“They say that those who do not heed his warning will learn the harsh truth.”
The pegasus’ rainbow hair flourished in the wind and swayed with the daunting night sky. She stood over the fire and reached into the heat at her audience. The watching eyes of her best friends stared back at her with undivided attention. “She never forgives, she always comes back. There is no escaping the mare in black!” The pegasus spread out her wings as she hovered over the flames. A great shadow began to loom over the audience as it cast another shadow of fear over the unsuspected creatures.
“AHHH!” With a quick gust of wind and a pink flash, Pinkie Pie jumped down behind the fear-stricken group and screamed with great conviction.
Many screams were let loose as the group scattered. While most of the group ran for the trees, a few chose alternative solutions. Spike had dived under one of the logs and continued to dig downward. Poor Rarity had decided to retreat to her fancy house-like tent and leaped through a solid glass window. With that, there was only the talented unicorn, Starlight Glimmer. Her response was not of flight, but to fight. The Pink Party pony was met by a bright green flash that sent the world around her flying backward. Starlight looked up as her horn sizzled in the night and saw the destruction before her. The trees had been uprooted, and the not so lucky ones had been all but disintegrated.
“Is everyone alright?” Starlight called out as she stood in a fierce battle stance. She was startled by the disruption of laughter that built up behind her. She turned around to see Rainbow Dash breaking out in laughter and tears alike. She rolled on the ground as she struggled to breathe between her sporadic laughter. “Rainbow!” Starlight called out in annoyance.
“Y-you should see th-the look on your faces.” Her speech was unintelligible as her breath was stolen only by humor.
“Rainbow, that wasn’t funny,” Starlight groaned as she walked up to the dying pegasus.
“What do you mean?” She gasped as she clawed for air. “That was hilarious.” Rainbow Dash managed to stand to her hooves as she regained her ability to breathe.
“I just blasted some poor pony into oblivion. How is that funny?”
“Oh ya,” Rainbow Dash said as she wiped her tears away. “I didn’t think that would happen.” Rainbow turned to see her friends walking back to the fire. “They all ran like a bunch of scaredy cats, so I thought you would do the same honestly.”
“I beg your pardon!” Rarity yelled as she popped her head through the broken window. Her hair was coated in broken glass and scraped paint. “You’re the scaredy-cat!” Just as Rarity attempted to make a stand, the pink party pony swung down from the ceiling and let out another jump scare right next to her.
Rarity screamed as she jumped through the broken window back to the outside. Dust flew everywhere as she landed hard into the mud. Rainbow Dash fell to the ground as she exploded into laughter once more. Starlight shook her head as she watched Pinkie Pie pop her head out of the shattered window.
“Pinkie!” Starlight cried. “I thought I blasted you into nothingness.”
“Come on Starlight,” Pinkie laughed with her usual enthusiasm. “You know my Pinkie senses help me see the danger, even when it comes from a scaredy-cat.”
“Ok, I wasn’t scared. I was just surprised.” Starlight blew on her horn that still sizzled. “You know how quick I react when I’m surprised.”
“Sure,” Rainbow Dash taunted. “Whatever you say, Starlight.” The mare only responded with a groan as she sat back down on the log near the fire.
“Now, now, Rainbow Dash,” Applejack said in her calming southern accent. “You had your fun now, but someone really could have gotten hurt.”
“Could have?!” Rarity growled as she crawled out of the mud.
“I’m on it!” With another pinky flash, the party pony raced into a pinky tornado and rushed around Rarity. After a few seconds, the tornado vanished and revealed an unglamorous mess of purple hair. “Pinkie!” Rarity growled.
“Woops,” The pink pony laughed. “I’m on it, again.” The group carried on as the sound of Rarity and Pinkie Pie filled in the background.
“Alright,” Spike called out as he jumped over the log. “Now it’s my turn.”
The ground was white with snow and mush. Hearts Warming Eve was quickly approaching and the group of friends had decided to celebrate with good old winter camping. Their numbers were few with only Pinky Pie, Rarity, Rainbow Dash, and Applejack from the mane six, Starlight and Spike from the extras, and the Crusaders to join them.
With so many Hearth's Warming tails and songs to sing, it was only natural that someone among the group would suggest changing the tradition up. Yes, the famous Rainbow Dash had suggested that instead, they would tell tails of horror that had happened on the faithful holiday. The idea was one that spawned many complaints and objections. However, the Crusaders had decided that the idea was cool and so did the little dragon. Starlight, who hated camping and pretty much the outdoors all together with a passion, wasn’t against bringing a little excitement to the experience. With the party pony following her bestie, the last two were outvoted.
“Now Spike,” Applejack yawned. “It’s pretty late and we have to be up and heading back early in the morning.”
“Oh come on Applejack,” Spike pleaded. “I didn’t get to tell my story.”
“I know Spike, but we gotta get up in time or else we’ll miss the party.”
“Awe, I had a really good story,” Spike said as he lowered his head.
“Don’t fret Spike,” Applejack comforted. “You’ll get a chance sometime tomorrow, alright.”
“Alright.” Spike pouted.
“Not that it matters,” Rainbow Dash scoffed. “My story was the best anyways, and there’s no way Spike’s story was going to change that.”
Spike jumped up off his log and stared at the rainbow pony. “Excuse me! I’ll have you know that my story was going to be amazing.”
“Hmm,” The pegasus taunted the dragon with a sarcastic nod. “Oh yes, I’m sure it was going to be horrifying. Spike, you’re too scared to come up with anything close to scary.”
“Cut it out Rainbow,” Applejack said as she picked up her little sister. “Come on now, go and get Scootaloo to bed.” Applejack pointed to the small pegasus that laid passed out in the old snow.
“Ya alright.”
Spike tossed and turned in his sleeping bag. He laid on his side to get a glimpse of the shining moon. He smiled as he thought of the last time he had glimpsed at its glory. He closed his eyes as he saw a flash of black blood and razor-sharp teeth. He quickly opened his eyes to the moon’s rays of light. An image of Barry Tarts rushed past the moon followed by an ominous whistle. He closed his eyes again to see a mother holding her dead baby in her hooves; her screams carried by the moonlight.
Suddenly the mare cried out “My Baby!” causing Spike to jump out of his daydream.
Spike scoffed to himself as he turned away from the moon. He knew the true horrors of what lies beyond Equestria, and yet Rainbow Dash had the audacity to question his ability, to tell the truth of horror. He had stories to tell, ones that perhaps rivaled that of the Rainbow pony’s.
Alas, he had never actually told anyone who hadn’t been part of the journey. His true courage and knowledge of the other world remained all but hidden from most of his friends, and he didn’t know if he would ever come to tell them.
The next day the group packed their things and headed back home to Ponyville. Spike’s mind was still filled with the challenge that had been presented to him. Even as the land was filled with the scent of sweets and baked goods, he still had the words echoing in his head.
The sun gave way to a new day as the snow gently swept across the frozen ground. Spike yawned as he stepped out to greet the crisp cool morning air. The snow and sun battled greatly leaving a battlefield of shinny snow and a cold, yet bearable, breeze.
“It’s pretty warm out,” Spike yawned as he stretched.
“I would hardly call freezing temperatures warm.” Rarity emerged from her fancy house dressed with three layers of heavy coats and a large scarf. Sweetie Belle followed her sister, only wearing a small thin coat with a scarf.
“Cannon Ball!” Scootaloo dropped from the roof of Rarity’s house and landed hard on a giant pile of snow.
“Ya Spike,” Applejack said, pulling the last string that sent her tent crashing to the ground. “It’s well below freezing out here.” Applejack stood up as she saw her little sister playing in the snow with her other two friends. “Which is why Apple Bloom will be wearing a nice thick coat” Her voice rose as to get the attention of the coatless filly.
Apple Bloom froze as she turned to face her sister. A guilty smile made its way across her face just before she ran out of view. “See I’m wearing a coat,” she said as she emerged fully clothed in a thick winter coat.
“Ya, it better be,” Applejack said as she nodded her head.
“So what time do we have to be back?” Spike asked as he sat down with a full bowl of gems.
Rainbow Dash trotted up to the dragon with her tent and gear fully packed up. “Well, the party doesn’t start any time soon, so as long as we're back within a couple of hours, we’ll be fine.”
“You’re ready to go?” Spike asked in shock.
“Ya,” Applejack laughed. “She got up hours ago and packed up.”
“Why?” Spike said with a mouthful.
“Because I can’t wait for the party, duh!” Rainbow flew up and hovered over the dragon. “It’s going to be awesome!” With that, she took off with a great crash of thunder behind her.
Spike shielded his eyes as the snow flew in every direction. He looked up to see the familiar rainbow trail of pride left behind. “Applejack?” Spike chuckled as he looked over at the workhorse.
“She’s just looking forward to the Apple cider.”
“Of course she is.”
Their journey back was quicker than any of them had expected. Or course much of it had to do with the fact that Rainbow Dash led the group back through various shortcuts she had made with her thunderous tails of wind.
Spike was glad to see the castle as he walked up to the front door. He paused slightly as he noticed the ice that encased the handle. It was well below freezing out, yet the cold didn’t seem to bother him much. It was odd as the notion was a new one. He couldn’t handle extreme temperatures very well. His kind could take lava baths, but it wasn’t for long periods. The ones that could take the extreme temperatures were a few of the tougher more famous dragons. These included obvious dragons such as Torch and of course his daughter Ember. Perhaps things had changed for the little dragon.
Once Spike entered the castle, he was greeted by a frantic Twilight. “Spike,” She called out. “You’re finally back.” Before Spike could react the princess cut him off. “We need to get to Celestia as soon as yesterday.”
“Why?” Spike asked. “We don’t have to be there until the other leaders get there.”
“They’re already there,” Twilight said in a nervous chuckle.
“Wait what?” Spike jumped.
“Yes, they arrived an hour ago and so Celestia really needs our help.”
“I thought they weren’t coming for another few hours.
“I honestly have no idea what happened,” Twilight shrugged. “But regardless, get ready cause we’re leaving in five minutes.”
“Oh come on,” Spike groaned. “I didn’t get a chance to finish my gems in peace.” Spike ran to his room as quickly as his little legs could as he struggled to inhale the rest of his meal.
Equestria had a long history of staying to their own. This meant that their relationship with outsiders was quite rocky and extremely delegate. Hearth Warming was a time of giving and remembering what one has. However, it was still mostly for Equestrians and usually just for ponies. This made a lot of sense as it was a holiday started by the unity of their ancestors, but it still didn’t mean that only ponies could enjoy the jolly holiday.
This spawned Twilight’s idea of sharing the holiday with the outsiders that have been close to them in the past. Celestia took a liking to the idea and so the dragons, griffons, yaks, changelings, and hippogriffs were all invited to join Equestria in their celebration of the most joyful time of the year. Unfortunately for the young princess of Friendship and the little dragon, they were the ones chosen to entertain their guest of honor.
The party was one of many cultures coming together to understand each other. This meant all of the leaders of the foreign nations would attend the party. Spike recognized every name from Queen Novo to Emperor Ember. A part of the little dragon was excited to see all of the foreign creatures, but another part of him was struck by his insecure nerves. He feared what could happen if the party went astray.
Once the train had stopped and Spike took a step off of the train, he noticed the increased traffic of Canterlot. The streets were packed with ponies rushing to their holiday destinations and perhaps last-minute shopping for decorations and presents. Spike laughed to himself as he pushed through the crowd of traffic that barricaded the walkways. Twilight’s long rant about what their roles were going unheard by the distracted dragon. His thoughts were elsewhere, and it was in a place that the alicorn did not follow.
“Spike,” Twilight groaned. “Are you even paying attention?”
“Yes, of course, Twilight,” Spike chuckled.
The alicorn paused and gave the dragon a stern look. “Spike, this is serious. We have to make this work and Celestia is counting on us.”
“Ya ya, I know. There’s nothing to worry about; we got this.” Spike walked past the alicorn who only rolled her eyes at the dragon’s pride.
Upon arrival, a white stallion in shining armor greeted and awaited their approach. Twilight greeted the stallion as her older brother, Shining Armor. Spike always chuckled at the irony that came with the stallion’s name, as if his destiny was laid out for him since his birth. Once inside, the two were greeted by a bombardment of bright lights and glimmering decor. Spike’s jaw dropped and Twilight’s mirrored his actions.
“I see that you’re impressed,” Shining Armor chuckled. “We had some of the best and most talented eyes in Equestria come in this morning. They and including Rarity, came together to make something truly incredible.”
“I didn’t even know Rarity was going to be here till the party started.” Twilight slowly spun in a circle as she took in the veil of shimmering crystal light.
“Ya, it was a last-minute decision so we sent it to her personally.”
Spike nodded his head as he realized how short noticed it must have been since he had only seen her earlier that day. “Well, this is amazing.”
Twilight went off to meet with Celestia and left the dragon to enjoy his stay. His part didn’t start until later in the day. He looked over his notes that had one hanging phrase one it, ‘Entertainment Ideas’. He sighed as he looked at the blank space below it. He really had little time to come up with the main event of the party. It had to be something big, yet tamed at the same time. He had to bring the species together without pulling on only one of the species' likings. Instead, he had to come up with an act that would tame every beast.
The day flew by as the dragon slowly helped with preparations. He had gone in search of his foreign friends but found that they had somehow vanished along with Twilight and Celestia. His day was spent alone in silence as he stared blankly at his notepad. Once guests started to arrive, a pulse of alarm went through the dragon. He forced himself to peek into the notepad and then immediately shut it as he saw the blank page that greeted him. He had decided to avoid the notepad and join the guess in denial of his procrastination.
The party started once the sun hung low against the horizon and the moon began to cry out as it was ready to take its rule over the sky. Spike hung around the main ballroom in wait for his friends to arrive. He was dressed in the fanciest red hat with a white snowball at the end of it. He also wore a bright necklace of bright red, green, and blue lights.
To his excitement, he was able to catch up with his other dragon friend. The two laughed as they discussed her recent adventures. “And so I just flew up and body-slammed him into the ground.” Spike only listened as Ember mimicked her story by actually slamming into the ground.
“I feel like there was a better way to deal with that,” Spike laughed.
“I mean sure, but what’s the fun in that?”
Spike was happy to see the rest of the mane group arrive. Each of them wore a variation of winter like clothing. Rarity wore a beautiful bright blue dress that sparkled with ice shards, and Rainbow Dash wore a similar darker blue dress that had her signature lightning bolt. He found Fluttershy’s blue and green light blue dress particularly illuminating. With her hat that was similar to his, she for once was perhaps the once that stole the show.
Spike went to greet his friends when a loud harmonizing horn blared out through the crowd. Spike turned just in time to see the grand entrance of Celestia and the other leaders. He smiled as he saw his foreign friend Thorax. Ember made her way to him and the two started talking. He gave a little wave as he tried to get their attention. His intentions went unnoticed by the dragon and changeling and instead caught the attention of the famous Prince Rutherford. The big Yak actually gave a smile and awkwardly waved back to the small dragon, to his surprise. Spike paused for a moment but decided to follow through with his wave.
Celestia went up to take center stage and started her speech with an introduction of the foreign leaders. Spike laid his head down on the table and took a deep sigh. He had heard the speech a hundred times by that point and his long day had left a cryptic disease of boredom inside him. The speech went on for nearly a half an hour and Spike let most of it fly past him. It wasn’t until the Princess mentioned the fact that Spike had something big planned for the main event that the little dragon popped his head up and quickly took out his blank notepad. He took a deep gulp as he realized that he still didn’t have anything planned.
“Of course I have something big planned Twilight,” The little dragon nervously chuckled.
“Well, then we need to get it set up Spike.” Twilight frantically ran back and forwards as she put together something for her small event. “What did you have in mind?”
Spike once again looked at his blank page and sighed. “Oh you know, something really cool.”
“Spike,” Twilight pleaded. “I really need to know what it is so I can tell Celestia.”
“I know Twilight, but it’s supposed to be a surprise.” Spike gave a large suspicious smile as he quickly closed his notepad. Twilight rolled her eyes as she watched the little dragon rush out of the room.
The sun began to lower in the sky as the time flowed by like the wind. The party raged on with a large diverse crowd of yaks, dragons, changelings, griffons, and of course ponies. However, one dragon was separate from the party and paced violently in every direction.
Spike whispered to himself as ideas rushed in and out of him. His notepad was somehow even emptier than it was before as Spike had ripped out most of its pages. He slowly raised his head and slammed it back down on the paper-covered table.
“Useless,” he groaned to himself. “Why are you so useless?”
He laid his head on the table as he started to slowly write on another blank page. The writing didn’t last long as he paused and growled as he scribbled the page away. The time effortlessly passed as the dragon made no progress.
As he flipped through the crumpled up papers he realized that a trend started to appear. Drawing after drawing of ghostly figures and creatures with sharp teeth. His eyes went wide as he hardly remembered doodling at all. He then realized that his mind was far off somewhere that wasn’t going to help him. After what felt like a lifetime, he popped his head up as one idea finally stuck that would perhaps help him.
“Hey Spike,” Rainbow Dash called out. “Where have you been?”
Spike walked up to the table where his friends, minus Twilight, were gathered. “Just trying to figure something out.”
“Lame,” Rainbow Dash teased. “Why are you wasting your time working when the biggest party in Equestria is happening right under your nose?”
Spike looked up at the rainbow pony and then took a deep sigh. “I don’t know.”
“Spike,” Applejack said with empathy. “What’s wrong?”
Spike signed to the soft voice of his friend. “So you’ve heard about the main event or whatever that everyone is supposed to be a part of?”
“Sure,” Rainbow Dash laughed. “Twilight has been going on about it all night.”
“Ya, she says it’s super important for everything to work...” Applejack went on with her speech as the daunting weight of expectations drowned the dragon.”...so she was really excited about this event bringing everyone together….” Without warning, Spike screamed out loud and fell back in his chair. The room went silent as all eyes fell on him.
Rutherford, the yak prince, laughed out loud and yelled in response. “The Little Dragon try and embrace Yak’s roar.” The rest of the Yaks mimicked Ruthford’s battle cry and the crowd continued without change.
“Spike?” Applejack whispered as she leaned in to meet him with sympathy.
Spike jumped out of his chair and ran into the crowd. He could hear the cries of his concerned friends trail behind him, but he was a forward charging fireball that wouldn’t be stopped. Of course, dragons are fireproof, and this was proven as Spike collided with the very queen of the dragons.
“Spike,” Ember gasped as she ran into him causing the little dragon to fall flat on his face. “Are you alright?” She asked as she leaned over the lifeless body.
“No.” The dragon’s voice was muffled and barely comprehensible.
“What’s wrong?”
“Spike brain is the dum brain.” Spike turned his head to make his voice clearer. He took a deep breath and groaned as his breath escaped.
“Come on,” Ember growled as she picked the small dragon off of the ground. “Put a smile on that face and get into the party.
“You seem excited,” Spike said as he sat up.
“Ya well, burning and blowing up rocks and jumping off of high cliffs into volcanos can get boring you know.” Ember looked over to the mingling ground of dragons that wrestled with the willing griffons. “It’s actually kind of refreshing to mix it up once in a while.”
“Well, I guess this one way to really mix it up.” Spike shook his head as he fully comprehended what had been said. “Wait how is this in any way a good change of pace? I didn’t think you wouldn’t like anything that doesn’t involve dragon explosion or fighting.
“First off,” she scoffed with a puff of smoke. “I decide what I like, and second off, I am open to your pony ways.”
“Ya, I get it,” Spike said as he stood up.
“Well to be honest I’m mostly just looking forward to the main event.”
“Come again,” Spike gulped.
“Well, Twilight said you had something big planned that was going to be awesome.”
“She did?” Spike choked.
“Ya,” Ember said with a cheerful growl. “And she said that everyone was going to love it.”
“S-s-sh-she diiiii-did,” Spike’s breath nearly stopped as he choked up his words.
“Ya, and…”
“I don’t have anything planned!” Spike shouted out again.
Ember jumped back at his outburst and so did most of the crowd. After a moment of silence, the crowd once again returned to an ocean of conversations.
“Umm, Spike?” Ember stepped forward and stopped the dragon from running off once again. “You ponies seem to love and talk about your emotional problems. Is that what you need?”
Spike laughed at the notion. “Nothing against you Ember, but I’m good.”
“Nope,” Ember said as she lifted the little dragon in the air. “Not acceptable. I might not be good at this whole pony emotional thing, but I know someone who is. I mean you have been pretty distant from everyone Spike.”
She flew him over to Thorax who took a drink as he smiled at his old, and first, friend.
"Hello, Spike. It's been a while."
“Hey, I’ve been busy,” Spike groaned.
“Ya, he’s stuck with the whole main event thing that’s supposed to happen,” Ember explained.
Thorax nearly choked on his drink as he was taken back by the information. “Wait princess Twilight wasn’t prepared for something; that’s a surprise.”
“Well, it’s not her, it’s me.” Spike dropped his head as he faced defeat.
“Oh ya, Thorax chuckled. “She did say you have something great planned… oh but you just said you didn’t.” Thorax blinked a couple of times before the reality hit him. “Ohhhhhh, I see why you’re upset.”
“Finally,” Ember groaned. “isn’t your kind known for being super smart or something?”
“Says who?” Thorax gasped.
“Guys, not helping,” Spike sighed.
“Right,” Ember chuckled. “Well, you’re good at stuff like this aren’t you?”
“What?” Spike asked as he peeked his head up.
“You always mess things up and then you come back and fix it don’t you?”
“I mean that seems like a trend among us,” Thorax laughed.
“Ya but this is different.”
“How?” Ember challenged.
“Because,” Spike protested.
“Come on Spike,” Ember added with a punch. “If you don’t know what to do for the other creatures, then why don’t you just ask the other creatures?”
“Wait what, no!”
“Yaks like to charge and break trees when we gather.”
“We swim with the large fish of the great waters and sing alongside them.”
“We like to bring all of our shiny gold and rub it in the faces of all the poor who don’t have any. And then we trade our gold and see who has the best gold. Then when we’re…”
“We get it,” Spike interrupted. “You love gold.”
“So did this help at all?” Ember said as she nudged the little dragon.
“I mean, I now know what you all do for fun. But how do I do something that all of you like.”
“What does tiny dragon like?” Prince Rutherford asked.
“Ya, what do you like Spike?” Thorax asked with a smile.
Spike froze as the leaders stained him with their gazes. He thought hard about the question and more importantly, its impact. “Ember, How would that help?” Spike sighed.
“Well if this was a long lesson then I figured it would end with something like “don’t worry about what everyone else likes, but do what you like and then show them.” Ember froze as she realized that her explanation fell apart. “Well, something like that.”
“Well, that’s pretty close to a pony lesson. I'll give you that,” Spike chuckled.
“Well then let’s skip the half an hour or so and just get to the part when you tell us.”
Spike rolled his eyes as he once again thought about the question. “Ya trust me though, I like long baths and stuff that really won’t help us.”
Thorax stepped forward and sat in front of the little dragon. “Well, is there anything special or recent that you’ve been wanting to do?”
Spike let out a small hum as he thought of the only thing that had been on his mind for quite some time. “Well the only thing I’ve been wanting to do is…”
‘What?” Thorax and Ember asked in unison.
“It’s nothing,” Spike assured.
“Come on,” The unison continued.
“It’s just yesterday my friends and I were telling scary stories instead of traditional Hearts Warming tales.”
“Why?” Thorax asked.
“That’s great,” Ember chuckled.
“Well, Rainbow Dash wanted to mix it up and was tired of hearing the same happy stories.” Spike paused as he thought about her chilling story and the fact that he didn’t get to tell his. “We were trying to see who could tell the scariest story.”
“That sounds… interesting,” Thorax sighed.
“That sounds awesome,” Ember jumped.
“I mean sure, but like how’s that going to…”
“If Yaks did pony contest, Yaks would win.” Everyone paused at Ruthford’s words.
“Come again,” Ember gasped.
“Yaks have the scariest tales and beat everyone else.”
“Umm, excuse me prince,” A roar of stern sass came from the Hippogriff queen. “Have you been in the dark depths or have dealt with the Storm King? Oh, the stories we could tell. Stories that would make everyone in this room pee right on the floor.”
Spike walked forward to interject. “Well that’s great and all but…”
“I’ll have you know that griffons have seen the greatest horrors this world has ever seen," Grandpa Gruff bragged. “If we even shed a glimpse of light into what we have seen, then all of you would be crying home.”
“Wait what’s happening here?” Spike whispered.
“Hold on,” Ember objected. “We dragons know true horror and would blow all of you right out of the lava.” Ember turned around and grabbed Thorax. “Don’t try to deny it, changeling,” She growled as she got into his face.
“But I didn’t say anything.”
“Are you trying to say that your dark history with your evil queen gives you an advantage about horror?”
“I mean now that you mention it…”
“That’s ridiculous,” She growled as she threw the changeling aside.
“Wait, I feel like this is going somewhere I never…”
Author's Note
I have been waiting all year for this story. I love Christmas and thought; why not add a little horror to this jolly holiday. Well, I hope you liked this chapter. More to come for our little dragon friend.
Till Next Time!!!
“Wow, that really did escalate quickly didn’t it.” The voice of the one and only chaotic God echoed through the room. Spike was now in a room alone with the chaos God as the groups were given two hours to prepare for their performances.
“Ya and so I guess now they're all going to see who can tell the scariest story.” Spike paced back in forwards in front of Discord who hung upside down off of the ceiling.
“Not going to lie,” Discord chuckled. “I don’t get how telling scary stories is supposed to bring everyone together, but I love it.” Discord snapped his fingers and a bunch of monsters and ghosts appeared to fill the room. “So why did you call me then? I’m usually the party crasher if anything.”
“Well, I need your help.” Spike chuckled.
Discord paused for a moment as the room returned to normal. “You need my help? For what?”
“Well it’s supposed to be a competition about which species can tell the scariest stories, and so we had to choose one creature for each species.”
“So who all is telling stories then?”
“Well, there’s me, Rainbow Dash, Skystar, Gilda, Rutherford, and Thorax.” Spike went through the list in his head and on his fingers.
“You were chosen for the dragons?” Discord laughed.
“Ya, and I honestly have no idea what to do.”
“What do you mean?” Discord laughed again.
“Well, I don’t know anything scary or how to tell a scary story. I don’t want to let Ember down.” Spike sighed as he thought of his original story which was only filled with doubt.
“Spike,” Discord broke out in more laughter. “Are you serious?”
“What?” Spike groaned.
Discord snapped his fingers and crossed his arms. Spike stared blankly as he waited for something to happen. After a short moment, a large creature landed in front of the little dragon. It was larger, had several limbs, overgrown teeth, and black sharps that protruded from its body.
“You’ve seen the creature demons made to destroy the world.” The image changed to that of a familiar serial killer. “You’ve battled literal killers without mercy,” Spike screamed as a dead filly fell in front of him. “And you’ve seen the worst this world has to offer and you can’t come up with one scary story.” The images disappeared and left one panting dragon.
“Discord,” Spike growled. “I don’t need to be reminded of the horrors we have faced.”
“I know, I just don’t get the problem.”
“I can’t tell these stories, Spike groaned. “Luna would kill me and you know how she is about letting ponies know about this.”
“Well, then don’t” Discord chuckled. “Don’t talk about the event’s, talk about the feelings and emotions you felt. Use your experience as the foundation.”
Spike was about to reject the idea until he realized that it was actually good advice. “Well, that still doesn’t help me with a plot or characters or anything.”
Discord rolled his eyes as he stretched his body out. “Well we have a little bit of time, so let’s come up with something shall we.”
The room filled with more papers and even more useless ideas. The two went through many of their experiences and slowly decided that their ideas weren’t going to work. Either the idea wasn’t pony friendly, or there wasn’t a way for others to appreciate the experience. Most dragons wouldn't fall in line with the idea of a dead child and a grieving mother.
“Maybe we’re looking at this wrong,” Discord suggested as he floated across the room.
“How so?” Spike groaned as he crumpled up another page.
“Well it is supposed to be about Hearts warming isn’t it?”
“Ya, but how do I tell a horror story about a holiday that’s the opposite of horror?”
Discord brought out a book that had ‘ideas’ written on the cover. “Well according to my ideas book, at times like this it’s best to turn to someone for help” Discord dropped the book and looked down at Spike.
“Well, I already did that,” Spike scoffed as he returned the stare.
“Well after you’ve tried that, then you get your help to go get help.” Discord smiled as he quickly wrote down the new rule.
“None of this is helping,” Spike groaned.
“Well did you try Shredder, doesn’t he always help you with supernatural stuff?”
“Discord,” Spike groaned. “This isn’t very, ‘supernatural’.”Spike”s claws filled the quotations that went along with the word.
“Ya but like you don’t have a book or anything that has a story or anything?” Discord snapped up a book that was called Supernatural.
“Not rea…” Spike froze as his words fell to a whisper.
“What?” Discord asked.
“Discord could you go into my secret library and get a dark yellow book titled The Marked Ones.”
“Your wish is my command,” Discord did a majestic pose before snapping away. He returned only a few seconds after with the dark yellow book that had actual teeth sticking out of it. “Well, this thing is just, awful.”
“Ya it’s not for everyone,” Spike chuckled as he quickly opened the book. He flipped frantically through the pages as Discord read over his shoulder. “Here!” Spike jumped. Discord looked at the page with big bold leaders at the top of the page.
“The one that comes to take,” He repeated. “What’s this about?”
“I remember Shredder mentioned it once, so I looked into it.” Spike quickly skimmed through the page and with it his smile grew. “No way,” he whispered in joy. “This could actually work.” he turned and quickly showed Discord the page.
“Wow, that sounds terrifying,” Discord gasped as he went wide-eyed. “So is this what you’re going for?”
Spike frowned as he realized another issue. “I don’t have any characters for the story.”
“Oh, don’t worry,” Discord laughed. “I can help you with this.”
“Well, there’s still…”
“I got it all covered.”
Celestia’s voice filled the room as she announced the unexpected turn of events that had come into play. “It appears that our guests have all decided in agreement that in order to show our cultures, they will see which species can tell the best scary story.” The princess’s voice showed her confusion and slight protest to the activity.
“Awesome!” one voice shouted above the crowd.
Spike gulped as he peeked his head out from the curtain. He looked back to the leaders talking to their group. He still was in disbelief that things had turned out the way they did. He didn’t know how anything was going to turn out, but a part of him was quite curious.
“Spike,” Twilight whispered. Spike turned to see the alicorn slowly crawling towards him. “How did this happen?”
“What do you mean?” Spike whispered back.
“I just really didn’t think this is what we were going to do for our main event.”
“Either did I,” Spike laughed. “I have no idea how this came to be.”
“And they agreed to this?”
“Kind of,” Spike smiled. “I think they're driven by sheer competition.”
“What do they get if they win?”
Spike froze as he started to nervously chuckle. “Wellllllllll…. They did ask me that, and I kind of told them that you would give something really special to them.” Spike closed his eyes as he gave the biggest grin he could manage.
“YOU WHAT?!” Twilight yelled in a whisper. “Spike!” She growled.
Spike quickly turned as Rainbow Dash Dashed, pun intended, in and announced that the competition was about to start. “Oh, would you look at that?” Spike chuckled. “I must be going.” the little dragon quickly ran and disappeared into the crowd.
“Spike!” Twilight called out in a growl. “Get back here!”
Spike watched as he swiftly squeezed through the crowd. He pushed through until he finally found an opening. A line of storytellers laid in center stage, and he knew that he would stand there too.
“Spike,” Ember called out.
Spike jumped but quickly settled as he realized it was his not angry friend. “Oh hey, Ember.”
“So you have a great story to tell right?” the dragon queen hovered over the little dragon in excitement. “Something that will show everyone that dragons are the toughest.”
“I got a great story to tell, but I’m sure the rest are going to be great.”
“Whatever,” Ember scoffed. “We’ll blow them right out of the lava.”
“We’ll try,” Spike laughed.
The first to go up was the famous rainbow lightning pony herself. She told a story similar to the one she had told the others the previous night. The crowd jumped and some even screamed in fright. To make her story more alive she had other pegasus fly around with props and lights meant to create ambiance.
“She never forgives, she always comes back. There is no escaping the Mare in Black!” With a ferocious roar, the crowd rose in screams of fear as loud screeches came from every direction. The lights turned on after a few moments of sheer terror to reveal the magic trick at play.
Spike started the wave of applause as he saw the familiar faces behind the play. Trixie, Starlight, Fluttershy, and her animals were all responsible for the amazing performance. The rest of the stories went on similarly with a few rising to the greatness of Rainbow Dashes.
Princess Skystar told the story of a great trench that laid at the deepest part of the ocean. All who entered would never be seen again. The atmosphere reflected great lights of light blue with the shadows of fish lining the walls; the deep dark ocean truly was around them.
The Yaks were quite impressive as Prince Ruthford’s deep dark raspy voice running the story along. They told the story of a great underground beast that would come up at night and eat children in their sleep. The Yaks created great earthquakes to simulate the creature’s movement and they used horrifying deep growls and rumbles to create a horrifying web of monstrous shadows.
The griffons shared a similar style to the Yaks but had the advantage of flight and movement. They could pop in and out for quick strong jump scares and used their vocals for great screeches and horrifying night atmosphere. Their tail was of large birds that would sing a beautiful melody during the night. All who were unfortunate to hear it would be forced to venture out into the night where they would be eaten alive by the birds.
The changelings showed great strength in their shapeshifting abilities and quick movements. Even Spike jumped at some of their jumpscares. Thorax shared the tail of a beautiful butterfly that would lure innocent victims into its grasp. Once it had them they would never be seen again. Spike was surprisingly happy to see his friend keep a strong demeanor at center stage. Thorax pulled through for his people and ended strong when he transformed into a hideous black monstrosity of pure terror.
Next up was the dragons, and that meant Spike would put not only his story to the test but his experience. He slowly walked up to the microphone as he covered his eyes from the stage lights.
“Knock them dead Spike!” Ember cheered.
The dragon looked down at his shaking hand as he realized that he didn’t have any big props or abilities waiting to be seen by the audience. He would just be a little dragon speaking for several minutes about a story he barely knew. He gulped as he looked down at the floor. The lights went dark and the room started to glow with low red light.
Spike looked up in curiosity as he had no idea about what was happening. A small glow behind the audience caught his attention. He squinted as he realized it was Discord or rather a small Discord. The little Discord waved to Spike and gave him a thumbs up. Spike shrugged back at him as his face was stained by confusion. The Little Discord rolled its claw as he pointed all around the room. Spike took it as a sign to just continue with his story.
The dragon took a deep breath before he spoke. “They say that Hearth Warming is a time of giving; that it brought happiness and unity to the land of Equestria.”
Spike was taken back as the lights began to change into a light rain of snowflakes. Snow appeared all around the little dragon as figures made of snow appeared behind him. Spike tried hard not to show attention to the unexpected display. “But many have forgotten that there was a time when this day brought only pain and disappeared.” figures of ponies draped in old cloaks manifested behind the dragon. “In the old days, ponies told stories of terror. They would speak of spirits that brought cold where wickedness lied. These were the wendigos.”
“Wendigos are a go,” Discord whispered to himself.
Spike jumped as he heard the distinct cry of the snow demons above him. They swarmed in a hurricane of pain. “But these creatures were far from the only spirits of old. Some spoke of a spirit that came to reward the good deeds that few did throughout the year. One night of the year the spirit came to reward the ones who stayed in kindness. This story went through ages as a sign of hope that the evil spirits could be eradicated one day.”
The stage went still as it showed the downfall of the windigos in Equestria.
“Nowadays the story of the giving spirit has become quite popular and is a stain upon the Heartwarming holiday.” The snow showed families enjoying holidays and gathering with friends and family. “However, many have forgotten the dark ages of old. They have forgotten that the spirit of Heartwarming was not a right, but only a privilege.”
The snow showed families fighting and stressing to get gifts. It showed children who were ungrateful for great decor was the center of the snow show. “Despite this, the dark spirits still linger and watch from the shadows. They have not forgotten their duty to right the forgotten meaning of the holiday. While it has gone unnoticed for many years, the raging storm of the dark spirits still comes to the surface. When belief is forgotten, and the Heartwarming spirit dies, a much darker ancient spirit will come.”
The snow formed into a great blizzard. The wind howled as a roar startled the crowd. Suddenly a great figure made of black snow rose above the blizzard. The figure had large horns and carried a large sack on it’s back. Spike turned to see the horrific scene. He smiled as he realized that Discord was going to carry the team.
“And he only came with one gift.”
And as if the words were a cue, the figure dropped the sack as small black snowballs flew out and into the crowd. Many screamed but most gasped in approval.
Spike smiled as he looked over to Little Discord. He mouthed a thank you to him and went back to the mike. He took another deep breath as his story continued. “Oh, we’re only getting started.”
Author's Note
Oh boy, are we getting started.
Till Next Time!!!!
It was Hearth's Warming Eve, and the snow fell in a light drizzle. The cold was followed by a light breeze that blanketed the land. The large city of Rainbow Seige laid in an ocean of shopping crowds and markets. It was almost Hearts Warming and all of the land was raised in celebration. Most families were embracing the holiday the way it was intended to, by stressful shopping and ungrateful children. Yes, most families were stained by the holiday weight of supplying their loved ones with useless gifts; this was the way of modern Hearts Warming.
Dizzy the Bow Rider was among the dragons that stressed over the days that led up to the holiday. His family was not on his mind, instead, he fell victim to the endless search for presents that would settle his kid’s bottomless desire. Despite this, he was an honest creature with a deep love for his family.
His wife, Wither Shy, was among the most beautiful of all the dragons. With her bright yellow scales and neon pink spikes, her appearance was envied by all who saw her. She had a shy timid nature and tended to the animals. Many thought it strange as Dizzy was quite the opposite. His nature was wild and outgoing. Many described him as unpredictable and even chaotic.
His three children, Lightstar, Jackapple, and Thorn, were simple children that spent the year waiting for the one day to come. Lightstar was smart and quite sassy as she took her place as the oldest child. Second, in line was Jackapple who was a hard worker and famous for her strength. The littlest was Thorn, and he was the light dreamer. Little Thorn spent the holidays reading about the spirits that were told in songs of old. The cheer of Hearth’s Warming fuels the dragon that ran his optimism throughout the entire year.
Beyond their home, lied the great store that wore the title of Walmart. This store was modest and mediocre at best during the year. However, during the jolly holiday, the store was the center of the Rainbow Seige. Every creature and their mother would rush and trample anything in their path as they flooded the store.
The Bow Rider and his wife were among the group that poured into the unwilling store on the day of Hearth’s Warming Eve. He trampled over adults and children alike. Others behind him only mirrored his set of actions. In fact, it was such a massacre that many considered it illegal and immoral to bring children anywhere near the store.
Wither Shy and Dizzy frantically dragged things off of the shelves as they raced to beat everyone else to the great deals that coated the store. Hearth’s warming songs set the delightful tone that greeted the hurting customers. After hours of fighting in the arena for their lives, the couple was just barely able to spend hundreds of dollars and make it out of the store alive.
Back at their delightful house sat a lowly little dragon that carefully wrote in a small paper pad. The book was titled ‘Dreamer’ and inside laid the dragon's hopes and dreams. He wrote softly as he read his dreams out loud. It was said that if you sent your dreams to the great spirit of Hearth’s Warming, then it would hear them and possibly grant them as a gift. He smiled to himself as he read the words of encouragement that he had written. It spoke of good wishes for his two sisters and his parents. His mother spent her recent days stressing over the little things in life and let most things get to her. His sister Lightstar spent her time obsessing over her test scores and cared little about friends or even family. She preferred to stay on her own and throw entertainment to the side. His other sister worked hard at her job on the fields and was rarely home. When she was home, she only went into her dungeon and either slept the day away or used it to stress over future projects. His father was perhaps the only sensible one as his only destruction was his archery career that made him famous in the city.
Thorn set his book down as he took a deep breath. He had so many dreams this year, and a part of him started to doubt if anyone would grant them. His doubts weren’t helped by his parent’s grand entrance of loud shouts. He ran downstairs to see his parents with a load of bags that were filled with treats and decorations.
His mother hung many family pictures that presented a loving family that dearly loved each other. She sighed as she struggled to get the picture as straight as she possibly could. She turned to see Lightstar walk by and drowned in her book.
“Lightstar,” Wither Shy’s light calm voice called out. “Could you help me put up the rest of the decorations please?”
Lightstar looked up from her book and scoffed. “Come on Mom, you know I have to study for my exams.”
“I know but I…”
“No buts,” Lightstar spat back. “I’m not failing this.” With that, she walked off and left her angry mother behind.
“Brat!” Wither growled to herself.
“Hey dad,” Thorn called as he walked up to Dizzy. “Are we going to play monopoly tonight?”
“Can’t bud,” Dizzy grunted as he struggled to lift a heavy shelf. “I got a lot to decorate tonight.”
“I thought you were supposed to decorate last night.”
“Well I was going to but I stayed a little bit later at the range than I had expected.” Dizzy started to put more items on the shelf.
“Oh, I see,” Thorn sighed. With that, he walked off to the kitchen where Jackapple was roaming the refrigerator. “Hey sis,” He smiled. The silence was his only response. “Jack?”
“Hu?” she groaned as she buried her head in the food. “What you, want a little one?”
“Can we play Monopoly?” The little dragon pleaded.
Jackapple stuck her head out of the fridge and glanced at the pleading dragon. “Sorry bud, I’m tuckered out for the night. I’m just gonna head to bed.”
“Jack,” He whined. “I wanna play with someone.”
“Well, play by yourself,” She chuckled. “Cause I had a long day on the farm and I’m not doing anything tonight.”
“Mom?”
“Not now Thorn, I’m really busy at the moment.”
With that, his last hope was gone, and he settled back in the kitchen. He watched the steam roll off of the freshly baked dinner. He was in charge of cooking the great feast that would serve as their bonding time. He sat and watched the food as he heard his mother and father working on the house. It was odd to him as he remembered how the week before Hearth’s Warming use to be dedicated to only family activities. The house would be decorated in the first week of the month and it was far more glamorous and bright. He couldn’t help notice how Hearth's Warming was just a little bit darker than he remembered.
The time went by as he waited for his family to come; a notion that would not come. Instead, he sat on the counter and slowly started to eat the food he had worked so hard on. After what felt like a lifetime, his father entered the kitchen.
“There you are bud,” He yawned. “What have you been doing all this time?”
“I’ve been waiting,” He growled. “I made dinner if you forgot.” His gaze was stained by the disappointment in his soul.
“Come on bud,” His dad sighed. “We decorated like we always do. We’ll just wait and eat it for breakfast.”
“Ya right,” Thorn growled. “What about spending time together like we used to, or actually being a family?”
Dizzy sighed at his son’s dismay. “I know bud, but these days are rougher than they used to be. We’re trying here.” He walked up to his son and put his claw on his head.
“Screw that,” He pouted. “I made this for all of you and you’re all just spitting it back in my face.”
Dizzy leaned back as he was surprised by the notion. “Fine bud,” He sighed. “I’ll call everyone together. We’ll eat dinner together.”
Dizzy called his wife and two daughters to the table. Wither Shy was the most willing to eat together, but his two daughters were much more of a struggle. Lightstar continued with her exam excuse and literally threw her book in his face.
“Come on!” He growled. “It’s just for an hour.”
“That’s a long hour that I could be studying dad,” She spat back.”You’re literally wishing failure on me?”
“Cut the crap,” He spat. “Now get your butt up right now and get downstairs.” His posture and demeanor showed his authority and his willingness to stand his ground.
“Haaa! I hate you!”
“Now come on dad,” Jaclapple pleaded. “I’m really tired and…”
“Does this face look like I care?”
With that, the family was called to the dinner table. Thorn sat with a large smile on his face as he passed out his dinner. His sisters only say with looks of disapproval and annoyance stained on their faces. His mother sat with another smile that somehow seemed stale.
“This looks great Thorn,” Dizzy said with a smile.
“Ehh, it looks really greasy,” Lightstar scoffed.
“It looks… alright,” Jackapple sighed.
“Well I know you worked really hard to make this,” His mother reminded everyone.
Thorn sat down and started digging into his food before anyone else. His father ate casually and enjoyed the food. His mother too ate casually but at a slower pace. His sisters both played with their food and searched through the scattered parts. Jackapple wasn’t much of a picky eater and shrugged as she dove into the food. Lightstar only sat in silence as she protested the whole dinner.
“Come on honey,” Dizzy pleaded. “Dig in, there’s plenty to go around.”
“I’m not that hungry,” She groaned.
“Well at least try it will you?” Dizzy groaned as he gave her a stern look.
Lightstar stared him down as she took a bite of the mush in front of her. She chewed slowly as she nearly managed to swallow it down. “Happy?” she groaned.
“Well, what do you think?” Thorn asked.
“As I said, it was greasy.”
“Star!” Dizzy growled.
“What? He asked.”
“You could try and be nice.”
“And you could have just left me to study.”
Thorn stabbed his plate lightly as he slouched back in his seat. “Why do you care so much about your stupid books?” He taunted. “You should just marry them.”
“Listen you little turd, these books are going to give a future. You wouldn’t know about that because the only book you care about is your stupid diary.”
“Shut up!” He screamed. “It’s not stupid!”
“Oh please Hearth’s Warming Spirit,” She mocked in a high-pitched voice. “Please come and gives us friendship and rainbows and all the stupid crap for babies.”
“I said shut up!”
“That’s enough, Star,” Dizzy growled.
“She’s just a mad dad because she doesn't have any friends because she’s a loser,” Thorn stood up from the table and leaned towards his sister.
“Shut your mouth Thorn,” Jackapple groaned as she nudged him.
“Me?”
“Yes, you.” She assured him. “Lightstar is right. Some of us had better things to do than sit here and eat this garbage.”
“Jack,” Dizzy sighed. “The food is delicious. Not shut up and eat before I come over there and smack you.”
“Dizzy!” Wither Shy gasped as she stood up. “You will not lay a claw on her.”
“You’re right,” He scoffed. “Not if she sits down and behaves.”
“No, you won’t do it period.”
“Wither!” He growled. “Why do you always have to come between my authority every time I try to deal with them?”
“Your authority?” She mocked.
“Yes, you always do this and it’s really starting to make me mad.”
“Oh, I’m sorry I don’t always agree with how harsh you are on these girls.”
“Harsh!” He scoffed as he leaned closer to her.
“Yes, you always defend him without even thinking about them.”
“I’m not defending him, I was just trying to be nice alright!” The conglomerate of voice seemed to shake the very walls.
“Just trying to be nice?” Thorn gasped. “Screw you dad!”
“Thorn shut your mouth,” Dizzy groaned. “I’m standing up for you.”
“You didn’t want to do this either?”
Dizzy sighed as he gave his son a pleading look. “Look I was tired too bud, but I was just…” Thorn jumped out of his chair and out of the room. “Thorn!” Dizzy called out.
“Let him go,” Wither pleaded as she picked up her plate and walked over to the trash can.
“Ya,” Lightstar chuckled. “He’s got daydreaming to get to while the rest of us have actual lives to attend.
The night sky settled heavily over the house as Thorn sat once again staring at his book of dreams. His eyes were full of tears as his heart was filled with anger and hatred. He growled as he slowly raised the book closer to his face. He read the page over and over to himself as he repeated the same line.
“I wish we were a family again.”
After a few minutes of staring at the page, he was startled by the sounds of shouting. He could hear his parents fighting over the incident that had happened. He groaned as he heard them shout about the family as a whole and whose fault it was. He looked down at the ground as his thoughts froze. Finally, as if an explosion went off in his head. He shot out of his bed and opened his window. He violently ripped and tore out his pages and threw them out the window. His heart, tears, and hopes went with every page that was carried off by the wind.
He went to close the window just before a strike of lightning split the sky above him. He froze as the bolt seemed to freeze for a moment. After it left a large single cloud seemed to start to cover the night sky. Like a stain flushing over a white cloth, the dark clouds flushed over the night and brought with it a rain of hail, sleet, lightning, and strong winds.
Thorn slowly closed the window as he watched the night transform.
Author's Note
The story begins. now what shall happen next? Find out next time.
Till Next Time!!!
