Spike's Sacrifice: The Aftermath

Chapters

Prologue
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4

Prologue

Author's Note

I have used this chapter with permission from Mpony1, and this story is set in the same universe as that of the Secret Admirer, Spike's Sacrifice series by 1jckuhn. The following chapters however, will all be written by me.

Prologue

The thunderous sounds of a stampede of multiple different hooves could be heard. As hundreds upon hundreds of different creatures. Far and wide, ran side by side towards the same destination. The stampede was also being followed by hundreds of creatures who were flying above them as one giant flock.

The army of different creatures were being led by six friends. Who work to help bring everybody together to help stop the evil threatening their world.

Ponies, Changelings, Dragons, Yaks, Griffons, Hippogriffs, Kirins, and Buffalos. Now stand together as one mighty army. All charging with great purpose and determination. To save their friends.

Everyone's goal was the same. Help The Mane Six in defending Equestria against the evil trio known as, The Legion of Doom or L.O.D. For short. And put a stop to their evil plans for world domination.

Even all those that were imprisoned in the cave's underneath, Canterlot were found and set free, and they too joined the mighty army. Although the royal sisters, the pillars, and Discord didn't have their magic still. That didn't stop them from joining the fight.

As the army drew closer to the battlefield, climbing to the top of the giant hill. It was in that moment that a large explosion could be heard, and before anyone could question what it was. All of the sudden the royal sisters, the pillars, and Discord got their magic back. Not wanting to linger on that right now. With a single *SNAP* Discord teleported the army to the top the hill, where everyone saw the Mane 6 group together down below. Without hesitation, the unicorns created a force field around the Mane 6 just in case, especially after hearing that loud explosion from earlier.

But after getting a good look at the battlefield, it would seem that the fight was already over.

Thorax and Ember were at the front of the pack. Behind them were Gabby, Smolder, the CMC, and Starlight. They saw the villain's lying unconscious, and the ponies sitting and hunched over someone or something. They flew down and inform the rest of the group.

“Tirek, Chrysalis, and Cozy Glow are knocked out. They don’t seem to have their enchanted powers anymore either, and Twilight and the girls seem fine, but they’re hunched over someone or something,” Thorax relayed.

“Can we head down there to see what the fuss is about?” Ember asked.

Yes, we can go with you,” Princess Celestia said. “My Sister and I will have our guards subdue these creatures before they can do anymore harm.”

"We're coming too," Smolder announced. "The Crusaders, Starlight, Gabby, and I have been away from our Spike for far too long."

With the company of the Princesses, Ember and Thorax flew down to the Element Bearers. Smolder scooped up the Crusaders and Gabby scooped up Starlight and they made their way down to the other harem members. As they got closer, they heard what sounded like crying coming from the ponies.

“Thorax, it sounds like they’re crying,” Ember said.

“Yeah,” Thorax replied. “I wonder what’s got them so upset.”

"Ehh," Smolder shrugged. "They're probably crying out of happiness. Probably because Spike saves the day yet again."

Celestia and Luna broke off with their guards to restrain the villains, while Ember and Thorax landed behind the ponies, followed be Smolder and Gabby. The dragon and Griffon set down the three other fillies and Unicorn before they turned their attention toward the still sobbing Element Bearers.

The ponies didn’t acknowledge the arrival of the Dragon Lord, Changeling King, and the other half of the harem. They just continued to sob hysterically. At first, they were confused by their conduct. Then, they noticed the ground beneath where the ponies were sitting bearing a rather odd, reddish colour. They felt uneasy at the odd sight and gave each other worried looks. Immediately, they walked at a brisk pace around the force field to get a better look at what got them in such a hysterical state. As they made their way around, they could hear the agonizing wails of the Element Bearers grow more vivid. They were halfway around when they glanced at the ground and now had a better look at the large pool of red on the ground. Then, through the crowd of ponies, Gabby noticed a small patch of purple with some green with streaks of dark red peppering it. They others took notice of when she was looking at and instantly, the worst-case scenario started running through all their heads.

"You don't think-" Gabby started to say before a lump formed in her throat, making her unable to finish her sentence.

The eight creatures went from a brisk walk to sprinting. The millisecond they got to where they were facing the ponies, their eyes widened, and all, but one, let out a horrified gasp. The one who didn’t gasp was Smolder, who let out a loud, blood-curdling scream. The ponies stopped crying and looked up at the new arrivals. By this point, Twilight had scooped up Spike's body and was now softly cradling him.

On instinct, Starlight stuck her hoof out in front of the view of the Crusaders, trying to prevent them from observing the grisly sight before them, but her efforts were too little too late. The three fillies knocked her hoof away and raced to the force field, banging on it frantically. Everyone else just stood and stared at the scene before them as the reality of the situation quickly began to sink in.

“N-No, i-it can’t be,” Thorax sputtered.
“I-Is he d-dead?” Ember asked, hesitant to say the last word of her question.

"Y-Yes,” Rarity managed to choke out between sobs. “S-Spike’s d-dead!”

Ember and Thorax felt tears welling up in their eyes as they saw the dragon that had helped them get into the position they were in now. The tears on the faces of Smolder, Gabby, Starlight, and the Crusaders had already welled up in their eyes and were now seeping down their cheeks and falling like sorrow rain onto the ground at the sight of the magical, little Dragon who had successfully won their love, now reduced to nothing more than a bloody mess.

“Celestia! Luna!” screamed Thorax, trying his best not to break down and start sobbing right then and there.

“What? What's wrong?” Luna asked as she and Celestia ran over to them.

“Spike’s gone! He’s dead!” Thorax cried as he finally broke down.

Celestia and Luna ran over to where the sobbing Element Bearers were, saw Spike’s limp body, and quickly flew up to the hill crest where all of Equestria was waiting.

“Deactivate the force field, now,” Celestia ordered, starting to feel nauseous from the gruesome sight of Spike's corpse.

“What’s the matter, Princesses?” Chancellor Neighsay asked.

“Spike is dead, we need to get a better look at the damage to him,” Luna said trying her best not cry.

Without another word every Unicorn’s horn stopped glowing. The force field vanished instantly. The second it did, Ember, Thorax, and the other half of Spike's harem bolted to the huddle of ponies and joined them. Once they got a good look at their fallen friend and lover, they almost passed out. They immediately noticed how Spike's little torso, arms, and legs were impaled by so many shards of Groger’s bell, how his body was drenched in about 70 percent of his blood volume from all his deep cuts and scratches, how his entire torso was burnt almost to a crisp, the only thing on his wings that remained were two bloody, fleshy, stumps on his back, how there were burned pieces and bone fragments of him that peppered the grassy field under and around him, and how the ground beneath him was soaked in red from the other 30 percent of his lost blood. His eyes were peacefully closed. If it weren't for all his horrible injuries, they would've thought he was sleeping.

“Spike, no,” Ember choked out as she felt tears starting to ooze down her cheeks. "P-Please, no."

She put a finger on Spike left wrist, which was surprisingly undamaged, to somehow hold out hope that he was still alive. She didn’t feel a pulse. It was at this moment that Ember and Thorax knew that Spike, the dragon that had helped clear Thorax’s name for him to be accepted into Pony kind, the dragon who had melted Ember’s walls and had helped her reach the Bloodstone Sceptre in order to become the new Dragon Lord, and the dragon who had captured the hearts of a dozen girls, was no more.

The Princesses, after what seemed like forever, flew down to join the other 14 lamenting creatures. Garble also followed them down there. He knew that his sister needed him more than ever to get through this event. All 17 creatures were all overcome with grief looking down at Spike's destroyed body. The villains were defeated and Equestria was safe from the Legion of Doom, but at what cost? Spike, a kid, had given up his life for his friends, his mare friends, his family, and his home.

“Twilight,” whispered Celestia, her eyes starting to fill with fresh tears. “What happened?”

After hearing this, Twilight stopped crying and got the composure to speak. Celestia felt heartbroken staring down at her pupil’s sad, red-rimmed, puffy eyes.

The lavender Alicorn tearfully explained how Spike had grabbed the bell, had taunted the Legion of Doom into chasing him, and how he tricked them into destroying the object that was responsible for all their powers. She found it harder to speak as she went into detail about finding him in the rubble, how he had already accepted his fate, and in his final words to them saying that as long as his friends and Equestria were safe, that was all that mattered. She then told the other half of Spike's harem about how he told Element Bearers to let them know that he loved them.

The thought of reciting the awful scene to the Princesses, Ember, Thorax, and the other six harem members made the Twilight and her friends cry even harder. Thorax, Starlight, the Princesses all silently cried. Smolder, Gabby, and the Crusaders began to bawl hysterically. None of them said a word. Ember, however, was a different story.

“No! No! No! This isn’t fair! THIS ISN'T FAIR!!!” Ember screamed as she fell to her knees, repeatedly punched the ground, and finally began crying hysterically looking at the destroyed body that was once her best friend. “Spike didn’t deserve this!”

From the hillcrest above, Dragons, Ponies, Changelings, Griffons, Hippogriffs, Yaks, Buffalos, and Kirins all began to cry silently. No creature had peeled their eyes away from where the Princesses, Element Bearers, Dragon Lord, and Changeling King were all huddled around their fallen comrade.

Equestria hadn't lost an ordinary hero that day, it had lost its saviour that day.

There was one creature, however, that felt the saddest and guiltiest out of them all. Discord. He had long since teleported down to the group after hearing the terrible news. He stood close by, staring down at the now decease drake as he was held in Twilight's forelegs.

“Oh, Spike,” he whispered to no one in particular, tears stinging his eyes. “I did this. I’m so sorry.”

Though she couldn't hear what he said, Twilight was still able to recognize Discord's voice, which caught her immediate attention.

"YOU!!!!" Twilight shriek unfamiliar hatred on her face. "You stay away from us!"

Discord back away as if he was struck.

"THIS IS ALL YOUR FAULT!!!!"

Twilight yelled with absolute rage, while pointing an accusive hoof at the chaos god. "You're the one who started this, everything would have been fine if it wasn't for WHAT YOU DID!" Twilight drops her hoof to hug Spike as more tears fell from her eyes. "Spike would still be alive if it wasn't for you!" She said sombrely her rage instantly replace by great sadness.

Thorax, Ember, the crusaders, Gabby, and Smolder were all very confused by, Twilight's accusation. How was this all Discord's fault. Wasn't it the L.O.D. that killed Spike? Before either of them could even ask, they saw, Rarity steps in between Discord and her friends. Using her magic, she grabs the Draconequus, by his beard, pulled him straight down to her eye level before stomping a hoof down on his beard to hold him in place, as she leans into Discord's face, her own a mask of rage, grief, and regret.

"She's absolutely right, this is all your fault you stupid, ghastly, BEAST! There's no one else to blame for this mess, but you and you alone. After all this was your ASSININE PLAN that made this tragic outcome possible in the first place." Rarity then points her free hoof at the still unconscious evil trio. "Those three may have caused his death," She points at Discord. "but it was you who decided to bring them together and make them a greater threat than they ever were before. You never once thought even for a second how HORRIBLE your plan was, or how things could go terribly wrong, well," Using her magic once more she grabs, Discord by the beard again and force him to get a closer look at Spike's corpse. "HAVE A GOOD LOOK AT WHAT YOUR ACTIONS LED TO. LOOK AT THE CONSEQUENCES THAT YOUR PLAN BROUGHT UPON POOR SPIKY WIKEY." Discord tried to turn away from the grizzly sight, but Rarity wouldn't give him the mercy to do so. "NO!" the fashion designer screamed as she then encase Discord's entire head in her magic. Once again forcing him to stare at the consequence of his actions. "YOU DON'T GET TO JUST TURN AWAY FROM THIS!" she growled as she held the chaos god in place. Making sure he gets a good look at what he caused. "HE'S DEAD BECAUSE OF YOU!!! HE HAD TO SACRIFICE HIMSELF TO SAVE US ALL BECAUSE OF YOU AND YOUR FUCKING TEST!!!!!!"

"Test!?" Said Ember.

"What test?" Asked Thorax.

They along with Smolder, Gabby, and The Crusaders have been paying close attention to everything that Twilight and Rarity had said, the same goes for the large army of multiple different creatures, who had come down from the hill and surrounded the group. Everyone who didn't know exactly what was going on were confused about why Discord was being blamed for Spike's death when it was the evil trio who killed him.

To Discord's absolute shock it was Fluttershy who stood up to address everyone. "Of course! You all have the right to know, after all." Fluttershy said. Wiping the tears from her eyes, then turning her attention to the surrounding crowd. "This was actually supposed to be a test that Discord set up himself. He purposely freed both Tirek and Cozy glow from their cells in Tartarus, he brought Sombra back from the nether, and pluck Chrysalis from herself exile. All while pretending to be some ancient villain named Grogar, and recruited the four of them, so they can work together to defeat us and take over Equestria. But all that was actually a part of his real plan to help Princess Twilight gain confidence in ruling Equestria."

Everyone gasps in horror at the news, causing Discord to flinch in fear. He could feel his heart shatter into pieces as the pony he considers to be his best friend had now turned against him and why wouldn't she after what he did.

The crowd was flabbergasted. They didn't know what to think, with this info.

Tears once again started to form in Fluttershy's eyes. "Unfortunately, his plan went off the rails when the evil trio found him out and stripped him of his chaos powers and the Princesses of their magic. Luckily, however, the Legion of Doom didn't get to overthrow all of Equestria, but that was because," The tears in her eyes started to fall. "Spike sacrifice himself to save us all." She said before falling onto her haunches and started crying again. The pain of losing Spike once again hit her full force. Rarity release Discord, so she can comfort her friend despite being just as broken up as she was.

Now that they got a full explanation the crowd was shocked at everything they just heard. The sadness they all felt just moments ago turned to outright anger as they all glared at the one responsible for all of this.

After Rarity had release him, Discord slowly stood back up. Once he got his bearings, he quickly notices everyone staring at him angrily, as he was now surrounded by the crowd, all alone as he stood in the centre. The large army of multiple different creatures who stood as one against the L.O.D. now stand against him the mastermind behind it all.

Discord didn't know what to do. Despite having his powers back, he never felt so helpless. Now that everyone knows what he had done. He could only guess what will happen to him now...

Chapter 1

Something has gone wrong. We don't seem to have an archived copy of that chapter.

Chapter 2

A few days had passed since Spike’s admission to the hospital, and neither of the mares in his harem had moved since. Big Mac and Garble dropped by occasionally to make sure that they would eat.

Garble would also constantly check on his sister, who kept blaming herself. “If I had just gotten there a little faster...or if I had stayed by his side, I could have saved him!” she tells Garble.

“Smolder, its not your fault. The only ones to blame are Discord and the Legion of Doom. Even if you were there, you wouldn’t have been able to stop the magic from hitting Spike.”

“I could’ve taken the blast...”

“And then Spike would have been here, heart broken over you. Look, Smolder. I know it’s hard for you to think otherwise, but it’s not your fault, ok? It’s not your fault at all. Stay strong for Spike...for me... ”

In the emergency room of the Canterlot Hospital, Nurse Redheart was busy directing the doctors on what to do regarding the young drake, who had a full body cast on due to the injuries he had sustained. A knock sounded on the door, and an assistant opened it to reveal a few changelings, all wearing nurse scrubs. One bore a vial in his hooves, and the head nurse nodded to acknowledge their presence.

“Forgive my delay, Nurse Redheart,” spoke the doctor, “but this was quite a difficult potion to put together. The last time we’ve had to make this-” he shuddered slightly from the memories. “Let’s just say it wasn’t good times back then.”

“You’re sure this will work?” she asks, eyebrow raised.

“Positive,” affirms the doctor, and steps forth. The other doctors step aside and the changeling hovers over Spike’s back, the only part of his body that had been spared from the bandages.

His assistants, knowing what to do, take up their positions, and as he begins pouring the lotion, they gently rub it into the young drake’s wings. When the last drop falls, the changeling lands and says, “We weren’t able to create a potion that would repair his current wings, but this was the closest we could come.”

“So this potion will...”

“Give him changeling wings in place of the ones he currently has, and there may or may not be a few changes to his appearance. As this was only ever tested on changelings, and it was found that it often gave them a new horn-”

“Spike may grow a changeling horn,” states Redheart.

“Yes.”

She nods, wondering how to tell this news to Spike’s harem. “Thank you again, doctor Aristos.”

Spike was now in the recovery room, where he would have to stay for a few days so that the nurses could monitor his physical health. Almost as soon as Nurse Redheart leaves the room, Smolder approaches her. “Can we see Spike?” she asks, pleadingly.

To the dragoness’ surprise, the nurse nods. “You may,” she says, “but don’t make any loud noises around him. Spike is still recovering after all.”

Smolder dashes into the room, shortly followed by Scootaloo and the rest of the harem.

Spike opens his eyes slowly, wincing as the harsh, bright lights of the hospital are the first thing to greet his vision. Shielding his eyes with an arm, he winces as he feels a dull pain in his back, near his wings, which slowly spreads to that same, stinging sensation all over his body. His body aches, and he struggles to recall what had occurred to result in all this pain.

His eyes start to adjust to the still too bright lights, and he hears someone calling his name. He rubs his eyes and starts to make out a tall, orange blur next to his bed, which slowly turns into Smolder and Scootaloo.

The former joyfully says, “Spike!” Amidst tears leaking from her eyes, she hugs the young drake, being mindful not to hurt him.

“S-smolder?” Spike asks, his voice cracking due to the dry feeling in his throat.

“I’m so glad to see you awake again, Spike,” exclaims Scootaloo, though keeping her voice a little low as she didn’t want to disturb her lover.

“We all are,” says Twilight, a warm smile on her face.

“I was so scared,” adds Fluttershy.

“This one couldn’t get a wink o’ sleep,” says Applejack, playfully as she nudges Rainbow Dash.

The pegasus responds, “Not like you did either!”

“You’re darn right ah didn’t.”

Rarity steps forward and hugs Spike, her azure eyes glistening. “Please promise you’ll never scare me like that again, Spikey- Wikey.”

Spike smiles at the use of his old nickname, but says, “I can’t promise, but I’ll try.”

As Gabby, Sweetie Belle and Apple Bloom take Rarity’s place to talk to Spike, Pinkie Pie enters the room with some water in a jug, as well as a glass, which she fills up. “Just for you!” she says cheerfully as she hands the glass to Spike, who gulps it down eagerly.

Pinkie’s fur seemed much brighter now, and her mane was even bouncy again, which showed just how happy she was. Although she was a little saddened that Spike was still hooked up to an IV tube as well as a heart monitor, she knew his condition was much better now.

“I’ll throw you the best, biggest, most fun party ever when we’re out of the hospital and those fiends are dealt with,” she promises.

Spike smiles. “I’ll be looking forward to it.”

Starlight hugs him, wiping tears from her eyes. “Don’t leave me again Spike.”

“I won’t.” He drinks some more water, and asks, “What’s going to happen to Discord?”

Upon hearing the name of the Lord of Chaos, the entire room visibly darkens. “That traitor’s going to be punished for what he did,” Starlight hisses.

Spike’s smile falters slightly.

“It hasn’t been decided what will be done to him,” says Twilight. “But he will be put on trial soon.”

“Oh,” says Spike. “Just…don’t kill him, please? He didn’t intend for such an outcome.”

Sweetie Belle sighs. “Oh, Spike, you are too kind. Even after all of this…you’re still forgiving him?”

“He really didn’t want such an outcome, and even if this is what happened in the end, I’m still alive, right?”

“But you nearly died,” whispers Fluttershy.

Spike pauses for a few seconds. “Just promise me you won’t kill him. Or torture him.”

Twilight sighs. “Okay.”

A week passes since Spike was discharged from the hospital. He and his harem had returned to Ponyville, and they were currently having a cuddle session in Spike’s spacious bedroom. The drake was feeling physically better with each passing day, and he was able to walk a short distance by himself, as opposed to the days directly following his discharge, when he had to rely on one of his harem members to move from place to place.

He revels in the warmth and soft fur of the girls around him as he wakes up. He missed this.

Spike makes no move, simply lying there with his eyes closed in contentment. Perhaps a few more minutes wouldn’t hurt, he decides, and snuggles deeper into the inviting warmth.

It was now the afternoon, and Spike was sitting on a sofa in the living room. Twilight, who sat next to him, was reading a story out loud, and it was quite relaxing.

Rarity approaches them, with a few mugs of tea as well as a pot of sugar and milk in her magical aura, and sets them down on the table. Spike is about to greet her, but notices someone else following her and asks in surprise, “Thorax?!”

“Spike!” greets the king of the changelings, a grin on his face as he throws his hooves around the young dragon. “Words can’t tell how happy I am that you’re alive!” He takes notice of Spike’s new wings, as well as the horns on the sides of his head and in the middle of his forehead. “I guess the potion worked well?” Spike nods, and Thorax excitedly continues, “I could teach you changeling magic!”

“I’d actually be able to use it?” Spike asks. He had guessed as much, but hearing Thorax actually mention it made his heart race in anticipation.

Rarity takes a seat, gesturing for Thorax to do so, and the latter continues, “Yes! It’s going to be so much fun!”

Twilight smiles softly. “But that will have to wait for until Spike is fully recovered.”

Thorax nods, but his excitement doesn’t diminish in the slightest. Rarity hears the bell, and gets up to answer the door. When she returns with a tall blue dragoness, Thorax is in the middle of explaining changeling magic to Spike, but pauses once he sees Ember.

“Spike!” the dragon greets enthusiastically. She hugs the dragon carefully. “It’s great to see you again.” She gestures to his horns and wings once she’s released him. “I’m pretty sure those weren’t there last time.”

Spike chuckles. “It’s a long story…”

"Hey Twily," says Shining Armor, that evening, having just come from The Crystal Empire along with his wife and daughter. "You sent a letter asking us to come? What happened? I mean, we were going to swing by to see Spike, but your letter sounded urgent, so we dropped everything and rushed here."

Twilight smiles warmly, greeting her guests. "Why don't you all come in first? Spike's over here," she says, leading them to the living room, where Starlight and Spike now are together, doing a crossword. The alicorn blushes. "Sorry if we're disturbing you."

"Not at all, Twilight," says Starlight, standing up upon seeing the rulers of the Crystal Empire.

She's about to bow, but Cadance holds up a hoof. "There's no need to be so formal, Starlight."

"Hey Spike," greets Shining, approaching the dragon he considers as a younger brother. "How have you been?"

"I've had better days, but my mares all know how to make me feel better," responds the drake. "How about you?"

The white unicorn shrugs. "Flurry's still been having nightmares..." The filly in question jumps off of her mother's back and hugs Spike, happily babbling as she does so.

"What's up Flurry?" asks Spike, ruffling her mane affectionately.

"Yeah, how's my favourite niece doing?" Twilight coos...

After everyone's settled down, the family, excluding Flurry Heart, is in the map room. Starlight offers some tea and biscuits, which everyone accepts. "Wow, these biscuits are really something else, Starlight," Cadance compliments.

Twilight smiles, trying one herself. Her eyes widen slightly. "Wow... You're right Cadance. Starlight, I never knew you were so good at baking!"

The light purple unicorn blushes, rubbing a hoof against the back of her neck. "It's nothing," she says, smiling as she leaves.

"So you're all wondering why I called you here," begins Twilight, to which her brother and sister in law nod in response. "Well...remember the whole thing with Sombra returning to take over the Crystal Empire?"

Shining Armour’s expression hardens and the Princess of Love winces.

"How can we forget, especially after he almost kidnapped Flurry?" asks Cadance.

Her husband, however is tired of waiting. "What about it, Twilight?"

"Discord's the one who brought him back from the dead. All because he wanted to make some test for me," the Princess continues. "He was also the one who made the Legion of Doom, while posing as an ancient foe of Equestria- Grogar."

"Discord did this?" the former captain of the Royal Guard spits out in disbelief.

Twilight nods, and Cadance seethes, "I knew he couldn't be trusted."

"How dare he," continues Shining. "How dare he do this! All because of him, my daughter almost got taken captive by some crazy ex-King, you all got put in danger, and Spike almost died!"

"He cannot get away with this," states Cadance angrily, and Shining nods.

"And he won't," promises Twilight. "He's been arrested, and his trial is tomorrow."

"Tell me, Twilight," says Shining Armor, an angry expression on his face, "what can Cadance and I do to help?"

It was the day of the trial, and ponies files into the court room to see justice be served. Discord trembles behind the bars of the box-like thing he stands in, keeping his gaze level with the ground as he doesn't want to see all the hateful glares ponies are giving him.

Princess Celestia and Luna stand behind the judges podium, and the former bangs a small hammer on the podium, calling order in the court. "We are all gathered here today to witness the trial of the mastermind behind the Legion of Doom, Discord." Ponies begin booing at the mention of the draconequus' name, and the Solar Monarch bangs the hammer a few more times to bring peace. "How do you plead?" she asks the draconequus'.

Knowing that he was more than guilty, Discord says, "Guilty."

Celestia nods in acknowledgement. Princess Luna says, "Prince Shining Armor of the Crystal Empire has gathered quite a bit of information, to show that this creature is guilty of more than one crime."

Taking this as his cue, Shining steps forward and casts a projecting spell. "Yes, that's right, he's not only guilty of creating the Legion of Doom whilst posing as an ancient foe of Equestria, otherwise known as Grogar," a picture of the three infamous villains and 'Grogar' is projected onto the wall, "but he was also the one responsible for reviving King Sombra, who destroyed the Tree of Harmony, tried to kidnap my daughter, and terrorized the entire population of Crystal Ponies."

As the picture changes to that of Sombra attempting to take over the Crystal Empire and almost succeeding, Shining continues, "And this is not the first time he has betrayed Equestria. A few years ago, when Tirek escaped from Tartarus, Discord helped him to steal the magic of every pony in Equestria. Many died from having all their magic drained, and quite a few houses and buildings were destroyed, including the Golden Oaks Library, which was both a library and a home for my sister."

"His foolishness with creating the Legion of Doom also nearly caused Spike to lose not only his wings, but his life." The Prince nods, signalling that he is done, and Princess Celestia hisses, "Is there anything you would like to say, Discord?"

"I know it's pointless now, but I'm sorry. I only ever wanted to make Twilight feel comfortable enough to take on the position of the ruler of Equestria, but as usual, my plans didn't work out. I thought that if Twilight was able to defeat those three," he points to the Legion of Doom, "she would feel much more confident. And a small part of me hoped that they would end up accepting the magic of friendship after I forced them to work together. I truly am sorry, especially to you, Spike." He doesn't say anything else, glaring at the Legion of Doom while the council decides his fate. It's all their fault that I'm in this position now.

The council discusses amongst themselves, but just as they're about to speak, Spike surprises everyone present by standing up and saying, "I know that his mistakes almost cost me my life, and endangered all of Equestria, but I know that Discord didn't plan for things to turn out this way, so please don't punish him too harshly."

Princess Celestia sighs and says, "Very well then. Discord, under the verdict of the Royal Court, you are sentenced to life in the Canterlot Dungeons."

As the guards begin to drag him away, Discord shoots one last glare at the Legion of Doom, who merely smirk. They ruined everything. They just couldn't accept friendship, huh? All because of them, not only will I never see the light of day again, but I will never be able to be with Fluttershy. Just as he's taken towards the exit, he whispers, "Thank you, Spike," knowing that if it weren't for the young drake's request, his fate would have been much more worse.

Author's Note

I've got no idea how to write a trial, but I did my best. Don't forget to vote/like, comment, favourite and share!

Chapter 3

After Discord's trial ended, the court was adjourned, and only Spike, and the Princesses remained in the court room, as he had something to say to them. Princess Celestia takes a sip of water from a glass she had a maid bring to her, and then says, more to herself than anyone else, "One down, three more to go."

"On that note, Princess Celestia, I've been wanting to ask you something," Spike states.

" Go ahead," the Solar Monarch prompts, arching an eyebrow.

Spike says, unhesitatingly, "Tirek and Chrysalis definitely deserve a harsh sentence, but about Cozy Glow... Well, I just don't feel right about a filly being punished so severely. I know she's committed crimes, but before just convicting her, can we have a closer look?"

"You wish for an investigation to be done of Cozy Glow?" asks Princess Luna curiously.

"Yeah, I guess so," replies Spike. "We literally know nothing about her. Her family background, any problems at home, anything that caused her to become like this- it's all one huge mystery. The first time she tried to take over Equestria, she was just sent straight to Tartarus, without a trial or anything. No one even tried to understand why she tried to do it. It was just chalked down to, 'she's evil' and that was it. This time, I want things to be made fair."

"Well, now that I think about it, her case is rather intriguing," muses Celestia. " Yes, I think investigating her case would shed light as to why a filly chose the side of evil... "

Princess Luna nods. "This means the trial of the Legion of Doom shall be delayed. Rest well, Spike, we shall inform you of the results."

" Thank you both, again, " Spike says, and leaves to find his harem waiting.

"What did you talk to the Princesses about?" asks Gabby.

" Cozy Glow, " he states, and everyone's face stiffens at the name.

"What about * her*?" asks Apple Bloom, not hiding her disgust.

"Calm down, you all," he says, and as they start to leave the Canterlot Castle, relates the previous scene to them...

"I just hope you're making the right choice," says Twilight .

"My gut's telling me to go along with it," Spike reassures her.

"Gut feelings can be trusted!" says Pinkie randomly.

" Well, let's wait and see, " says Applejack, as the group reaches the train station, where they buy their tickets and board the train.

The following morning, Spike is having his cuddle time with Starlight, who is smiling as she feeds him strips of bread coated with cinnamon sugar.

"Mmm, this tastes amazing," moans the dragon in delight .

Starlight winks. "Anything will taste amazing if it's made with love."

"I'm not kidding- you're so good at baking, you could probably compete with Pinkie Pie. You should seriously consider opening a bakery or something," Spike says.

The unicorn blushes. "Thanks Spike."

"Thank you, Starlight."

The pair sit in silence for a while, enjoying each other's company, until the light purple unicorn says, "So...Trixie's planned to go camping today, and since it's our night to spend together..."

Spike raises his eyebrows, already having a good idea of what she means, but waiting for his marefriend to continue.

She brushes a stray stand of mane out of her face before doing so. "I was thinking that you should come along."

"While that sounds like a great idea, I wouldn't want to intrude on your plans with Trixie, " he says. "I'm not sure she'd appreciate all our pda, and it's good to hang out with your friends once in a while instead of being with me twenty-four seven."

"I'm sure that even if I did get to have you all to myself, twenty-four seven, every single day of the week, I'd still be pining for you if we were separated, even for a few seconds," she says. "I already asked Trixie, and she was fine with it. As long as we don't do anything more than cuddling. Besides, she told me, 'The great and powerful Trixie would love to have more friends along, especially when said friend is a dragon' or something like that, " Starlight continues, rolling her eyes at the last part. "You know how Trixie is."

" Well, if she's fine with it, then sure, let's go. I've always wanted to go camping. Twilight's never had time for it though, so I've never camped," Spike admits.

"You never went camping?" Starlight asks, widening her eyes. "Like, ever?"

"Never."

"I'm going to make sure that you go on the best camping trip of your life," she vows.

Spike nuzzles into her neck. "I'm looking forward to it."

Twilight frowns as she reads her mentors latest letter. "Find Cozy Glow's family or anyone related to her? That's going to be easier said than done..."

Meanwhile, Starlight and Spike were packing their supplies for the camping trip. "Marshmallows, blankets, tents... Yeah, we've got everything," says the latter.

Starlight says, "What are we waiting for then? Let's get going!"

Just as they're leaving, Applejack says, "You're going to the Everfree forest, right? Be careful in there."

"With my fire and Starlight and Trixie's magic, no timberwolves will stand a chance against us, " Spike says, "but we'll be careful. Thanks for the pies, AJ."

The farmer tips her hat. "Nothin' I won't do for my sweet boyfriend."

Once Spike and Starlight are gone, Twilight gathers everyone in the throne room. "So, we all know about Spike's request to the Princesses, who have granted it. And...Princess Celestia wants me to find Cozy Glow's family, somehow," she says.

" You want us all to help, " Rainbow Dash states more than asks.

"No need to worry, Twilight, we've got you covered," says Applejack.

"We're all willing to help," chimes in Sweetie Belle.

"Thanks guys," says the Princess of Friendship. "I don't know what I'd do without you all."

"Probably fall in a ditch and look lame all the time," Rainbow Dash jokes.

As everyone laughs, Twilight fixes her friend with an unamused stare. "Not funny, Rainbow."

Author's Note

This is more of a filler than anything. PS: This was featured and I missed it?!

Chapter 4

A young Unicorn Colt with moderate blue colored fur, a sky-blue mane and tail, cyan eyes, and wore a turquoise baseball-style hat and a saddlebag was running to the Friendship Castle as fast as he could. His name was Cobalt Blitz and he was famous for running away from home and making the bad side of Canterlot free of its thugs, getting the nickname "Runaway Ruler". There was one secret, however, that he had never told anyone about when he was living there. That was going to be revealed to Twilight and her friends today.

Twilight was getting no luck trying to find any parents or siblings for Cozy Glow. Not even any aunts, uncles, or cousins were showing up in her data base, but her friends and she were about to get the shock of their lives today. There was a knock at the front door, and the lavender Alicorn trotted over to answer it. She opened it to reveal a Unicorn Colt with moderate blue colored fur, a sky-blue mane and tail, cyan eyes. He wore a turquoise baseball-style hat and a brown saddlebag. He was out of breath and could barely speak.

"May I *pant* come in *pant*, please?" He croaked out, sounding like he had a sore throat.

"Uh, sure," Twilight said. She assumed that this colt was another one of her many fans.

"Thank *pant* you," He said, sounding a bit better than before now that he had stopped running.

"Twilight, what's goin' on out there?" came a heavy southern accent.

Cobalt instantly recognized that voice as Applejack's. He was a big fan of all of them and had seen them on several occasions. He was a very smart kid and could recognize anyone by their voice.

"We have a visitor, Applejack. Oh, I almost forgot, what's your name?" Twilight asked.

"Cobalt Blitz," he responded, his voice almost fully restored.

Applejack came into the hallway, followed by Rainbow Dash, Pinkie Pie, Fluttershy, Rarity, The Cutie Mark Crusaders, Gabby, Smolder, and Garble. When Pinkie saw Cobalt, she immediately became really excited.

"Ohmygosh! Ohmygosh! Ohmygosh! Girls do you realize who this is?!" She squeaked.

"Uh, no..." Rainbow Dash, confused by her friend's sudden change in demeanor.

"You seriously don't know the story of Cobalt Blitz? The Runaway Ruler?!" Pinkie asked, shocked by the oblivious nature of her friends.

"Well, we've heard of him, but we've never seen him," Rainbow Dash said.

"Well, I'm him," Cobalt sighed. Like many ponies, he wanted to make his mark on the world, but this was not what he wanted to be known as. He was honestly expecting ponies to be mad at, or even shunning, him for pulling a stunt like that. He wasn't expecting for every kid in his class asking for his autograph, nor was he expecting ponies on the street congratulating him for his efforts, let alone the heroes of Equestria that he stood before today.

"No. Way," Rainbow Dash said. "I can't believe it. Cobalt Blitz is in our castle. I have so many questions to ask. How many ponies did you defeat who dared to stand in your way? How did you manage to get every thug out of Canterlot? What was it like being a runaway?"

"Okay, we're getting off topic here. This is not why I came here," Cobalt said. He opened his saddlebag with his magic, which had mastered very recently, pulled out a photo, and showed it to the ponies.

Everyone's faces were given quite a shock when they saw it. It was a picture of Cobalt Blitz, but it was who he was next to who got everyone's attention. It was Cozy Glow. Cobalt and Cozy were looking at the camera with a big wide smile.

"I believe you know who this is," Cobalt said.

"It's...Cozy, b-but...how?" Sweetie Belle stammered, feeling absolute shock come over her.

"Listen, I've never told anyone this, but I was the only one who was the closest to Cozy Glow. She had no family and no friends since she was a foal," Cobalt said. " I've heard that you're trying to find anyone who might be considered family to Cozy. It's best you quit now, please. Trust me, you're going to find absolutely no family members on her. I've tried that myself and I too came up with nothing. If you could get Celestia and Luna to come over here so I can talk to them about Cozy's origins and why she's so crazy, that'd be great."

"Certainly, Cobalt," Twilight said. "Rainbow Dash, can you please go get Celestia and Luna? You're the fastest flyer out of all of us."

"You can count on me, Twi," Rainbow Dash said confidently. "I can get there in ten seconds flat. Okay, that's an exaggeration, but I can get there pretty fast."

With that Rainbow Dash grabbed the photo of Cobalt and Cozy (after asking politely of course), ran out the front door, and flew as fast as she could to Celestia and Luna's castle.

***

Celestia and Luna were calmly sitting on their throne chairs when the front doors suddenly flew open, and Rainbow Dash skidded to a stop in front of them.

"Rainbow Dash, what's the rush?" Celestia asked.

"Listen, do either of you know of the "Runaway Ruler"?" Rainbow Dash asked back.

"Yes, what about him?" Luna said.

"He's got pictures of himself and, you're not going to believe this, Cozy Glow!" Rainbow Dash said. She out a picture of Cozy and Cobalt smiling at the camera and showed it to them, both Royal Sisters were shocked. "He's requested a visit from you both specifically. He says that he wants to help us with Cozy's origins so we can finally figure out why Cozy is so psychotic."

"Bring him here at once," says Celestia. "As well as the others. It will be easier to discuss here ."

Rainbow salutes and flies off.

***

Cobalt had taken a seat in the Living room of the Castle, patiently waiting for Rainbow to return. The other 12 creatures were looking at all the photos from Cobalt's saddlebag he brought along. There were so many pictures of Cozy and him smiling at the camera. There were also pictures of Cozy and Cobalt alone in the shot. No doubt the other was holding the camera. Everyone heard the front door open and in stepped Rainbow Dash, who relays what Celestia told her.

"I can teleport us all there," says Twilight , and without hesitating, does so, rubbing her horn shortly afterwards. "I forgot how draining it was..."

Cobalt bolted down the hallway, and into the throne room as fast as he could. Celestia and Luna were surprised to see a blue unicorn colt barreling to them at full speed. He skidded to a stop in front of them and stayed silent for a few seconds to catch his breath.

"Hello, Princesses. My name is Cobalt Blitz. I have information on why Cozy Glow became the way she was," Cobalt said, his eyes locked onto those of both Royal Sisters'.

"Yes, we've seen the picture Rainbow Dash gave us," Celestia said. She looked up to see Twilight running in, no doubt to find where Cobalt had run off to.

"Twilight, do you mind if Luna and I talk to Cobalt alone, please?" Celestia asked. "I promise we'll tell you everything he's told us after he's finished."

"Very well," Twilight said. She gave Cobalt one last warm smile, which the colt returned, and trotted back to the hallway.

Cobalt was more than happy to go with the Princesses. At long last, the reasons behind Cozy Glow's insane nature would finally be revealed. Staring at the picture he held, the thought that Cozy's unstable mind and uncontrolled rage almost took a life never left his head.

"Alright, Cobalt," Luna said, snapping Cobalt out of his trance. The Princess of the Moon took out a clipboard with several pieces of paper attached to it. "Tell us everything you know, don't miss any detail."

The second Luna finished her sentence, Cobalt started talking, although slowly. He told them how he had run away from home because at the time he was always getting into arguments with his parents, and he claimed he was "sick of his parents setting up playdates for him with kids he shared absolutely nothing in common with" and believed his parents didn't "understand him". He knew his parents would be both in bed by 10:30 P.M. and planned to be ready to leave home by 11:15 P.M.

Using his allowance that he managed to save up over two years and change that he managed to scrounge off the street dropped by other ponies, he bought a tent, enough food and drinks to last him six months, a sleeping bag, two toothbrushes, two tubes of toothpaste, a comb, 10 dozen rolls of toilet paper, and shampoo and body wash so he could wash in the river. It wasn't easy, but he managed to stuff all his survival supplies under his bed and in the very back of his closet. He was able to obtain all these materials because he enjoyed watching shows about survival expeditions. He gained all the knowledge of the great outdoors and the dangers that came with it.

Tonight, would be the night he put all of his knowledge and materials to the test. Cobalt pretended to fall asleep that night and it was an agonizing two-and-three-quarters-of-an-hour wait for his digital alarm clock to finally signal when he could hit the road. The second the clock hit 11:15 P.M. that night, Cobalt grabbed a giant duffel bag, that he had also stashed under his bed, carefully put all his supplies inside of it, and was out the door like a rocket, although quietly because he didn't want to risk waking his parents up. The second he was out the door and was all alone in the middle of the night, he felt calm and at ease. The night was quiet, the air was cool and crisp, and the moon seemed to stare down upon him. His only sighting of any life was an owl that greeted him with a friendly "Hoo". Cobalt gave it a friendly wave back.

The runaway survivalist-wannabe had already found a perfect place in mind, Canterlot. He always wanted to go there, but his family and he never had time to go there. He lived about 15 miles outside the big city, but fortunately, he was right next to a train track that led right into the heart of it. He trekked no more than a mile on hoof before a slow-moving freight train approached him. He jumped in a nearby bush to avoid the conductors spotting him, before noticing one of the boxcars had a broken lock as it approached him. With no time to spare, he ran as fast as he could from his bush, jumped onto the boxcar, opened the door, and climbed inside. He was able to open a crate and stuff both himself and his duffel bag inside. Within an hour, the train arrived at the final station. Cobalt stayed inside his crate until he was transported to a warehouse right next to the final station. Then he snuck out with his supplies like a camouflage soldier. By now, it was almost 6:00 in the morning and fatigue was finally catching up with Cobalt. He looked for a place to set up his tent and catch a few hours of sleep.

Then, he came across a bench in a nearby park covered with newspaper. He would've paid it no attention if there wasn't a strand of sky-blue mane sticking out of it. He walked over to it and, very cautiously, pulled the newspapers back. Instantly, his fatigue faded. There laid a Pegasus the same age as him. She has pink fur, scarlet eyes, and it seemed she was getting sick, no doubt from the elements. Cobalt was shocked at what he saw and just couldn't leave her behind to suffer. He grabbed the unwell Filly, hoisted her up on his back, and continued on. Many were surprised to see such a small colt carry so much weight. Although most didn't know it, Cobalt was actually a very strong and tough kid who stood up for anyone who was bullied. He had a black belt in karate, and he was captain of the wrestling team. He'd sometimes be seen wrestling an older, meaner kid to the ground if he found them trying to intimidate or physically harm other kids who were younger and meeker.

Cobalt managed to find a secluded place with an herb bush at the top of a hill that overlooked Canterlot. The hill had a steep drop-off, and the duo had a charming view of the sunset. He set his tent up, unrolled his sleeping bag, and placed the sick Cozy Glow inside. Then he went over to the herb bush, plucked off a few branches, and began using his knowledge from his survivalist shows to whip up a cure to prevent his new friend from getting worse. That night, Cobalt slipped into the sleeping bag with Cozy and held her tight to keep her warm. Within two days, Cozy Glow was feeling well enough to talk. When Cobalt asked about where she came from, Cozy claimed that she didn't have a home or family and had been living on the streets since she was a foal. She also said that she had no clue who her parents even were. Cobalt felt absolutely horrible for her. This was a child who had no family, grew up on the street, and had no idea who her parents even were. It was a miracle to Cobalt that she was even here today.

By day five, Cozy was fully well again. She thanked Cobalt for what he did to make her feel better and was about to head back down the hill, but Cobalt stopped her. He absolutely refused to see this poor filly go all the way back down to those horrid streets where she had to fend for herself 24/7. He told her after all that she had gone through, seeing her back on the streets where she could very well get hurt again was the last thing he wanted. It wasn't just fear for Cozy's safety that Cobalt had on his mind, he also felt a personal connection with her as well. Cozy felt so touched. No one had ever cared this much about her before.

Then one day while the two new friends were on a walk, they both noticed a masked pony walking into a convenience store. Both kids immediately realized that from the way that pony acted, he was most likely going to rob the store. Cobalt and Cozy immediately followed the pony into the store and sure enough their suspicions were confirmed, and the pony aimed a gun at the clerk and demanded all the cash in the register. Cobalt nor Cozy could stand by and watch as the clerk nervously dropped the bits into the robber's sack. The duo ran inside, and Cobalt taunted the robber into chasing him while Cozy sneakily flew overhead and called the police. By the time the Police arrived, Cobalt had pinned the robber to the ground, and he actually begged the cops to take him away claiming that Cobalt was "crazy". The Police didn't need to be told twice, they handcuffed him and took him to the Police Station. The media caught wind of Cozy and Cobalt's heroic actions and they were swarmed with attention. Cozy and Cobalt couldn't care less about the media attention, they were just happy with their heroic deed. They would go on to prevent three crimes for back-to-back-to-back days. Two were robberies, the third was a murder attempt. Other bad guys began to catch on to the heroic duo's reputation. Most didn't have the guts to hurt them. They were kids after all. Seven of them, however, believed that they could easily beat in a fight Cozy and Cobalt if they all fought the duo together. The heptad was in for an unpleasant surprise when they met them, fortunately. Cozy had been taught fighting moves from Cobalt and Cobalt himself gave a personal demonstration of his favorite wrestling takedown moves on their would-be assailants. Within 15 minutes, Cobalt and Cozy had taken down every one of their foes. The cops arrived just as Cozy knocked out the last foe standing. They were very surprised because they had been called by someone fearing for Cozy and Cobalt's safety. Yet, here they were taking down their assailants single-handedly. All seven, like the first robber, cried and begged the cops to take them to jail. Cozy and Cobalt's reputation once again became stronger and now all criminals fully knew that it was best not to cross them ever.

For three months, the Pegasus and Unicorn were happy as can be with each other, fighting off the bad guys and gals and living like a King and Queen in the heart of Canterlot. That was until one fateful night when they were out stargazing at the top of the hill. The two had already set up their tent and had planned to go to bed in an hour. That's when they saw Cobalt's parents leading a group of police officers to them. Cobalt was later informed that an "anonymous source" tipped off the cops to their cops to their location. Cozy had already figured it out from the moment she saw the cops. They would've taken Cobalt back without a fight had an incensed Cozy Glow not interfered. During the struggle, Cozy tried to tackle an Officer, he shook her off, and she slid off the edge of the hill, bumping her head hard on the way down. There was a rock with a flat surface about halfway down and Cozy, by some miracle, landed on that rock. She was unconscious, but somehow still alive.

The police radioed to get a helicopter to get Cozy out of there, but they used the word "recovered". When Cobalt heard that, he finally broke down and cried. His lifelong friend was dead...or so they thought. When the Police arrived a few hours later to get Cozy off the cliffside, they couldn't find her anywhere, meaning she was still alive. Cobalt was overjoyed to find out his friend wasn't dead but was worried that she was lost and could be anywhere in Equestria. Throughout the next couple of months, ponies reported sightings of Cozy all throughout Equestria, but were unable to get a clear picture to confirm the cops' suspicions. No one dared confronting and chasing her as that might've short-circuited Cozy's temper.

Somewhere along the line, Cozy met Tirek and he convinced her to help him conquer Equestria. It was very likely that the hit to the head made Cozy Glow unable to control her rage, unpredictable, and very, very unstable. Tirek must've figured that out and exploited that to make her his minion.

As for Cobalt, after reuniting with his parents, they all underwent counseling together, and he has since rebuilt the bridge with them both.

Celestia and Luna were, to put it very lightly, shocked by what Cobalt Blitz had told them. Here was a boy who was able to melt Cozy's walls and become close to her and in the span of two minutes, it all fell apart.

"Look I know Cozy's probably going away for life because of this, but I just wanted to get that off my chest before she gets sentenced," Cobalt said.

"Well, thank you for sharing your story, Cobalt. I know that was hard for you to talk about," Celestia responded, placing a hoof on his shoulder.

"No, I wanted to tell you sooner," Cobalt replied. "I was planning to pay you a visit when I heard Cozy was imprisoned in Tartarus, but I misplaced my photos, and I feared you wouldn't believe me without them. By the time I did find them, I got word Cozy had mysteriously vanished from Tartarus. I never heard her name again until I saw what happened during that battle on the news and I knew this was my last chance."

Just then, two royal guards came into the room, followed by the Element Bearers.

They both took a bow, "Your highness."

"Greetings," Princess Celestia replied. "What can I do for the two of you?"

"It's Cozy Glow," one guard said. "It seems she's going back and forth between emotions. She's crying one minute and the next she's laughing manically."

"She's also saying something about it "teaching you a lesson about taking away her best friend in the whole world"," the other guard added.

Cobalt felt his gut drop. It was at this point he knew that Cozy had finally passed the point of no return. He just looked at the guard in shock before it turned into one of sadness. Celestia and Luna felt sorry for the young colt. Spike's harem and Garble also took notice of Cobalt's demeanor and they too felt sorry for the little guy.

"Alright, thank you for the information," Luna said. "We will head to the Canterlot dungeons shortly."

"Sure thing, your highness," the guards replied and took another bow.

Celestia and Luna had a feeling that this was coming. Even when Cozy seemed like a sweet and innocent filly, some ponies couldn't help but get a small vibe that something was off inside her mind.

Celestia and Luna thanked the guards for the new information and planed a visit for the dungeons tomorrow. They offered to take Cobalt along and he accepted the invitation in a heartbeat. He'd do anything to see his best friend one last time and have at least have some kind of closure.

Little did they know they were in for another unpleasant revelation when they next saw Tirek, Chrysalis, and the now finally snapped Cozy Glow.

MEANWHILE IN THE CANTERLOT DUNGEONS

When Twilight and the others had left the Dungeons in Canterlot, Cozy Glow broke down into a fit of sobs, tearfully saying how she was sorry for almost causing Spike to die. Two minutes later, it was a different story. Cozy's sobs slowly transitioned into maniacal laughter, babbling on about how Spike's near death would "teach Celestia and Luna a lesson for taking her best friend away from her" and that they now "knew how it felt to lose, or in their case, almost lose someone close to them". She kept going back and forth between crying and laughing manically. It was needless to say that at this point, the last of the severely mentally ill Pegasus' sanity seemed to have finally given out. Chrysalis seemed to enjoy Cozy's mood swings, even chuckling when she was about to shift moods. Tirek, on the other hand, couldn't help but feel a little uncomfortable by Cozy finally snapping right in front of him.

THE NEXT DAY

Right on schedule, Celestia, Luna, Cobalt, Garble, and Spike's harem were at the dungeons and were being led to Cozy, Tirek, and Chrysalis' cell. As they got closer, the ten ponies heard sobbing coming from their cell. By the time they got to the front of the cell and were facing the three villains, the sobbing was now slowly transitioning into maniacal laughter. Chrysalis saw the ten new arrivals and could not be happier to see them. Even if she loathed them unconditionally. Tirek saw them too but didn't say a word.

"Oh, thank god you're here," Chrysalis growled. "Shut that brat up, she's been crying and laughing all night. I haven't been able to get a wink of sleep."

24 hours ago, Chrysalis would've found Cozy's insanity funny, but that was before she was kept up all night by Cozy's loud crying and laughing.

The 16 heroes looked into a corner and there they saw Cozy Glow curled into a ball facing away from them. She was surrounded by a puddle of tears and her mane and tail were a tangled, soaked mess. Cobalt felt tears brimming in his eyes at the sight of his first friend finally going off the deep end. At Celestia's command, the guards unlocked the prison cell and they all stepped inside.

Cobalt bolted to Cozy and gently tapped on her shoulder. She flipped around and everyone felt a bit uneasy looking at her face. Her face had a twisted smile on her face, her eyes were red-rimmed and puffy, her pupils were dilated, her cheeks were soaked with tears, and she looked really, really crazy. When she saw Cobalt, however, her crazed expression turned into a shocked one. It seemed the sight of her best friend was slowly bringing her back to reality.

"C-Cobalt?" she spoke softly. "I-Is-Is it really you?"

"Yes, Cozy," Cobalt said, wrapping his friend in a hug. "Shh, it's okay. I'm here now."

Cozy suddenly broke free of Cobalt's grasp and stood protectively in front of him, glaring hatefully and growling at Celestia, Luna, Garble, and Spike's harem.

"GET AWAY FROM HIM!!!" she screamed.

"Whoa, Cozy, chill. What's the matter?" Cobalt asked

"OH, I'LL TELL YOU WHAT'S THE MATTER!!!" Cozy yelled. "CELESTIA AND LUNA IMPRISONED TIREK IN TARTARUS BECAUSE HE WAS THE ONLY ONE WHO KNEW CELESTIA AND LUNA TIPPED OFF THE COPS TO WHERE WE WERE IN CANTERLOT!!!"

"Cozy, we didn't tip off the cops to your location," Luna said calmly.

"YEAH, RIGHT!!!" Cozy snapped back, her voice never lowering. "JUST HOW STUPID DO YOU THINK I AM?!! YOU WERE GONNA KILL ME IF YOU FOUND OUT WHY I WAS THERE IN THE FIRST PLACE!! TIREK WARNED ME ABOUT THAT!!! SO, I HAD TO MAKE UP A LIE TO PREVENT YOU FROM FINDING OUT MY TRUE MOTIVE!!!"

Celestia turned to Tirek wearing a stern expression, "Tirek, care to explain what Cozy Glow is talking about?"

Tirek sighed. He knew he had nothing to lose and lying wouldn't do him any good. He explained that Cozy came down to Tartarus, assuming whoever had given up the whereabouts of Cobalt and her would be hiding there, assuming she'd never look for them down there. Cozy figured that whoever did tip off the cops would probably figure Tartarus would be the last place the crazed Pegasus would ever look. Tirek overheard her angry, insane rants about what she'd do to the culprit and beckoned her over to his cage. He told her he knew Cobalt and told her the Princesses were the ones who tipped off the cops to their locations. He wanted to tell Cozy Glow immediately, but the Princesses intercepted him and sent him down here to prevent him from ever telling her. Any normal pony would've blown Tirek off, but Cozy's fractured mind coupled with her lust for revenge and her unrestrained rage made her believe him. Tirek also said that Twilight and her friends were also involved in tipping off the police to Cobalt and her hideout. The Centaur advised her to try to start out as their friend because he claimed that was what they were "hellbent on teaching everyone". Before she went, however, Tirek said if she ever got caught, he wanted her to say that friendship was power to cover up the real reason about why she was there. The old Centaur "feared" that she'd be killed by Celestia and Luna if they found out her true intentions.

After Cozy left Tartarus, she found out that they had their own school of Friendship and she instantly realized how she could infiltrate their ranks. Her attempts were foiled, and she was sent to Tartarus. Then she was suddenly teleported out of her cage and into an old lair in the middle of the Everfree Forest. She wasn't teleported alone, however. In the lair with her was King Sombra, Tirek, and Chrysalis. The one who had teleported them out of there was an ancient cornflower blue ram named Grogar, who assigned them all tasks that would help them out for the final assault on Equestria. King Sombra, however, believed he could take on Equestria's heroes alone and was ultimately defeated. The other three villains soon met the same fate, but not before a young life was nearly unfairly cut short in the process.

Everyone was, to put it very lightly, irate at Tirek's revelation. Cobalt probably felt the most rage out of them all. He jumped up on Tirek's bunk, grabbed the Centaur's goatee in his magic and yanked him down so they were at eye level.

"How dare you?" he growled. "How dare you exploit a pony's mental illness, a kid for that matter, for your own SICK, TWISTED, NEFARIOUS SCHEMES OF VENGEANCE?!!"

Tirek just gulped nervously as Twilight came up to speak next.

"You are a lot lower than I thought," she said in a low voice. It didn't sound angry, but rather disappointed, as if she expected Tirek to be better than that despite being a villain.

With nothing left to say the Celestia ordered the guards to send a team of paramedics to take Cozy Glow to the hospital for a mental evaluation. The Royal Sisters already had a feeling the Cozy might be too incompetent to stand trial. When they went to pick her and put her on the bed, she resisted them. Eventually, they worked out a deal with her: She'd go with them, but only if Cobalt stayed with her the whole time. Cobalt was also on board with the plan. With that said, they loaded Cozy into the ambulance, and they rode off to the hospital. On his way out of the prison cell, Cobalt shot one last, piercing glare at Tirek. The old Centaur felt a chill run down his spine when Cobalt gave him a final dirty look. He had never stopped to think about the consequences of his actions. All he cared about was getting revenge on Princess Celestia and Luna for defeating him.

OCTOBER 28, 2019, CANTERLOT HOSPITAL

It took only four days for Cozy's test results came back. It was quicker than anyone had expected and the Royal Sisters' suspicions about Cozy being too incompetent to stand trial were confirmed. Cozy's tumble off the top of the hill had given her a severe case of bipolar disorder, PTSD, schizophrenia, and it seemed she had brain damage. She'd have to take meds and undergo psychotherapy for the rest of her life. Twilight and the other members of the harem couldn't help but feel sorry for Cozy. The only reason she was so evil all this time was because she was a pony who became mentally ill because of a concussion and was manipulated by Tirek for his own wicked deeds to bring Equestria to its knees. The idea alone that the wicked Centaur exploited the fractured mind of a child to get what he wanted made Twilight both enraged and sick to her stomach at the same time. Destroying her home was one thing. Using a mentally ill child was a taking it to a whole new level. Yet, she also felt partial blame for what happened as well. She remembered how her friends and she pressed Tirek in Tartarus and he revealed that Cozy Glow was his ally. If they weren't so eager to get out of Tartarus, the Element Bearers would've likely questioned him further about how exactly Tirek met Cozy and possibly get him to crack sooner. If they had gone with that option, Cozy would already be fully reformed.

As for Cozy's sentence, all charges against her were dropped because of her insanity. When she started taking meds for her Bipolar disorder, PTSD, and schizophrenia, her memory was, at first, very hazy and she really couldn't remember much. When she was told in detail all the bad things she had done, however, the doctors experienced a side of Cozy Glow no one had ever seen before, a woebegone, sad, and remorseful Cozy Glow. Everyone half-expected her to switch to maniacal laughing after one to two minutes, but she never did. She sobbed for a full six hours, mumbling for forgiveness from Celestia and Luna. Luna's dream relm saw Cozy having nightmares of either Celestia and Luna glaring before her before they used their magic to petrify her into stone or she'd be alone in a room with the only light being an invisible spotlight shining on her, before another spotlight would also come on right in front of her and she would see a purple dragon covered with shards of Grogar's shattered bell, soaked in blood, his abdomen was burned to a crisp and smoking, and his face was a blank expression. He'd look right her and whisper the words, "You did this," or, "You killed me. Why did you kill me?", over and over again.

Cobalt didn't know what to do. He could never leave Cozy's room, because every time he did, she'd break down and just bawl, even to just use the bathroom. He tried his best to comfort his distraught friend, but no avail. During their time together in Canterlot as runaways, Cozy would sometimes have nightmares, but Cobalt was always there to support her and lull her back to sleep. The blue colt was able to do that, but he would always be woken up several times throughout the night by Cozy's screams. It'd take almost an hour to assure her it was just a dream. When they were runaways, Cozy would usually be back to sleep in less than ten minutes. After another four days, Celestia and Luna decided enough was enough. They weren't alone either, even Twilight and her friends were onboard with the plan. If the truth be told, they also felt at fault for what Cozy did. Sending her down to Tartarus seemed to only make her become even worse. The fact that the one who had instigated it was with her the whole time didn't help much either. There was also something else that motivated them to reform her as well, but they'd reveal that to her when they got to her hospital room.

LATER THAT DAY

Cobalt was glad that Cozy was finally getting some sleep. He had seen Cozy wake up eight times last night from nightmares. It seemed they were getting worse and worse and Cobalt was running out of plans of comforting her. Now, however, she had been sleeping for almost four hours without one nightmare. A nurse came into their room and stopped in front of Cobalt.

"You have visitors, dear," she said.

"Send them up, please," Cobalt responded.

The nurse left the room and a few minutes later, Celestia, Luna, Garble, and all 12 members of Spike's harem trotted into the room just as Cozy Glow let out another scream and woke up from another horrifying nightmare. They covered their ears until Cozy was fully conscious and stopped screaming. Cozy saw the three Princesses and knew instantly that her fate was sealed...or so she thought.

"Hello Princess Celestia, Luna, Twilight," Cozy said in a sad, defeated tone. "I know why you're here. I screwed up and I can't fix what I did. So just take me to the dungeons and get it over with."

Celestia and Luna didn't respond. Instead, they moved aside and the filly Pegasus saw the silhouette of a small figure. After a few seconds, Cozy recognized who it was. The sight made her feel shocked at who it was. There, in front of her, was a purple dragon who didn't have a scratch on him. His dragon wings were replaced with a pair of black, changeling ones, and other than the new changeling horns on his head, he looked the same.

"Spike?!" she exclaimed. "How?!! I saw you dead! How-How are you here now?!"

The young dragon smiles softly and says, "Indeed, that day I was very close to dying, but by some miracle, I was saved."

"S-Sp-Spike," Cozy choked out. "I-I'm s-so sorry. Y-You didn't deserve this. You didn't deserve to be hurt so badly, or to have almost lost your life."

Spike felt sorry for her. When he had returned from his camping trip with Starlight and Trixie, he heard Cozy's story and how she was manipulated, and convinced the Royal Sisters to drop all charges against Cozy, as well as seeking permission to talk to her personally. He also heard about Cobalt's story and that seemed to only make him more determined to talk to Cozy.

"Shhh," Spike soothed. "I know, Cozy. I know why you're the way you are. I forgive you."

Cozy's sadness was replaced with surprise.

"What? B-But why???" she stammered.

"Because Cozy, you and I have a lot more in common that you think," Spike explained. "We both have no real parents, we were both outcasts from society, and we were both taken advantage of. Yes, I too was manipulated by someone as well. He was a Dragon too and his name was Sludge. Smolder and I were on a walk around Ponyville when he suddenly crash landed in front of us. He said he was okay, but I knew better than that. With Smolder's help we took him back to the castle and got him the medical care he needed there. Before he headed back to the Dragon Lands, however, he dropped a giant bombshell that no one expected: He came to Ponyville looking for me. He claimed that he was my father and had gone through a lot of trouble to find me, but as it turned out it was all a big trick just so he could live in the castle and be waited on hand and foot. I was devastated at first, but I realized that I had my true family, Twilight, was with me all this time. How Sludge took manipulated the fact I was an orphan was bad, but how Tirek manipulated the fact that you lost a friend and that you were mentally ill is 100 times worse. I'm sorry we didn't, I didn't, think twice about sending you to Tartarus. It seemed sending you down there only seemed to push you further toward the edge. Which is why when Celestia first told me about what happened I asked them not to charge you."

Cozy gawked at Spike in dumbfounded amazement. She couldn't believe what she was hearing. The kid who she had almost killed was forgiving her AND convinced the Princesses not to charge her with any crime. She didn't know what to say.

"I-I'm-I'm speechless. Thank you, Spike," Cozy sputtered. She teared up again, but this time it was out of happiness. "How do I ever repay you?"

"Just promise me you'll be better from now on. I know things were tough for you back then, but I promise you, it will get better," Spike said, his emerald eyes meeting Cozy's scarlet eyes.

Cozy could clearly see Spike soul in those two pools of green that were full of hope. Spike saw the exact same thing in Cozy's eyes, it looked like her soul was broken but smiling right back at him. When the purple dragon saw that, it was at that point he knew that this little Pegasus did indeed have good in her.

"Spike," Twilight said. "You don't know how proud I am of you."

"Aw, come on, Twilight," Spike said. "I'm just doing what everyone should do."

"The key word is "should", sweetie pie," Rarity spoke up. "There are many people who would reject Cozy in a heartbeat because unlike us, they'd only notice her flaws, but they'd never notice her pain."

"Well that ends today," Spike said. "It's time we help Cozy back onto her hooves and place her back in society."

Cozy and Cobalt both had liquid pride welling up in their eyes. They felt so touched by Spike's kind words and gesture. She stuck out her arms for a hug toward Twilight and she was quickly met with one for the lavender Alicorn Princess. Cobalt, the other harem members, Garble, Celestia, and Luna quickly followed along, and they all hugged each other for a solid minute. They broke away and gave one last, kind smile to Cozy before leaving the hospital room, all except Cobalt. Seeing Spike act so kind to a former villain only increased the bold, blue Unicorn's determination to help Cozy out of her slump ten-fold.

As for Cozy, it was from this day forward that the pink Pegasus decided to be a better pony. For her own good. For Equestria. Most importantly, for Spike.

"I'll be better," she said to herself. "For Spike. Not the hero I deserved, but the hero I needed...to show me the light."

Author's Note

This chapter is derived from 1jckuhn's story: Spike's Sacrifice (AU), chapters 11 and 12. I have used and slightly edited it with their permission.