Mask

Sinking feeling.

Spike couldn't stop this sinking feeling in his stomach as he kept walking. He tapped the radio button once, static answered him back, making him growled to himself and moved on. His massive wings were wrapped around him like a cloak, and the lad had not once spoken to Sand since they entered the door, holding his Boomstick as they walked. Sand, however, was staring holes into the back of his head for about half an hour now. Her eyes traced along his features, admiring every inch of him, as if she had truly seen him the first time. Eventually they stopped at an intersection, Spike taking his journal out and tracing along it with his fingers, looking around, walking over and kneeling down, inspecting the walls a bit, his weapon hanging on its strap.

Sand stared at him, Spikes mask attached to the armor on her chest, though she looked at it for a moment, before back at him, giving a silent hum to herself. Spike, however, noticed her staring, and looked back at her, confused, "What?"

Sand stood there for a moment, thinking about what she would say to him, studying him for a moment. She decided to go the direct route and say, "You saved my life."

Spike blinked at her, then looked back down at his journal, tracing his hand along the pages, taking a pencil out and writing something on the page. "Yeah, I did."

"Despite the fact that before lunch, I was one of the people who was holding you captive for a psycho bitch who had a breeding fetish." Spike paused at this, her word choice making him snap his head her direction, a bewildered look painted on his face.

"Uh...yeah?"

"I mean, this morning, you were a prisoner for my faction. Against my wishes and wants, of course, but by all intents and purposes, we were enemies." Spike stared at her, raising an eyebrow, standing back up, closing his journal to turn to her, a silent question in his eyes. This implored Sand to get to the point, and she asked, "Why did you save me?"

"Why wouldn't I?"

"Spike, most people would have left me for fish foot or even dropped me to be that dogs chew toy. You didn't even give a second thought and immediately helped me, despite all the horrible shit you've been through! I know it wasn't at my hands, but I was still on that team! Why?"

Spike was confused by Sand, seeing her stare up at him so intently. Spike sighed, then adjusted his pack, asking, "Do I need a reason to be a decent person? Does anyone, really? You were in trouble, and I could help." He turned to her, continuing, his eyes filled with determination, "The world is a horrible place right now, but that doesn't mean I have to be a horrible person." Sand stood there, shocked as Spike gave a fanged smile that, admittedly, made her heart beat a little faster. "I did it because it's the right thing to do."

He walked away from her, leaving Sand in stunned silence. Once he was far enough away to not hear her (not that he noticed she was even gone, as he was too busy writing in his journal), Sand smiled to herself and mumbled out something about "brains out", though her sentence was far too quiet to make out, even to herself.

She ran up to catch up to him, Spike giving a hum as he walked through the dark tunnel, putting his journal away. He stopped for a moment, making Sand nearly walk into him, fiddling with his radio again, trying to listen in. Something isn't sitting right with him, he just couldn't place it.

"What's wrong? You keep playing with that damn thing."

"Well...we're close enough to the surface that I should get a signal." Spike held his finger on the button, letting static fill the air.

"i don't hear anything, Spike."

"Exactly. I'm not picking up any signals. Which means something is messing with the tower."

"Should...we be doing something about that?" Sand asked him, looking around, turning her flashlight on as she peered around. Spike shielded his eyes a bit when she did so, looking around and humming. "I mean, you need to contact your team, right?"

Spike gave a soft smile, then said, "Knowing Silver, he's probably barking orders and hoofing it to the tower right now." Sand took notice of the tone of Spikes voice, before giving him a teasing look.

"Oh? Spike has a crush?"

"Oh, no, nothing like that." Spike started walking again, adjusting his grip on his boomstick. "He's the closest thing I've ever had to a dad." That sentence made Sand stop in her tracks, staring at the back of Spikes head. Spike, however, never noticed her change in demeanor and continued walking, "Yeah, everyone knows me as Twilights little brother or her assistant, and Night Light and Twilight Velvet were nice but they...never really felt like they were my parents. Just the parents of my sister. Never actually met my real parents."

"Spike...I'm sorry." Spike turned back to her, wincing and blinking as her flashlight shone on his face. "I...I didn't know."

"That's okay." Spike flashed her another smile, saying, "Sometimes I do wonder what it would be like to have my real family...but even if I got a wish or some sort of do over, I wouldn't change a thing." He stopped, then gave a chuckle, adding on, "Perhaps...I would have stopped some people from doing a few things, but hindsight is always 20/20."

After that, they started walking in a comfortable silence, walking together in the halls. Eventually, Spike stopped as he smelt the air. He sniffed a few times, flicking his tongue out, tasting the air, raising his weapon and taking a stance, Sand following and adjusting her rifle, turning her flashlight off and taking aim next to him. They inch forward in the darkness, Spikes wings tucking up, slowly folding in like an azhdarchid, his wings slowly walking on the ground with him. He dug his claws into the ground, before pole vaulting around a corner, aiming around, Spikes nose crinkling as he was hit with the horrible smell, gagging a bit as it finally hit him full tilt.

Spike lowered his gun and covered his nose, coughing into a hand, saying, "Clear."

Sand walked around the corner, seeing the sight. Of course it smelled horrible to her, but Spikes nose was much more powerful, making him reach for his mask. Sand silently handed him the mask, letting him adjust his helmet as he put it on, breathing clean, filtered air. "Sweet Celestia..." Sand mumbled out as she turned a flashlight on.

Humans.

Well...they were Human. Once.

Many of them were decaying, though something was off about them. Some had only a few fingers, others had misshapen teeth and jaws, and one of them still had its eyes in, dead and white, almost appearing as if it was blind. Spike carefully stepped through, looking around, a pit in his stomach opening as he kept walking, his eyes scanning over the bodies, an itching in the back of his brain.

Now, you see, the Human brain was quite amazing. What you call the "Uncanny Valley" was never actually a "you see something that is human but it actually isn't" response. The response is you seeing a dead body and the survival part of your brain ringing an alarm bell, letting you know that whatever killed this human might still be around. Other responses ran along this line, such as the paranoid feeling of being watched when you actually are or a "sixth sense", as when you scan over an area, your brain subconsciously already sees the foe before your conscious brain recognizes the threat, which bring about the feeling.

Spikes brain, however, never felt any of these things, as his brain was suddenly wracked with pain, making him keel over and scream as he felt like his brain was suddenly filled with molten lead. Sand jumped and aimed around, her hands shaking a bit as Spike screamed again, pure pain smashing through his brain like a sledgehammer at a glass warehouse. Seeing nothing, she looked down to see Spike clutching his head, tears streaming down his face as his eyes peered into nothing.

"SPIKE?! WHAT'S GOING ON?! ARE YOU OKAY?!" Sand shouted at him, her own voice nothing but muffled noises to Spikes ears as he stared at the ground, unable to even look at her. The woman knelt in front of him and shaking him, his eyes never changing, spilling more and more tears, his visor fogging up a bit from the new moisture, "SPIKE! TALK TO ME!"

To say Spike was in the worst pain of his life would be an understatement, as searing hot pain raced through his mind. Along with that pain were images and feelings that Spike could make out perfectly, in which he knew they were not of his own mind, though how he knew such a thing was lost to himself. However, a small inkling of what happened back in the cave with Storm shot through his mind; it was happening AGAIN. Once was strange. Twice? Something was trying to speak to him.

Snow. Blood. Bullets. Men shouting. A tall figure. Fear. Hatred. Pain. Sadness. A body in the snow.

Silver?

No, not Silver but...another father?

Yes, father. A father. His father.

No, not his, not Spike...his father.

Whilst Spike was kneeling on the ground, Sand was watching over him with worry, pacing back and forth. She had to admit, this was completely new territory for her. Spike had seemed perfectly fine for the past few hours, perhaps there was something in that tranq they hit him with that was messing with his head? Or perhaps his wings caused him so much pain he was holding back until now? Was he having a seizure?

Whilst Sand was considering these options, she did not notice the wall to her left moving, drawn to the woman's shouting and panicked state. The wall moved, only to suddenly reach out, Sand missing the grab by a hair length, her backpedaling as the wall suddenly shifted and out popped a creature.

No...a Human. Or, what once was Human.

The Human had its skin color the same as the rock, was hairless, its skin hardened by conditions that Sand never could think of. It had three fingers and a thumb, its mouth held weak, misshapen teeth, its face was sunken and its nose had rotted away, its arms were bulkier and its feet had become more canine like, perfect for running at things. Sand felt her heart jump to her throat as it released a scream that sounded far too human, its saggy, decrepit body was still far too strong as its dead eyes stared at Sand.

Whatever Humanity that resided in the creature was now far gone.

The Mutant screamed as it grabbed Sand, the woman giving a started yell as she fell back. She hit the rocky floor hard, making her world spin, though Sand was quick and jammed a rock into the beasts mouth. It, however, did not care, trying to bite into the rock, smashing and clawing onto Sands armor, trying to break through it.

"FUCK YOU!"

Spike could just make out a shadow against a bright light, too weak to even shield his eyes, Spike watched as the shadow turned to him. He could make out its hands - three fingers and a thumb - reaching out to him. Spike felt a sense of deja vu watching, though he had no clue why. He felt his arm raise up, seeing the small figure being surrounded by different shapes, a few of which he recognized; a horn and an antler, a knights helmet, and a collar.

"Спайк, пожалуйста помоги!"

"Spike, please help!"

"Spike!"

"Spike!"

"SPIKE! HELP ME!"

Sand screamed out as the beast finally freed its mouth from the rock, snapping its teeth at her, Sand just barely holding the Humanoid back with her elbow to its throat, though she was in a losing battle as it used its arms to push hers out of the way, darting down to finish the job with its teeth. Sand felt warm blood splash across her face, closing her eyes and expecting the end to come.

Well, it would have, had it not been for Spike.

One of his wings shot forward just as the beast lunged, the massive limb stabbing its only claw straight through the poor Humanoids throat, hence why Sand felt blood spray onto her face. Spike lifted up the beast with little effort, ignoring its garbled sounds as it tried to breath, standing up as he stabbed his other wings claw into it. Spike growled, seeing the creature try digging its sharpened nails into his wings, breaking its own claws against his tough scales. Spike pulled his boomstick up, then fired a shell into the creature, making it give an unholy screech, Spike racking another shell in with a loud pump. He fired again, the beasts back exploding out with bone and gore. Spike fired a third time, the Humanoid finally flying off of Spikes claws and a few feet down the hall, lying in a pool of its own blood.

Sand was sure it was dead, though Spike walked over, racking another shell in, firing at the poor things head, causing it skull and brain matter to paint the walls in a disgusting red coloration. Spike lowered his weapon, then looked back at Sand, asking, "Are you okay?"

"Am I okay?" Sand asked, incredulous, staring at Spike. "Am I okay?!" She stood up, giving him a glare, walking right up to his masked face, shouting, "YOU FUCKING IDIOT! I THOUGHT YOU WERE DYING! I THOUGHT YOU WERE HAVING A SEIZURE! I HAVE NO CLUE HOW TO HELP! YOU WERE IN SO MUCH PAIN AND ALL I DID WAS SIT BY AND DO NOTHING! I ALMOST GET EATEN AND YOU ARE CRYING ON THE FLOOR, CLUTCHING YOUR HEAD LIKE YOU ARE ABOUT TO EXPLODE!" Sand was breathing heavily as she stared at Spike, then she suddenly wrapped her arms around him, making the young man stiffen. He gave it a moment, before wrapping an arm around her, his wings wrapping around her in a form of hug. "I-I was so scared, and all I did was just stand there...I thought you were dying..."

"I'm sorry." Spike whispered out, hugging her tighter. It had been a few moments when Sand chuckled, making Spike look down at her. "What?"

"That's three times you've saved my life now."

Spike groaned, letting go of her while Sand chuckled some more, "You're keeping count?"

"Well, I gotta keep track, in case I wanna feel like saving your li-" The snarky comment died in Sands throat as a screech echoed down the tunnel, both of them turning as they aimed towards it. "Please...tell me it's not more of those Fuglies."

"Fuglies?"

"Yeah, that thing was Fuckin Ugly with a capital F. So, why not just call them Fuglies?"

Spike looked down at the Fugly, giving a grimace as he recognized the form of a Human. He knelt down and adjusted the body with his weapon, staring into its face, his eyes staring deep into the bodies. Even now he could tell there was nothing there, just basic animal instinct. He couldn't even see a fear reaction when he fired upon it, grimacing at the thought.

"Spike...he...it wasn't Human anymore."

Spike nodded as they heard rapid footfalls race towards them, loading fresh shells into the rotating cylinder, pumping a spent shell out and loading in a fresh one, standing up and taking aim. "Well, at least my conscience will be clear fighting these guys."

"Conscience, eh?"

"What can I say? I'm one of a kind."

Silver stood there, giving a confused and, frankly, horrified look around. It was not often that Silver was shocked or horrified, as five years of the post apocalyptic world would normally numb a person, but this definitely took the cake; at least two dozen people, dead. Now, Silver himself did not recognize any of the people, and Cherry had never sent out more people with them (her forces being so stretched thin that Silver had to leave a few behind to heal and guard), so Silver was wondering why so many were out there in the first place. Not only that, but many of them appeared to have died without a scratch on them, whilst others look like they were fighting each other, despite carrying the same weapons and gear.

Some look like they had shot each other. Others looked stabbed violently. There was one who had a knife in his head whilst choking another man, both seemingly died trying to take each other out. Wave stepped over a man, giving a grunt as he saw his mask was torn off, leaving the man to suffocate in the poisonous air.

"What happened to these guys?" Bright asked, Silver looking around in the snow, seeing some of them kneeling down, blood leaking from their eyes, ears and noses, almost in a praying like pose. Silver gave a sigh as he walked over to an alleyway, seeing a bloody handprint on a wall. Curious, he started walking as he followed the handprint, seeing another and another.

"Something tells me we should just leave." Steel said, looking around to see Silver gone. "Silver? Silver?!"

Meteor walked over to the bloody handprint on the wall, then looked over to see Silver walking around a corner. She waved Steel, Bright and Wave over, quietly following the man through the snow, her weapon raised. She stopped when she saw Silver standing in front of quite the scene; a half circle of bodies around one, tall figure. Said figures skin was almost pure black, bullet holes in its chest and right arm, its eyes massive and its mouth was almost fuzed together, showing no visible teeth or line. Its hand left a strange mark on the wall, though Silver paid no mind to it as he walked over to the large body. He knelt down, giving the body a soft look, before gently pressing his hands on the beasts eyelids, closing its large, glossy black eyes, letting it rest.

"Sir, I wouldn't touch that thing." Meteor spoke, making Silver look back at her. "It took out all these men by itself...we should be thankful they took it down."

"Should we?" Silver asked, standing back up, moving over to the drawings on the wall, inspecting them for a moment, only to pull his journal out - the very same type that Spike had, no less - and started drawing upon it, copying the symbols down.

"Sir?"

"You don't send twenty men to hunt down one mu...one man." Silver spoke, walking away from the wall to show them the symbols that were drawn; a large, Humanoid figure that looked very much like the body in the snow, holding its hands out to a smaller figure, this one having massive wings and a tail, along with strange symbol above them. However, rather than being the intricate drawings of an adult, they were rather crude looking, almost as if a child had drawn them. "And you definitely do not bring chains if you are going to kill something." Silver lifted a piece of chain out of the snow with a boot, giving a hum as he looked around, noting strange marks on the ground. "Looks like they didn't get what they came for, there were survivors being chased."

"Hey, that...smaller figure looks familiar." Bright mumbled to Steel, who was walking over bodies.

Steel knelt down, checking through the pockets of one of the dead men, humming quietly. Meteor walked over to the other end of the little alleyway, aiming her sweeper around, Wave and Bright Walking over to Silver, Wave speaking, "Sir, we need to think about this."

"Think about what?" Silver asked, seeing Wave point towards the tall cre...the tall mans body.

"That thing isn't even Human, and look what it did to all these people!" Steel gave a grunt as he picked something up, feeling some parchment, pulling out the paper and giving it a confused look over. "I think we're in serious danger, and we've already lost a few friends already. We should just head back to the Caverns, rearm and come back out, better prepared!"

Silvers eyes narrowed at Wave, about to retort, when he heard Steel give a started gasp, drawing the groups attention. Steel walked over to Silver, handing him the parchment, pointing at it. "Spike is in big fuckin trouble."

"How big?" Bright asked as she walked around, peering at the parchment curiously.

Said parchment held a picture, and whilst pictures weren't uncommon on parchment, parchment itself was rare in this new world, meaning that whoever handed it out must have had resources. What was on the parchment caused alarm, as it was a stylized version of Spike, hands shifted into claws and rifle in hand, giving a fanged snarl, and pupils turned into slits, green flames around him, his tail coiled around him like a serpent, ready to strike. Underneath it, it said something in huge, bold letters, impossible to ignore.

SPIKE SOLARIS APPLE SPARKLE

WANTED ALIVE BY ORDER OF DIAMOND DOG QUEEN

REWARD WILL BE GIVEN TO SOLE PERSON WHO RETURNS HIM UNHARMED

Silver glared at the paper, before shoving it in Steels hands, his mask just barely containing his colorful curses, staring off into the snow. Steel handed Meteor the paper and walked over to Silver, giving the older man a soft look.

Silver nodded to Steel, then turned to the others, adjusting his sweeper and looking at them all. He took a moment to look back at the bodies, giving them a soft glare, saying, "I don't know what Queen Bitch wants with Spike, but we aren't letting our dragon be her prisoner. Now, I know not all of you are happy with me," Meteor adjusted a bit on her feet, a move that did not go unnoticed by Silver, but he continued, "and to be honest, I don't blame you. However, I don't apologize for my actions, and to be honest, I feel like you all would have done the same in my shoes. Now, those of you who want to head back to Cherry, you may do so. In fact, I hold no ill will to those of you who leave." Silver stepped over a body, careful not to disturb it, then looked back at them, "I'm going to go save my boy. You can join me if you want."

The group stood there for a moment, considering his words. After all, he just gave them permission to head back to Cherry and help her out. A rather noble goal, to be honest, and no one would fault them for it, a perfect out from this mission.

Steel walked over to Silver, then rested a hand on the silver haired man's shoulder, giving it a gentle squeeze, saying, "I'm with you, Silver." Silver smiled, hidden under his mask, Bright sighed a bit, then walked towards Silver, adjusting her sweeper, nodding to him as well. Meteor joined him, giving Silver a look, one in which he ignored. Wave stood there for a moment, sighing a bit, looking back at the body, then at Silver, nodding and walking towards him.

"Alright, let's go save Spike."

Mama stood there, her fists having been bandaged up, adjusting her armor a bit as she watched the other woman. Nova Flare stood by her side, though hid behind Mama once the womans gaze turned to her. It was a brief moment, of course, before her gaze returned to Mama. A soft hiss went out, the Lizard that had invaded her home was by Mamas size, a strange device clamped around its mouth as it stared at them, giving a soft whimper when Mama turned to it, before looking back at the armored woman.

"I came for Spike." Her cold voice finally spoke. Mama couldn't lie, she felt a pit in her stomach whenever the Queen Bitch spoke to them. "I expect you to honor our deal, Lilac Topaz."

"Like my daughter told you, Spike escaped." Lilac, or Mama, said, her eyes narrowing at the helmet. "The little lizard scrambled out the back gates and left us a...gift." Once she said "gift", the Lizard next to her adjusted and hissed, though cowered when Mama, or Lilac, gave it a glare. "And please, call me Topaz."

The Queen Bitch herself gave the Lizard a look, before glancing at her Right Hand, the Diamond Dog giving a soft snort. It appeared Lily (or the Right Hand, as the Queen referred to her) had healed up quite nicely, thanks to the Queens magic, and her amor had been repaired. Well, more like scrapped back together with bits of metal, but repaired nonetheless. After all, she needed an enforcer, and no enforcer would stay down for long. The Queens eyes were hidden under the helmet, though the Right Hand nodded, adjusting a bit as she dropped her mace on the ground, letting the stone crack below her as she walked over to the Lizard. The creature gave an open mouthed hiss, though that was ignored as Lily knelt down, grasping the creatures head and giving it a sniff, ignoring its claws digging into the ground.

Lily turned and nodded, the Queen giving a hum as she looked back at Topaz and Nova, "Very well, it appears you are telling the truth." The Queen adjusted a bit, Lily walking back over and effortlessly picking the mace up, looking at the Queen. At this, Topaz and Nova were relieved, though did not physically show it. "Although, I heard something troubling."

Topaz stood up, giving a confused look, "Troubling?"

"Yes. I heard you wished to keep Spike."

Topazes eyes narrowed at the Queen, though the armored warrior only stood back up, resting a hand on the hilt of her blade, "Mama" saying, "Is that so? Well, I can confirm it was a rumor and nothing more."

The Queen held a hand out, Lily giving a hidden, toothy grin as a Diamond Dog walked forward, dropping something on the ground in front of them; the muzzle. Spikes muzzle, to be exact. Topazes eyes narrowed at it, before she looked back up at the Queen, the armored warrior gaining a dangerous air as she stared at the mother and daughter.

"Need I remind you that your little...group exists purely because I deem it so?" The Queens words were sharp, cutting through any defense that could be brought up against her. "You seem to forget that it was I who saved your lives those four years ago. You were starving, dying, a little worthless group of filthy creatures I took pity on."

"I remember what you did."

"Then you should remember that I killed your last leader, your so called husband and freed you from his ruinous grip." Nova flinched at the word 'husband', and the Queens voice was filled with so much venom, she might as well be part snake, a rare venom that came from the ice cold Queen, her grip tightening on the hilt of her blade, raising a hand up and pointing at Topaz. "That lizard you dare insult is my territory. Mine. And I will fight for him."

"Like I said, they were nothing but rumors, pure fict -"

"You know they are not." The Queen interrupted, adjusting her helmet so Topaz could see her eyes. Cold. Calculating. Though, Topaz could swear she could spot a bit of jealousy. "If I learn that you so much as considered taking my dragon, I will take your daughter and show you the true meaning of pain. Am I clear?" The Queens voice left no room for argument, and the grip on her blade showed it was no empty threat.

Topaz sat for a moment, before sparing a glance towards her daughter, who was trembling a bit behind her mother. She looked back at the Queen, then hissed out a single word, filled with venom and hatred, "Crystal."

"Good." The Queen turned and started walking, before sparing a glance back at them, saying, "My scouts tracked him to the river, he is heading to the next settlement. I don't need to remind you how important it is that they don't take him." Topaz snorted out of her nostrils, staring down the Queen, though a small voice at the back of her head let Topaz know one thing.

For the first time in their dealings, the Queen sounded...worried.

The Queen started walking away, Lily giving a snort, following her, Topaz and Nova glaring at their backs as they walked out the door. It clunked shut behind them, Topaz flexing her knuckles, letting them crack, Nova jumping at the sound as her mother shook with barely contained fury.

"Why do you even want Spike?" Topaz called after the Queen. The armored warrior turned, staring at Mama, a hidden smile under her helmet.

"Every girl needs a pet." The Queen spoke, before talking away, Mama staring at the back of her bear skin cape, waiting until they were well outside of earshot.

"Nova." She suddenly spoke, making her daughter shrink a bit from her tone, the Lizard giving a wary hiss as it stared at her. "Gather some men. We're going to knock on the freaks front door and get our Pup." She started to walk, the Lizard giving a hiss as it followed her, the woman turning and giving a dangerous look. "And then we kill the Queen Bitch in front of her mongrel mutts and keep the Pup for ourselves."

Spike snarled, his fangs hidden behind his mask, firing another shell into an approaching Fugly, it flying back and screeching in agony as it slammed back into its allies. He fired another shell, killing three in one spread as they tried to recover on the floor, racking another shell to fire at one pouncing towards Sand, planting the poor creature into the wall. Sand had no time to actually see this as she had her knife jammed in another Fugly, straight into its eye, using her strength to grab a hold and twirl the creatures head at an awkward angle, killing it. She pulled the knife out and slammed it into the base of the neck in another, making the poor Humanoid go limp.

Spike racked another shell, his body and mask painted in blood and chunks, his eyes narrowing as he fired another shell, killing two and injuring a third. The third kept rushing, Spike taking a moment to load a shell in, the rotating clip adjusting as he slid the pump back, loading it in. The injured one kept running, hands ready to slash at Spike, only for one of Spikes wing claws to smash into the poor creatures throat, coming out the other end, leaving the poor creature to choke on its blood.

Well, that is until Spike smashed the butt of his gun into its head, smashing its brains in. A quick death, luckily it did not suffer too long. With a thunderous roar (in which both Spike and Sand were thankful they had proper hearing protection), Spike fired into one that rounded the corner, it screeching until the shell blew half of its head away, sending it back and smashing into a rock, blood splattering across the wall. Spike racked another shell, peering around at the brain, blood, organ and bone painted walls and floors around them. He walked forward, carefully walking around bodies, Sand following after him, smoke still spilling from his barrel as he peered around the corner.

He looked back at her, wiping the blood off of his mask, nodding to her, Sand adjusting her rifle and loading another round in, sliding the bolt back into place. Spike rounded the corner, only to be tackled by a Fugly, who was blended into the wall, pushing him against the other wall. He held his gun up, the created trying to snap at him as he held it back, hearing its snarls as it tried smashing its claws in, though Spikes armor thankfully held on. That being said, he still felt every blow and grunted as it tried twisting his weapon out of his hands, wrestling with the ugly creature that was once human, its mouth dripping with rot and drool as it got closer and closer.

Suddenly, its head was smashed with the butt of a rifle, the creature falling over, stunned as Spike finally caught his breath. He looked over to see Sand walk towards the beast. She kicked it back down, then planted on a boot on its jaws, taking aim. She lifted her boot, then uttered out in a cold, hate filled voice, "Bite this, you rotten bastard." She then slammed her heavy boot down, cracking the creatures jaw inwards and crushing the poor beasts throat. She lifted her boot again and smashed it back down, hitting true this time, smashing into its weakened skull, pulling her blood and brain covered boot out, panting a bit as their actions finally caught up to them.

"Bite this?" Spike asked, making Sand chuckle. "What are you, in an action movie?"

"Oh come on, it was a cool line." Sand laughed a bit louder, both of them relaxing for a moment, Spike resting his back on the wall. He nodded, then loaded a shell, adjusting the shotgun onto his back as he searched through his ammo. Seven boomstick shells left. Snapper was only down a magazine, whilst the sweeper was mostly down half a magazine, being almost completely full. He nodded to himself as Sand looked at him, "Got a better line?"

"Nope. I wouldn't have said a line, I would have just killed the poor thing and walked away without saying anything." Spike admitted, pulling his Sweeper out, wiping his wing claws clean of any blood with a cloth, before adjusting his weapon and tucking the cloth away. "You ready? We need to go next to a lake before the next settlement, and I really do not want to be underprepared for any more of those Fuglies."

Sand took a moment, before nodding to him, giving a soft smile. "Alright, let's go." Sand started to walk with him, her eyes trailing after him a bit. "So, this...Silver, how long have you known him?"

"Five years, three months, and twenty five days." Spike answered easily, making Sand blink at him, impressed. "He was sent to Ponyville after my sister and her friends went off to the Crystal Empire, since Twilight was turned into a princess, she would worry about me and talk to some old friends in the guard." He walked over to see a strange sign, carved into the wall, taking a moment to study it, before continuing on, speaking again, "He is basically my father. He taught me, trained me, took me under his wing to make me into a warrior."

"A warrior with a heart? That doesn't seem very helpful, I must admit."

Spike stopped, before turning to Sand, pulling his mask off, looking Sand in the eye. He thought about his words for a moment, before speaking to her, "A great man I met had a different idea of how a warrior should act. He once told me to be strong enough to be gentle...and I think about those words in every possible scenario when others call for violence first. He believed that everyone, that all sentient beings, deserved the right to freedom. He also believed everyone is capable of growth and change, and that you should help others. His idea of a warrior should be someone who helps protect others, but understands that you cannot always fight first. And I have taken those words to heart, even when I seem scary and fearless and..." Spike adjusted his sweeper, then spoke, "To be honest with you, I am scared, constantly. Even whilst saving our lives back there. I'm scared of letting him down. Of letting Silver down. Of letting my sister and the girls down...but I also know that if I lose myself to the violence, I will never be able to return, that when my sister sees me again, she'll only recognize me as a monster...and that terrifies me more than anything in the world."

"What was different about the Fuglies back there? Weren't you violent with them as well?"

"They gave us no choice." Spike said simply, his eyes hardening for a moment, before he looked away. "I regret what I have done, and I regret what I will do. However, I cannot just give up and die, so I will defend myself when I know there is no other option." Sand watched him as he started walking again, her eyes following him before her legs decided to. Spike mentally slapped himself for becoming distracted.

He just spilled his guts out to who was essentially a stranger. Though, in a way, he was glad he did so. He needed to get some things off of his chest and he knew he needed that after the past two days.

After half an hour of walking in silence, one that they both needed at the moment, Spike perked up as he heard the dripping of water, making him smile, looking back he called, "Come on, almost to the lake." He started to walk, only to stop and sniff the air.

Sand didn't notice and kept walking, the haies on the back of Spikes neck tensing as he kept sniffing the air. Sand stopped when she realized she only heard her own foot steps, looking back to see Spike sniffing the air. "You good, Spike?"

"Something isn't right."

He turned the corner with her, seeing an underground lake, his eyes peering at the water. He kept walking, Sand giving a nervous glance around as Spike stopped. She bumped into him, opening her mouth to utter an apology, only to gasp as she looked past him; glowing flowers?

They were beautiful, green glowing leaves with a blue-ish white top, little yellow strands sticking out. Sand reached a hand out towards it, before Spike grabbed her hand, shaking his head. He lowered his arm near it, and as soon as he got up to five inches near the petals, his counter started screeching at him, clicking madly, making Spike pull his hand back. He looked over to see glowing green moss along the walls and waters edge, Spike sniffing again and grimacing at the stench.

Poison. Rot. Death. He walked around the flower, waving Sand over as she followed his foot steps. He aimed his weapon around, his sweeper...well, sweeping to and fro, occasionally pointing towards the water. He grimaced as he held his breath, stepping over a half decayed body; a Fugly. Its head was dunked into the water, half rotten as its fingers stretched out, looking like it was mid gulp before something smashed half of its skull in with a rock.

"I guess we found out why the Fuglies look like that."

"Sort of." Spike spoke, before sweeping his weapon around, his eyes scanning the walls. "This water was poisoned by something up above. I assume something from the bombs, so I would really not touch the water if I was you."

"That reminds me, why can you breathe all this horrible shit?"

"I'm a dragon. I can swim in lava and even drink it if I wanted to, and that is filled with poisonous gases." He looked back as he sniffed the air, grimacing a bit at the stench of the body. "Water smells funny though. Even I won't touch it."

He heard a splash, making him narrow his eyes as he scanned the water line, seeing ripples disturbing the relatively peaceful surface of the cave water. He aimed his weapon towards it, only to hear the grunting of a creature and more splashing to his left, twirling to see a Fugly, half covered in glowing green liquid that seemed to ooze down its face, its flesh not quite the same coloration of the others but a muddy brown, making it perfectly suited for the muddy, dark water that surrounded it. It scrambled out of the water, towards Spike, giving a low grunt like a strange little primate, throwing a rock at Spike. Spike ducked down as the rock flew close, then took aim, the Fugly raising its arms and backing away a bit, making Spike pause. He started to back up and lower his weapon, the Fugly coming at him again, only to pause and shy away when he pointed his weapon towards it again.

"Looks like they are afraid of you, Spike. And after that show back there, I really don't blame them for their fe -"

"He's not afraid of me." Spike interrupted, the creatures eyes glued on his gun. He walked forward, the creature giving a grunt as it backs away on all four, hissing at him as he flashed his fangs. Perhaps it worked like primates, it would see his teeth and sense him as a threat and back away. The mans - no, creatures - eyes never left the weapon not even to Spikes threatening hiss. He turned to Sand and said, "Someone has used a weapon around this one. He knows its a threat, so he isn't approaching."

"That's good, isn't it?"

"Well if this thing is afraid of my weapon and we haven't been here before...who else is walking out here with guns?" Spike asked, not noticing the creature slowly stand up, grasping onto another rock. Spike turned too late and had his head smashed by the beast, knocking his helmet off, it jumping over him and trying to attack Sand. It jumped onto her, giving a screech as Spike was dazed, resting on the ground on his hands and knees. The beast had gotten lucky, it had struck his helmet and head in one go, knocking it off and injuring Spike in the process. He shook his head, his ears ringing as blood dripped down the side of his face, dripping onto the ground. Spike adjusted his jaw, before looking up, seeing the creature raise its claws, ready to finish Sand off.

Something inside of Spike broke in that moment. His eyes may have seen Sand, however, thanks to the head injury (which, somehow, only dazed him and did not give him brain damage) and the adrenaline in his system, he did not see Sand at all. In fact, the one person in her place was the single person no one with half a brain would ever attack; Twilight Sparkle. Spikes sister. Spikes only family that he trusted more than himself.

"SPIKE!" Twilights voice screamed into his ears, his pupils turning into slits as rage filled his body.

He opened his mouth, though instead of any words or a scream, an inhumane roar tore its way out of his throat, Spike using one of his wing claws to smash through the creatures right shoulder, blood spraying out and the green liquid spraying across the wall, luckily missing Sand. Spikes other wing claw was sent through the creatures lower back, the dragonblood easily lifting the beast up with his powerful wings, revealing a slack jawed and awed Sand. She stood there as Spike pulled his mask on, having just enough sapient thought to protect his face from what would happen, and roared through it as he twisted his wings different directions.

The creature gave a strangled yelp for half a second before its body was suddenly ripped in half, blood spraying out and painting Spikes face, intestines and organs spilling out onto the floor, Spike keeping both halves impaled on his wings. He released a rumble as he grabbed both halves in his hands and threw them into the water, letting the poor creature float, its organs and blood pooling around it, green ooze spilling back into the water.

In a long list of horrible ways to die in an apocalypse, torn in half by dragon wings would now be in Sands top three on said list.

Spikes head turned to Sand, making her flinch as she saw his face and part of his shirt caked in blood. He pulled his mask off, his eyes scanning her for a second, his pupils becoming rounded and blood dripping down his face from the wound near his temple. He took a deep breath to calm himself, then let it out into a soft, smoke filled exhale.

Only to hunch over and lose his lunch onto the floor, Sand immediately getting up, fear disappearing from her as Spike let out another round of vomit, it boiling and glowing on the ground for a moment, sizzling loudly. Sand didn't care, rushing over to pat the poor lads back as he choked on its acidic taste for a moment, spitting out the rancid taste in his mouth. He coughed a few times, before standing back up, shivering a bit as he gave out a weird sound,.sticking his long tongue out for a moment, before looking back at Sand.

"You okay?"

Sand gave him a soft look, then smiled a bit, "Yeah. You saved my life...again." She grasped onto his face, making him wince as she inspected the wound on his head. Not a deep cut, but it would still need to be cleaned and covered. "I would call you my knight in shining armor, but knight typically have a better hold on their helmets."

"Yeah, I got lucky this thing didn't kill me." Spike said as he picked his helmet up. He inspected it, seeing some blood on it, though luckily undamaged from the attack. He adjusted his helmet, pulling it on tighter, then nodded to Sand, giving a smile. "Let's go to the next settlement. I can rest and treat my wounds before I head out."

"So..." Sand started as they walked together, ignoring Spikes wince as he adjusted his helmet. "You good?"

"Nope."

"Okay...wanna ta -"

"No."

"Okay." Sand said, looking around, adjusting the rifle in her grip. "So...ya got a girlfriend."

"Can we play the quiet game?"

"Come on! Guy as handsome as yourself, you have to have a few ladies...or dudes...or both waiting for you back home!" Spike took a moment to stare at her, before continuing on, mumbling something under his breath. "Come in, what's her name."

"There is no one waiting for me back home."

"Oh? So you're available?"

"Yeah. I'm available. All you have to do is get approval from Twilight Sparkle, the Princess."

"Isn't Twilight de -"

Sand had no time to finish as Spike twirled around, his pupils turning into slits as he glared at her, quietly hissing through his teeth, "Do not finish that sentence." Sand, so stricken with fear, could only freeze and nod her head, Spikes eyes narrowing a bit, though all he did was snort out some smoke and continue walking. It took a few seconds before her legs finally got the signal that she needed to walk, giving Spike a little space as he kept walking.

It was quiet now, a quiet that Spike was happy to have and Sand was uncomfortable in. She didn't realize it was such a sensitive topic for him, she would have kept her mouth shut if she realized what it might do. Spike adjusted his sweeper as they walked, before slowly adjusting his back, allowing his wings to shift back into his body, giving an uncomfortable grunt as he adjusted his clothes and armor, looking back at Sand as they approached a heavy, metal door.

"It's through there. My tail is enough to freak people out, but wings might be pushing it." Spike explained, Sand giving him a look as he stretched and adjusted his back, the sounds of cracking making her wince. He walked over to the scratched door, his eyes scanning along the walls, seeing an intercom with a button. "Okay, just stay quiet, let me handle this."

He pressed the button, a loud buzzer echoing throughout the tunnel. Sand jumped back, then looked around, raising her rifle up, her eyes scanning along the waterline and walls. Spike, however, stood there, his tail coiling behind him as a sinking feeling came back to him.

It shouldn't take this long to answer.

He pressed the button again, a loud buzzer bouncing off of the walls again. This time, there was a distant noise that answered back; a scream. Sand backed up, aiming her weapon towards the noise, aiming down the scope, mumbling out, "Spike. Open the door."

Spike smashed the buzzer again, his anger rising, trying to convince himself that he shouldn't just rip open the panel. He raised his hand again, only to stop when a sharp noise echoed out, then a confused voice filtered through the speaker, "Uh...he-hello?"

Spike felt his spirits lift immediately and spoke into the speaker, "This is Spike Sparkle of the Ponyville Guard, do you read me?"

After a second, the voice answered, though Sand kept watching the tunnel, "Spike? As in, Spike the dragon?"

Spike looked back at Sand, seeing her kneel down and adjust her scope, grimacing, answering the voice, "Yes, Spike the dragon."

A moment passed, enough time for them to hear inhumane screams echo down the caves, Spike sparing a glance back. He couldn't see anything, but he knew they were coming, adjusting his sweeper to his shoulder and giving a grunt, mumbling something under his breath that sounded like a threat, or perhaps a promise. He twirled around as he heard more and more footsteps coming towards them, kneeling down and adjusting his sweeper. They were sprinting towards Spike and Sand. Spike could see them, pulling his magazine out and checking his ammo, before sliding it back in, checking the chamber for a round. He took aim, readying himself for another onslaught, his draconic eyes peering into the darkness, Sand copying his movements and aiming down the tunnel.

Spike started backing up, his eyes widening, "Uh...Sand. You should shoot."

"Shoot at what, I can't see shit!"

"JUST FUCKING SHOOT!" Spike barked out, firing into the dark, his gun lighting up the walls around them. Screams of pain echoed out, deep within the caverns, Sand aiming through her scope and firing blindly, the sounds of roars getting louder and loud. Spikes gun was deafening, firing bursts of bullets into the darkness, cutting through unseen flesh and bone, the screams and roars of the misshapen and mutated making their skin crawl.

They were getting closer and closer to them. Spike could see them scrambling over their dead, his gun fire cutting through multiple mutants at once, the shambling forms getting closer and closer. Sand fired bullet, pulling the bolt back, only to jump as she heard the door grind open, the sounds of shouts echoing out in the hallway as she saw a face peer under.

"THEY'RE ALIVE! THEY'RE IN TROUBLE, OPEN THIS THING FASTER!" The voice yelled out, nasally and rough as he pulled himself back in, the ground of the door creaking and groaning quickening.

"Spike!" Sand tried to yell, only to see Spikes eyes hardened as he fired, breathing steadily as he fired in short bursts. "SPIKE!" He stopped firing as a click echoed out, pulling the magazine out and sliding in a new one, pulling the slide back to push a bullet into the chamber, before snarling, flashing his fangs.

The thunderous sound of a boomer shook Spike out of his concentration, looking over to see a familiar pair of buck teeth attached to a rather chubby looking man holding a rifle. He pulled the bolt back, then pushed it back forwards, firing again, barking out an order that was lost to Spikes ears. He was suddenly tugged by a lanky man, who was saying something to the chubby one, his mind finally focusing out of the haze of the fight.

"We got 'em both!" The lanky one yelled out over the gun fire, the chubby one falling back. A loud ping was heard as he ejected the clip, trying to find a spare one in his jacket, though, it was too late, a Fugly was already upon him, screaming as it raised its disfigured hands and claws towards the chubby one.

Only for the Fugly to have its face smashed through by a three round burst. The chubby man turned to see Spike standing up and bracing himself, firing into anything coming too close to them, the doors shutting. One Fugly scrambled through, only to be shot by the lanky one, a shotgun held in his grip. He pumped it, ejecting the spent shell, then fired into another that slipped through, splattering its brains across the door. A third tried to slip through, only to be caught under the door, giving screams as half of its body was crushed. It tried sliding its other half through, clawing at the ground, only for Spike to fire a bullet into its head, ending its misery.

The sound of banging echoed throughout the chamber, before Spike looked back, seeing the two men do some sort of strange handshake, then looked over to Sand, who gave a smile and thumbs up, though was leaning on the wall and shaking a bit, the adrenaline slowly draining from her system.

"You good?" Spike asked, pulling his magazine out and checking it, then pushing it back in, giving Sand a concerned look.

"Yeah...yeah, I'm good."

Spike turned to the men, still in the middle of their handshake, walking over to them, saying, "I'm Spike Sparkle, of the Ponyville Guard. And you two are?"

"Spike, we know who you are." One said, nasally, making Spike quirk an eyebrow. "You came over with Twilight, remember?"

"Wait..."

"Yeah, I remember." The lanky one said, his deep voice sounding a tad slowed down, the man giving him a smile. "I remember when she took on the fabulous and fantastic Trixie."

"Of course you remember, we woke up the bear, remember?!"

"Oh no..."

Sand walked over, seeing the two men evolve into a one sided argument, Spike giving a throaty groan as he put his face in his palms, his weapon hanging on his shoulder by a strap. She saw his state of distress, then asked, "Do you know these two?"

"Unfortunately, yes." Spike mumbled, before holding a hand out, gesturing to the two, "Sand, meet Snips and Snails."

"Hey, see you met Spike, the greatest dragon in Ponyville!" Snips said, sliding a new clip into his rifle, then pushing the bolt back into place.

"I thought Spike was Ponyvilles only dragon." Snails said, making Spike sigh a bit.

"Okay, guys, we appreciate the help, but what are you doing here? I thought you two were visiting Canterlot."

"That's a loooooooong story." Snails drew out, making Spike and Sand exchange looks.

"One which we really don't have time for, I just need to -"

"It all started when the -" Snips began, making Spike grumble as Sand chuckled.