to know that the ones who live in those places won’t be returning—use the resources that are there.

He did not find anything and walked into the next room that had only one bandit who was sleeping to the right side corner, facing the wall. Spike crouched and snuck over to him before he stood and killed the bandit with the katana piercing the heart.

The bandit had not been able to properly scream in pain.

The blood slowly poured itself over the wooden floor but Spike did not stop to witness the gross act and only continued for the next room where three bandits were sleeping on the floor and there was a mare. Her coat was white and her eyes were dark red. Her mane and tail were dark indigo with hints of black and dark blue. She was on the floor, silently weeping.

Spike snuck over to the closest bandit and did the same thing he did with the other bandit in the other room. He pierced this one’s heart as well, the bandit let out a very silent shriek but was not quick enough to warn the other. The mare looked in his direction but did not say anything.

This might be her chance of escaping.

Spike turned to the mare and before he freed her, killed the other bandits who were in the room. After that, he walked over to her, seeing her eyes being redder from all the crying she must have done for a long time. He pulled out his tanto and cut the rope that was binding the mare, when she felt her front hooves were free, she started to shake with happiness but she did not cry.

She had nothing left to cry for.

“They forced me to do it!” She said, feeling herself succumbing to the anger and loathing that had started to transform in her heart for the last few days.

“Do what?” Spike confusedly asked, his eyes darting to the bandits as if they were still alive and could answer his question. “Also, what is your name?”

“Strawberry Twister, they forced me to shout for creatures to help, some of them stopped, some of them wanted to help. I led them to this wretched inn and this is where they were killed by the bandits.”

“Your safe now, they won’t be able to harm you.” Spike gently stated, his voice still somewhat firm as to reassure her of his statement.

He led her out of the inn, determined to get her back to her mother. Strawberry Twister followed him, not looking back for even a second. She climbed down the ladder where her mysterious savior had gone down.

Spike waited for her with clear patience, not wanting to rush her. When she had gotten down, they started to walk in the direction of the dirt road that would lead to the village where he found the mother shouting for her daughter. At first, he was completely baffled, but then he saw a ronin walk past the mother.

It was the one Spike had spotted by the fire.

“Mom!” Strawberry Twister exclaimed but walked past the ronin and lightly flinched as if he was going to punch her but she kept walking and hugged her mother who smothered her. She had not believed she would see her baby filly but there she was, by her side.

“Surrender and you can live!” Spike said, his voice asserting authority over the ronin. Or tried at least.

“Fillies. Colts. Chickens. I have it all. For the right price, call them whatever you like.” He answered in the same emotionless voice from earlier.

With disgust on his face from behind the mask, Spike pulled out his katana and waited for the ronin to attack him.

It wasn’t long before the ronin came at him with high speed and tried to cut Spike who blocked the hit and landed a blow of his own which stunned the ronin. He quickly got composure and turned to face the purple scaled dragon who was looking at him with evident anger that was felt through the air.

Spike decided to be the one to approach him this time, running up to him and jumping up into the air and trying to land a heavy blow which partially worked but the ronin did not lose balance as countless other creatures had done in the past, he had better control in battle and he had better control over his sword which was evident with the amount of willpower he showed when he partially blocked the heavy blow.

The next attack came from the ronin who tried slicing him but couldn’t because Spike blocked the attack very quickly and landed two heavy blows and then proceeded to stab him multiple times, but those were only minor injuries.

But Spike knew he was close; the ronin was slightly dancing to the left and right but he stood his ground, ready to fight. Spike would have admired that about the ronin if it was not for the fact that the ronin showed that he was some creature who sold other creatures on the black market for whatever unforgivable reason.

Finally, Spike rushed towards him and landed a heavy blow and a final lethal attack which caused the ronin to gag before he finally died from the injuries he suffered from Spike’s blade. He dropped to the ground, his eyes looking up at the sky.

“Strawberry Twister, I never thought I would see you again!” The mother exclaimed, her happiness and sorrow clear in her emotional voice. Spike glanced towards the mother and daughter who were hugging each other for dear life as if they feared that the other would disappear if they did not hold on to each other hard enough. Spike smiled as it reminded him of his mother when he returned from Hoofshima when they reunited recently.

He was about to walk away, deeming his work done when he was stopped by both women.

“Wait!” They said in unison. Spike turned to face them, wondering what they wanted.

“Is there something wrong?” He asked, his voice concealing the worry and confusion he held at the very moment.

“What? OH! No, no, nothing of the sort we just wondered how we could ever repay you?” The mother asked, her voice showing ever so slightly worry over what the repayment would be. Spike looked at her for a very long moment and could detect her fear because she could not see his face.

“I do not want repayment, I want the creatures of Equestria and beyond to be safe from the Umbrums.” And with that, the mother and daughter watched in awe as the samurai walked away, his aura giving away power.

Author's Note

I absolutely loved writing this one! This side mission was heavily inspired by the side story A Thief Of Innocense which is one of my favorite side-stories.