Dark Times in Ponyville

So after his visit with Rarity, Spike was getting more anxious by the minute, he went to go see if everything else was still going well in Ponyville. Then on his way, he bumps into the Cutie Mark Crusaders. Spike notices that they were looking glum, then he asks them what was wrong, and one of them; Scootaloo, replies to Spike;

"Nothing, just like our flanks."

Then Sweetie Belle says;

"I just don't get it, no matter what we do, we'll never figure out our talents, therefore we'll never get our cutie marks."

And then, Apple bloom's response was;

"I don't know about you gals, but I'm thinking about giving up the mission to find our cutie marks. I mean, let's face it. We'll just end being blank flanks for the rest of our lives."

Then, Spike tries to cheer them up and encourage them to continue to searching for their talents, but not one word reached out to them. Afterwards, Spike continued to figure out what the problem was, he still fears that something really bad is going to happen and of course... he wishes he hadn't said that. Because the skies were starting to get a little dark, assuming that Spike thought it was night time already, but it wasn't. And then, just up ahead of him, he sees another pony in total gloom and right behind him, his shadow started forming into something rather unusual and was coming to life.

It was floating in midair, started to take its form into a Pony and it looked so sinister, Spike had more reason to be afraid because has he turned around, there were many others like it in the whole town and they were all gathering in one spot, forming a colony and already they have their eyes set out on Spike. Then the shadow like figures were after Spike, causing him to run for his life and it would seem that where ever he would go, he would bump into another swarm of those shadow ponies, even when he went back to Twilight's there was but another group of the shadow ponies. And so Spike had no choice but to flee the town and find help elsewhere. But as he was leaving Ponyville, he sees all the citizens deeply depressed, others confused and or afraid and another few being cruel and mean to other ponies and he also notices that the more negativity that the ponies dish out the more stronger and darker the Shadow Ponies become. After he left town, the Shadow Ponies were chasing after him, Spike was already in the deep part of the woods trying to shake off the Shadow Ponies tailing on him. Spike was lost for a second as he was scouting through the woods for a way out, but then he somehow he stumbled into a pathway in the deep woods.

"This is good, now I can find my way out of these woods."

Spike said with excitement, and as he kept following the trail, the trail had lead him into an old hut. As Spike gets close to the Hut, he starts to hear distant whistling inside, right on top of the second floor. Spike went inside very slowly and quietly so that he doesn't disturb anyone who lives inside the hut, he went up the stairs and as he was going up the stairs, the whistling got louder... and when Spike stumbled into a room, he saw a young white Earth Pony painting the room with a wood-like color. The pony continued to whistle until he stop and told Spike to come on in and not to be shy or afraid, Spike was rather surprised that the pony was able to know that Spike was around without even looking, but he walked on in to the room anyway just so he can talk to the pony. The young white colt starts off the conversation with;

"Welcome to my home, blah blah blah blah blah... the usual boring salutations... anyway, it is good to see you again Spike."

"Yeah, it's good to see- wait, again? But we never met before"

Said Spike, and then the White colt says to him;

"Before, After, It is all the same my friend."

And then after that, Spike wanted to know how the young white colt knew his name, but the young white colt changed the subject about the room's new coat of paint.

"Wow, that's a nice coat of paint that you're putting on in this room. What type is it?"

After Spike told him about the coat of paint he was using, the white colt replied to him;

"It's oak, makes the room feel like it's a part of nature don't ya think?"

Afterwards, Spike told the pony that if he's a painter, and the young white colt said to him that he's not a painter at heart but he's really good at it. Then Spike notices that the young white colt has a blank flank and soon to expect that he might be a painter pony, but then after he was done painting, he still had a blank flank.

"I don't understand, I mean your a great painter how can you don't have a cutie mark in painting? After all your work is flawless."

After Spike mentioned that to him, the mysterious colt replied;

"Well, it's just as I told you... I'm not a painter at heart, but I am really good at it. In fact, it's one of the many things I'm good at but will never be my true talent."

Spike had never heard about a pony being good at anything but doesn't have one thing that is his true talent and he also wanted to know how long he's been a blank flank, then the young white colt tells him that he's had a blank flank for quite a while now and will resume until he finds his true talent.

"But I am curious as to why your in my humble abode, I mean no one knows that I even live out here and no offense, I tend to keep it that way."

He also wanted to know that if anyone had followed Spike here, and then Spike tells the pony that he was being chased by Shadow Ponies. After hearing that he was being chased, the pony rushed to the living room to look out his window to see if they were out there, Spike also mentions him that he had to shake them off so that they will stop chasing after him. Then, the White colt wanted to know why Spike was being chased by Shadow Ponies in the first place, and then Spike starts explaining to "mister blank flank" as he calls him, that Ponyville is being invaded by Shadow Ponies and it's all due to the Ponyville ponies negative emotions. So now Spike needs help trying to put Ponyville back in order and he's asking the mysterious White colt to help him stop the shadow ponies, then the young white colt offers Spike something that will shine some light into the situation;

"two words my dragon friend, Be Positive."

Spike was confused to hear that the White colt told him to "Be Positive", and then he tells him how he's suppose to be positive if Ponyville is under the influence of negativity and at the moment, the White colt tells Spike;

"Exactly my point, just be positive... no matter what happens. Because remember this, when times like these are dark, a hint of light will outshine the darkness. And that light will shine if you just be positive, no matter what you have to do or how you do it... do it while being positive."

After what he said, Spike started to have comfort in the White colt's words, but then that comfort went away after he turned around and saw the shadow ponies outside through the window. He was yelling out loud and told the young white colt that the shadow ponies had arrived, and when the young white colt finally came down stairs, telling Spike to turn his volume level down, he looked out the window and saw the shadow ponies and then he said;

"Hmm, I don't remember inviting anyone to my hut..."