Head Nurse: Alright, nurses, listen up.
//I'm laying down on a stretcher inside one of the hospital yurts. This is the grouping of yurts that dragon prisoners of war are housed in; no ponies are here besides unicorns who keep order and organizers.
//Outside, a dragon shuffles into the mine, late at night. The chains and shackles around his or her legs, and through his or her wings (permanently disabling the dragon), clink slowly. A voice growls, and the chains clink faster.
Head Nurse: Describe this patient here.
//The nurses at the foot of my bed think for a moment. They all have veils, while the head nurse doesn't.
Nurse 1: Short.
Nurse 2: Badly injured.
Nurse 3: Pale.
Head Nurse: ...
//My scales are purple, she can't tell that.
Nurse 1: She's colorblind, sorry.
Head Nurse: What I want is a summary description of the patient and her condition.
Nurse 1: Demon.
//The Head Nurse opens her mouth for a moment, then closes it.
HN: You? You're playing the quiet game for five minutes. I'm going to let you think about what you said. Anyone else?
Nurse 2: A dragon.
HN: Oh, a dragon, excellent deduction, nurse. Tell me more and you might get a cookie.
N2: Really?
HN: No! Idiot. What stage of her life is the patient in?
N3: Uh... drakeling?
HN: Yes! Why?
N3: Because... she was born within the last two decades?
HN: _Why do you know the patient is a drakeling_? (Stupid.)
Spike: (I know, right?)
N1: Bipedal figure and lack of wings?
HN: Right! But you're still playing the quiet game. Someone else say it.
N2: Bipedal figure and lack of wings.
HN: Good. Common wisdom says that dragons are dangerous creatures prone to violence who are feared for good reason.
N3: But that's an unfair stereotype that it is our duty as nurses to dismiss outright?
HN: Partly. Every patient has the potential to hurt you; dragons will just hurt you worse and prisoners of war have an incentive to do it. Stay on your toes.
//Wow, that makes me feel a whole lot better. Totally non-discriminatory.
HN: Now, a surgeon is always going to ask you two things: the sex of the patient, and ignigenic status. What is the way to check whether or not a drakeling is in possession of their fire?
N3: Head Nurse?
//She sighs, and it echoes through the yurt.
HN: What?
N3: Why are we checking ignigenic status before sex?
HN: Smart question, nurse; I'll answer it in a bit. How do we check ignigenic status?
N2: ...
N1: ...
N3: ...
HN: Celestia's fucking wings, do you remember _nothing_ from your schooling?
N1: We're actually--
HN: Quiet game!
N3: We're actually members of a religious order called Celestia's Faceless.
N2: Hence the veils.
N3: We're volunteering, we have no training.
HN: (_These_ are the ponies they send me, Celestia's wings...)
Spike: (Please tell me none of them will be operating on me.)
HN: (I might strangle them before it gets to that point.)
//The head nurse places a hoof on my chest.
HN: The method to check a drakeling's ignigenics is to place a hoof on her chest. Now, this drakeling is bound, which means...
N1: What does--
HN: Ap-ap-ap!
N2: What does that mean, head nurse?
HN: Give me the patient's chart, nurse.
//The first nurse bites the clipboard through her veil, and places it on my stretcher.
HN: I was _informed_ that the patient was bound, which should mean ignigenics are dormant. However--
//The head nurse crosses something out in red pen and scribbles a note next to it.
HN: --this drakeling is in full possession of fire.
N3: Why is that important, head nurse?
HN: There are several glands and organs that cooperate to generate dragonfire and I'm sure if you had any background in medicine or biology it would be obvious, but for right now all you need to know is to tell someone smarter than you about it.
N2: And what about the gender of the patient?
HN: Sex, not gender. Gender is a social entity, sex is biological. There are stark differences in abdominal organ configuration for male and female drakelings -- which, again, a medical _professional_ would want to take into account.
N2: I mean, how do you tell it?
HN: Oh. Well, if the patient is ignigenically dormant or unconscious, a thorough examination of the genital slit will suffice. Dragon genitals are not so unlike pony genitals that more than simple intuition should be necessary. (For someone competent.)
N3: Um, head nurse? What if the patient is neither bound or unconscious?
HN: If a drakeling patient can breathe fire and is conscious, you ask politely what sex they are.
Spike: (If some of that respect could be taken off 'dangerous beast' and placed on 'autonomous individual', it'd go a long way...)
HN: (Quiet, prisoner.)
N2: What if the patient lies?
HN: Then she dies in surgery. There's an incentive to tell the truth. If you could please tell us what biological sex you are?
//I was planning on lying, but dying in surgery is kind of a strong disincentive...
Spike: Male.
HN: Thank you. Now, the injuries.

//The veiled nurses then gather around my leg and arm for about an hour each, learning from the head nurse what should be done for each injury in the field, in a hospital short on equipment, and in a well-stocked hospital. I try to remember as much as I can. One of the nurses is mostly intent on staring at me the entire time. I start to worry what she's thinking.
//They leave, and I go to sleep.

//A vision appears in my sleep.
C: Spike.
Spike: Sorry, I'm sleeping. You're a dream.
C: You flatterer. But no, you are hardly asleep.
Spike: Hold on...
//There's something strange about this pony...
C: Take your time.
Spike: Celestia!
C: Yes.
Spike: It's Celestia, creator and ruler of Eque--
C: Must you do this every time?
//I stop, feeling foolish.
Spike: Sorry.
C: Earlier, you had lost hope in your journey, and your will to continue faded alongside your ability.
Spike: But it returned, oh Celestia! I want to be a Hero!
C: And I trust you will be. But today, the onus is on you. I have done for you all that I will to ease your journey, and to alleviate the suffering inflicted upon you by an enemy of dragonkind. This further challenge is yours.
Spike: Further challenge?
C: The world does not wait for someone to save it, Spike. If you are not present, the world will choose other, more dangerous, solutions. You must find a way to continue your journey.
Spike: 'Swings, if only I had one of those golden vials of make-everything-better on me...
//I knew I would regret not taking that one from Pitaya.
C: Indeed. But they are a rare fortune, found only in the care of power.
Spike: Huh. Do you think Applejack would have one?
//Celestia smiles, and it is as the rising of the sun.
Spike: Though I don't care for the idea of dragging myself to her tent with a broken arm and leg.
C: You may care for or not any road which must be. Will you let pain stop you from bringing my glory to Equestria?
Wobbling Voice One: ...was going to be a weather engineer in my Dad's company in Cloudsdale, but then Celestia left, and control of the weather with her...
Wobbling Voice Two: So you joined up?
WVO: What could I do?...
Spike: Why are there pony voices in this dream?
C: There are not. Are you aware of any others who know of you?
Spike: Tell me I won't have to fight off that nurse who was looking at me strangely, with two broken limbs.
C: Awaken, and discover.
//I wake up.

//A small yurt, a stretcher and a thin sheet that lets the cold in like an old friend. My leg and arm are still in casts. A veiled nurse pokes her head in.
//Is that a lamp? As in, with lamp oil? Maybe I can use that... it is on my movable side.
Veiled Nurse: (Uh, hello?)
//Great. Time to be assaulted by the person who should have a conscience but does it anyway.
Spike: (No one's home, go away.)
VN: Did you say something?
Spike: No.
VN: Oh, you're awake.
//The nurse steps over to beside the bed. Ready...
VN: That'll make this easier.
Spike: I usually don't aim to please.
VN: I must be getting lucky, then.
//LIGHT THIS CUNT ON FIRE

The Drakeling grabs the lamp by the base with his left hand!
//The Nurse drops something on my chest, and says:
VN: Here you go, Spike.
Spike: What? What is this?
VN: Hck, what are you doing with that lamp?
//I lift up the lamp and lean forward. A vial of golden liquid?
Spike: Na-Mira?
Na-Mira: Hey, when did you break your leg?
Spike: Yesterday, don't worry about it.
//Hold on.
Spike: Why else would I be in here if not for broken limbs?
Na-Mira: Broken heart?
Spike: Wh--
//Do you get hospitalized for that?
Spike: _How does that make any sense_?
Na-Mira: Hck, it was a joke. Are you going to use the potion, or what?
//I drink the potion. It tastes like wood, but something a little... Apple-wood. Right. I feel only a tingling sensation from my broken limbs, much more intense in my arm. It swells up as --
//WOAH ARE THOSE BONES SHIFTING FUCK THE WHAT
//-- yeah shut up no one cares. It works and that's it. Casts could be roomier, though...
Spike: Okay, I think I'm good. What's with the veil?
//I start tearing off the casts.
Na-Mira: Camp undertakers, I think. Call themselves Celestia's Faceless, something to do with the inevitability of death and humility and lack of identity and whatever. Not important.
Spike: Here I thought you liked holing up with cultist types.
Na-Mira: To hck with that; death cults are freaky.
Spike: Freaky as in freaky, or _freaky_ freaky?
//I can feel Na-Mira's confused stare through the veil.
Na-Mira: Repeating a word twice doesn't change its meaning!
Spike: Sorry, nevermind.
Na-Mira: Oh, yeah, I found out something about the dragon you wanted to see. Quayle, was it?
Spike: Quine.
Na-Mira: Okay.
//Na-Mira stands still, leaning from leg to leg and straining to listen. She glances to the tent flap, where a guard is keeping watch.
Spike: Uh... so what'd you find out?
Na-Mira: Hck?
Spike: What did you find out about Quine?
Na-Mira: Oh! I thought you said 'quiet'!
//Crazy fanged bint...
Na-Mira: There's a dragon by the name of Uuareg who--
Spike: What's his name backwards?
N-M: ...Gerauu?
//WOW THAT WAS REALLY DUMB
Spike: Sorry, got carried away, go on.
N-M: He oversees Hole Five and has the ear of almost every dragon in the Aquinatics. Maybe, if you prove to him you're worthy...
Spike: He'll see fit to lead me to Quine! Na-Mira, you're a genius!
N-M: Aw, you really think so?
//Her body language looks like she's blushing. Snakes can blush?
Spike: Well, uh, no, but that really helps me out. Thank you.
N-M: You're not out of hot water just yet.
//Oh, yeah, prison camp.
//WAS THAT SOMETHING YOU FORGOT OR DID THE POSSIBILITY OF INDEPENDENCE EXTRACTION VIA EJACULATION SEND YOU INTO A STATE OF FUCKNIRVANA?
//Fucknirvana? You're stretching.
//NIRVAGINA, WHATEVER.
Spike: Any plans?
N-M: One. Hold on.
//Na-Mira grabs the leather straps that hang off the stretcher and secures them over me, tightly.
Spike: What are you dhoo--
N-M: Hihihi, sorry, too tight.
//She loosens that strap, and throws a black blanket over the stretcher. The entire world becomes black and muffled.
N-M: (I'm going to smuggle you out.)
Spike: This. Is this really your plan?
N-M: (Quiet, you're sick).
//THIS IS GOING TO BE FUCKING AWESOME
//It's going to fail horribly.
//EXACTLY
Spike: Hold on a second--
//I lean over as far as I can and snatch the ankh, and my cloak, from the bedside table. Everything else can stay.
Spike: --Hokay, let's do this.
N-M: In case I don't make it out with you--
Spike: Come on, don't say that. This is going to work.
//HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA
N-M: Quine's lair is under a mountain exactly 26.2 miles 36 degrees east from north away from Hole Five.
//...Good to know.
Spike: So, why am I not going straight there?
N-M: The mountain has a neverending blizzard on it. I thought it would be easier to arrange to meet Quine elsewhere, so I told Uuareg you were coming.
Spike: That's, uh, actually very helpful of you. Thanks, Na-Mira.
N-M: Hck, hihi, quiet, silly, I'm starting.
//Na-Mira pushes the stretcher out through the tent flap.
Guard Pony: Erm, Miss.
//There's a pause. I imagine Na-Mira freezing up, but I can't see anything.
N-M: Yes?
Guard Pony: What exactly do you think you're doing?
//A long pause. For someone who has non-mammalian nostrils, Na-Mira imitates a snort very convincingly.
N-M: I am a _nurse_, young stallion, and one of Celestia's Faceless. I am fulfilling my duty, and need no accusations while doing so. Good night!
//Wow, rather indignant!
GP: What?! He died?!
N-M: Mmm. The leader of my order mentioned he was unwell.
GP: 'Swings, I gotta tell General -- Lieutenant -- Lieutenant General Applejack!
Spike: (As long as it gets him the hell out of here.)
N-M: (Quiet, corpse.)
//I hear the sound of hooves, madly racing away. I'm surprised that worked so well!
Spike: (Hey, that worked!)
N-M: (Brace.)
Spike: (Brace? What does that--)
//Na-Mira shoves the stretcher forward, bouncing over rocks and sand!
Spike: (AaaAAaaAAaaaaaAAa be careful--)
//Na-Mira drags the stretcher uphill, bucking back and forth!
Spike: ('Swings mare this is craaaAAaaAAA--)
//Na-Mira throws the stretcher over a ravine, coming down with a crash on the other side!
Spike: (Are you insane?!)
N-M: (Hck, no. We needed to get away from the camp before the Lieutenant General arrived. Now, we're away from the camp.)
Spike: And we've made enough noise to raise the dead while we're at it!
N-M: (I'm not the only one contributing there, you silly boy!)
Spike: (You said we're far away from the camp? Can I get out now?)
N-M: (Hck... not far enough yet. I think it's best if you stay for now, until we get out of the Gorge.)
Spike: (Okay. I trust you.)
//Na-Mira continues pushing the stretcher, slowly to avoid making noise, and we talk softly as we move uphill.

Spike: What have you learned about the world so far?
Na-Mira: Oh! I learned Princess Celestia's gone.
Spike: Na-Mira, I told you that.
//A pause.
N-M: Oh.
Spike: Anything else?
N-M: Yeah, dragons were a lot rarer in my day than now.
Spike: Really?
//Why would that be?
N-M: But there were more old dragons back then than there are now.
Spike: Who did you learn this from?
N-M: I was asking around about Quine and some old drakeling started telling stories, I guess.
Spike: Did you at least get his name?
N-M: Yeah, it was Father something.
//...
Spike: Father something.
//Na-Mira pauses.
N-M: What? Did I say something funny?
Spike: In this building you talked to this Father something in--
N-M: It was more of a hole, really--
Spike: --Were there any stylized pictures of someone? Like, stained glass windows, or anything?
//Maybe I can start to find out the general religious beliefs of the dragons in the region. I hope they're loyal to Celestia.
N-M: ...I don't think so. Why?
Spike: Was he wearing robes of some sort? Having a fancy cane to walk on?
N-M: Yeah, just like that! Do you know him?
//Do I... Where do this girl's questions come from?
Spike: What color was his robe?
N-M: It was just a normal bathrobe. The cane was nice, though.
//A... bathrobe?
Spike: I thought you said he was called Father.
N-M: Hck, yes, that was what the hatchlings called him. We've been over this.
//Wha...
Spike: Na-Mira, _children_ call their father Father. It didn't occur to you he might have had a different name?
N-M: I don't know! Why is it important?!
//GOOD QUESTION.
//The stretcher comes to a rolling halt.
Spike: (Na-Mira?)
//Silence.
//...I can't decide whether we need to be silent or something dangerous is happening. In preparation, I loosen the leather straps, as quietly as I can.
//HERE'S AN IDEA: LIE BACK AND TAKE IT LIKE YOU KNOW YOU WANT TO. MAYBE A GENEROUS MARE WILL COME ALONG AND SURGICALLY EXTRACT YOUR FUCKING USELESS INDIVIDUALITY.
//I don't think I can stand much silence with this guy...
N-M: --Hck!
//That's my cue!
//I throw off the blanket and put up my fists!

[[SAVE LOCATION]]

The Unicorn casts Paralyze!
The Drakeling dodges away from the beam!

The Pony strangles the Lamiequus's throat!
The Lamiequus struggles in vain against the grip of The Pony's right front leg on The Lamiequus's throat!

//An earth pony is strangling Na-Mira! And a unicorn in armor is shooting spells left and right!

Unicorn in Armor: Surrender and come quietly!
Spike: Never!

//I leap into the fray!

The Unicorn points at The Drakeling and starts to cast a spell!
The Drakeling breathes fire! The Unicorn backs away, losing the spell!

The Pony strangles the Lamiequus's throat!

Spike: I won't let you hurt my friends.
The Drakeling punches The Pony in the right front leg with his Fist of Justice, bruising the muscle, shattering the bone, jamming the bone through the right front knee and shattering the right front knee's bone!

Strangling Pony: Yaaagh!!
The Pony releases the grip of The Pony's right front leg on the Lamiequus's throat.
The Lamiequus stands up.

Na-Mira: Spike! We have to get out of here!
Spike: We can't let them raise the alarm!
Na-Mira: It's already raised!
UA: Give yourselves in!

The Unicorn points at The Drakeling and starts to cast a spell! The Unicorn casts Paralyze!
The Drakeling jumps away from the beam!
The Drakeling strikes the stretcher in the steel with his Dashing Rogue Punch, denting the support!
The stretcher collapses!
//Whoops.

//I glance up to the sky, quickly. The stars and moon are blocked by cloud cover as far as the eye can see, but colored lights dance in the sky right over our position.
Spike: We have to end this quickly!

Na-Mira drops the *black silk veil*.
UA: What is that?! Keep it away from me!

The Unicorn points at The Lamiequus and starts to cast a spell!
The Drakeling breathes fire!
The Unicorn dodges away from the dragonfire! The Unicorn casts Paralyze!
The flying beam strikes The Lamiequus in the head!

//Na-Mira falls, very rigidly, right on her face, and then to the side.

The Drakeling charges at The Unicorn!
The Drakeling punches The Unicorn in the upper body with his left hand, bruising the muscle and bruising the bone!
The Drakeling collides with The Unicorn and bounces backwards!
The Unicorn leaps backwards! The Unicorn points at The Drakeling and starts to cast a spell!
//I need to stay in his face!

The Drakeling charges at The Unicorn!
The Drakeling kicks at The Unicorn with his right foot, but The Unicorn dodges away!
The Unicorn counterattacks!
The Unicorn points at The Drakeling and starts to cast a spell! The Unicorn casts Stupefy!
The Drakeling is hit by the beam! The Drakeling collapses!

//OKAY, FUCKING GREAT. THAT WORKED WELL, DIDN'T IT? DID YOU AND YOUR IMBECILIC RATEATER OF AN ASSISTANT THINK YOU COULD WALK YOUR SHITTY WAY OUT OF THE WORLD'S MOST SECURE PRISON -- BESIDES THE BOX YOU KEEP YOUR SEXUALITY IN -- WITH A SHITEATING GRIN AND IT WOULD FUCKING WORK? IF THIS WAS A ROUNDABOUT WAY TO ASSURE THAT YOU WOULD BE JUICED LIKE AN UGLY STUPID ORANGE DAILY, THEN CONGRATU-FUCKING-LATIONS, ASSHOLE, YOU'VE WON THE GRAND FUCKING PRIZE. WHY IS IT THAT IT'S UP TO ME TO TELL YOU WHAT A WASTE OF SCALE YOUR SMELLY, WEAK ASS IS WHEN YOU'RE CONSTANTLY SURROUNDED BY PEOPLE WHO SHOULD BE DOING THAT FOR YOU, CONSIDERING HOW OBVIOUS IT IS? HONESTLY, I THINK IT'S BECAUSE THEY DON'T CARE ABOUT YOU AT ALL. IF I WEREN'T ALONG FOR THE SHIT-RIDE MYSELF, I MIGHT FIND IT FUNNY TO WATCH YOU DANCE ABOUT AFTER YOUR OWN MISTAKES LIKE THE HATCHLING THAT PISSES ITS OWN PANTS, BUT NO. MY TORTURE IS THAT I HAVE YOU AS MY GUIDE TO THIS WONDROUS DIARRHETIC-SLIP-AND-SLIDE JOURNEY. DO YOU KNOW HOW THAT MAKES ME FEEL, YOU SHITBRAIN? KNOWING THAT I COULD EXPEL WASTE WITH GREATER PROMISE THAN YOU WILL HAVE AND EVER COULD? IT MAKES ME WANT TO THROW UP--

The Drakeling vomits blood!
The Unicorn dodges away from the spewing dragon vomit laced with dragon blood!

Spike: '_SWINGS, WHAT IS TH_--

The Drakeling vomits blood!
The spewing dragon vomit laced with dragon blood strikes the stretcher in the steel, but the attack glances away!

The Drakeling gives into pain! The Drakeling collapses!

UA: ...What the hell?!
//Na-Mira is tied up next to the stretcher. The earth pony, with no armor besides metal boots, is laying a little ways away from her, looking at his broken leg.
Na-Mira: Don't you see?! You morons! This is why I had to get him away! He's contagious, and he'll infect all of us if we don't get him out of here!
UA: And I suppose that explains why you know his name, and why you were worried about the alarm!
//Na-Mira juts out her fangs at him, then retracts them back a little, saying nothing. She can't think of a lie quick enough.
UA: I thought so. I'm onto you, _snake_. You're scalescum just like them.
//A small cough comes from the darkness.
Twilight: Hi, I understand this might not be a good time, but I'm afraid I have to cut things short.
//The Unicorn in Armor goes wide-eyed as Twilight's voice is heard, and Na-Mira hisses. Twilight emerges from the shadows, and in less than half a second casts a little spell.
UA: Professor Kim? What are you doing here?
//Completely taken aback, Twilight stops walking forward. She stares at the unicorn as, far above her, colored flashing lights disappear from the clouds.
T: Um, I'm sorry? Do I know you?
UA: Y-yeah, you were my thaumoquantum statistics teacher at Canterlot UMS. Urist Armok? I, uh, made a joke about the City on the Hill and you threw me out of class.
T: Oh? Déjà vu, then.
UA: I'm afraid I have to ask you to come with--

Twilight Sparkle's horn glows! Twilight Sparkle casts a spell!

//The unicorn, the earth pony, and Na-Mira all disappear!
Spike: What?! How did you do that!
//Twilight rolls her eyes and points to her horn.
//To be fair, that was a really dumb question...
Spike: Where did they go, then?
T: Hmm? Somewhere in Canterlot. Does it really matter?
//Yes!
Spike: Uh, well, I guess not...
//I wanted to hear more of what Na-Mira found out.
Spike: So...
T: So.
Spike: Why? You know, all this. You usually don't help with my fights.
T: _That_ wasn't a fight anymore; you had already lost.

The Drakeling was defeated!
Spike earned 7500 experience points!
Spike is now level 20!

[[SAVE LOCATION]]

Spike: Uh, then thanks, I guess; it's good to know--
T: Nope, don't say it, because I won't. If you lose a battle that's on you, Spike. Whether your consequences are being bound to a horrible mare or dismemberment. Or worse, like that snake thing--
Spike: Okay, then what was this interruption about?
//She really doesn't like Na-Mira, for some reason.
T: You've been sick for quite some time now. Have you seen a doctor?
//I have?
Spike: I don't feel sick.
//I sit up, feeling only a little woozy. Twilight is stepping quite a few feet away from the bloody vomit.
T: That's because your immune system isn't responding, because your disease isn't bacterial or viral. If you _had_ seen a doctor, they would have told you that.
//Where would I have found a doctor in the middle of the wilderness?
//WHAT ABOUT THAT VILLAGE YOU BURNED DOWN?
//Hey, I didn't burn the _village_, I burnt down a forest and _coincidentally_--
T: It's... unfortunate, that the weird snake thing--
Spike: She has a name; it's 'Na-Mira'.
T: --decided to do... whatever this was right now.
Spike: I think it was an escape.
T: Sure, we'll go with that.
Spike: Why was it unfortunate?
T: Everything would have worked out perfectly if you had stayed.
//How could that have happened?
Spike: What, some twisted mare would have ended my journey?
T: That's not what I meant. If you had been sick in the tent, you would have gotten a medical examination and been properly diagnosed. Chances are Applejack would have taken mercy on you--
//Is that 'Applejack would have taken mercy,' or Twilight would have asked her to?
T: --and you would have been able to deal with your sickness. As it is now... shame she had to go and ruin it like that.
Spike: Sickness? Just what the hell could I be sick with? I've been drinking health potions like they're water.
//Twilight sighs.
T: And it's a real bummer, because now I have to go and be heavy-hooved with it, when I told you I wouldn't be an ally or anything.
//...I'm still focusing on the sickness part.
T: Think back to your adventures. Did you ever kill a spellcaster?
Spike: A couple. I just came out of a Stupefy spell, my head's not exactly the clearest it could be.
T: Did any of them cast a spell as they were dying?
Spike: ...Lemme think.
//Hmm... Marquise, no. The cult leader (whatever her name was), no. Osto Bacchus, pancaked; Pitaya wasn't a spellcaster... am I forgetting someone?
Spike: Maybe not, I...
//The Royal Mistress, that's right.
Spike: Yes. There was.
T: I was afraid so. Spike, you've been afflicted with something called a dying curse. It's--
Spike: I think I can figure it out.
//A pony's last words which are said to hold some sort of power, combined with the release of magic from a spellcaster's death, turned into a grim trigger for whoever fights that pony -- this is a horrifying curse.
T: A dying curse is a terrible affliction. There's very little in the world that could remove it.
Spike: Could you cast a spell for it? You did just dispel that unicorn's flare signal; it must be possible.
//Twilight thinks for a moment, raising a hoof to her chin.
Spike: ...Is it possible?
T: Trying to think of how to explain this to you... the curse is keyed to both the caster's mental state at time of death and life history. If you're asking me to _guess_, it would take me several billion lifetimes of the universe before I likely got the combination. Without already knowing who she was, of course.
//Darn, there's something with magic that Twilight can't do?
Spike: What else is there?
T: There _is_ something, and that's all you need to know.
Spike: Wha--
//I stand up.
Spike: I have to go on a quest to find the cure, and I don't even know what it is?!
T: It's a very common quest, actually, searching the world for a cure to a mysterious affliction. Although more often undertaken by others, not yourself...
Spike: What guarantee do I have that a cure actually exists, besides you telling me it's true?
//Celestia warned me not to trust Twilight, and this situation seems awfully suspicious.
T: What? Spike, have I ever lied to you?
Spike: I don't know, but I'm not ruling it out.
T: That's... actually very wise of you. So I guess I will give you a hint: the cure is in Everfree Forest.
Spike: Everfree Forest?
T: Why did you just repeat that back to me?
//...I don't know.
//Darn it, I don't have my books with me anymore, not even that atlas written too long ago to use properly. I can barely remember seeing the name though, was it...?
Spike: Near Ponyville?
T: Yes! You're going to want to get on that right away; the pacing of these things is unpredictable and you can't waste time squabbling about with guards and mines and whatnot.
//Twilight starts casting another spell.
Spike: Before you go--
//She opens one of her eyes and looks at me.
Spike: ...Sorry about what I said earlier, on Applejack's back. It was rude and I had no right to say what I did to you.
//An eyebrow goes up, but it looks mocking.
T: Spike, I magically muted you on Applejack's back. No sound could be heard from you by anypony. (It was pretty amusing, actually.)
Spike: Then how did Applejack know what I said?
//A shrug.
T: Maybe the earth told her.
//The earth?
//Twilight Sparkle casts another spell, and disappears in a scentless POP that washes away the smell of Stupefy and my vomit (for a second). I'm left alone, in the dark and cold.
//...This was possibly the strangest thing that's happened to me in my life so far. What the hell happened here?

[[SAVE LOCATION]]

//Hole Five. It took me a little while, but I'm here. I stand in the entrance-way, letting the rain pour in from behind and into the dusty cavern.
Dragon Guard: You're letting the cold in.
Spike: Do dragons mind cold?
Dragon Guard: The eggs do. Keep moving.
//I scramble inside, letting the bipedal dragon (with a pike) close the entrance door, covered in mosses and a fern and shaped like a rock.
T: (Why did we even come here?)
Spike: (Na-Mira got me a lead to Quine and I'm not going to let her hard work go to waste.)
T: (Spike, you're dying. There are more important things right now than talking to what amounts to 'some old guy'.)
Spike: (I'm sure it's not that urgent.)
Dragon Guard: ...Excuse me, are you talking to someone?
//Twilight, invisible next to me, suddenly goes still.
Spike: Uh, just... talking to myself.
//He grunts, and stretches his neck, standing at his post.
//Hold on, how did I get here? This is Hole Five, but no one mentioned where it was and frankly I'm not geographically-minded enough to extrapolate from Osdar's flight patterns. I've just been following my feet, there's no way that worked out by coincidence.
//IT'S ALMOST AS IF YOU WERE DRIVEN BY SOME STRANGE FUCKING THING LIKE A GENETIC MIND PATTERN THAT INFLUENCES YOUR DUMB BEHAVIORS IN A SIMILAR MANNER AS MANY OF YOUR SPECIES -- BUT THE WORD ESCAPES ME RIGHT NOW. WHATEVER THAT WEIRD THING IS YOU SHOULD PROBABLY THANK IT AND DO WHAT IT FUCKING TELLS YOU YOU PIECE OF SHIT--
//Nah, it was probably just the trail.
//I turn and look into the cavern proper.
//Multicolored scales extend as far as the eye can see. Clustered around stalagmites are makeshift hovels, housing smaller dragons and eggs and families; lying in open spaces wherever they can are larger dragons with wings. Full dragons by age, yes, but the scales stretched tight over their bones and wings tells a different story -- any number could be sleeping, or dead and dying. Clothes look to be a rarity here, and by the ribs and faces of the smaller dragons, food and clean water too.
Spike: By Celestia... what happened?
//The guard next to the entrance behind me grunts:
DG: Hazel happened.
T: (It is unbearably hot in here.)
Spike: What do you mean?
DG: Hazel, that new bitch on the throne, decided the Aquinatics were hers. See, there's a reason that draconic territorial disputes are resolved by the two (or more) involved dragons tearing each other apart scale by scale personally: the rest of us are left the hell alone.
//That's how dragons resolve disputes? Damn...
Spike: ...And this doesn't happen to them.
DG: Her refusal to fight Quine for his territory is the entire reason for our suffering. Any establishment on these lands is property of Quine before others until won in combat. So, when Equestrian tax collectors come around, when Equestrian prospectors and Cavalry start wandering through our sub-territories, they get attacked. As is right and normal.
//Right and normal? It's right and normal to attack ponies for trying to do simple little things like that?
\\People are responsible for their actions whether they were ordered to do something or not. Working as a subordinate of the Equestrian crown is an action which a person is responsible for, and therefore reaps the consequences.
//Killing people just over allegiances is awful! It's literally an example we tell children, for Celestia's sake, to demonstrate why war is so terrible!
T: (And a year and a half afterwards, you can see how that mentality has led to dragon prosperity.)
DG: Hazel hides behind her army and her walls, sending others to die for her own territorial gains. She's a coward and a tyrant.
Spike: Hazel...
DG: The damning thing about Her Cowardice is that she's fought dragons before, and she knows how dragon territorial disputes work. She can't even claim ignorance! Hazel is just a scared little pony who knows she can't take on Quine in a real fight.
Spike: So... so, you're saying if Quine and Hazel were to fight, this would all be over?
T: (Nothing is that simple.)
DG: Yes, it's that simple. Knowing Quine, it'd be a fight to the death.
Spike: Why?
DG: He's an old dragon. Old dragons are fucking crazy. They don't mess around.
//He speaks with a tone of respect... you shouldn't respect someone just because they're a zealot in what they do. Having the courage to admit you may be wrong, and that restraint may be necessary, is also something you should respect...
Spike: But, they say it's a war out there... people burning down tax houses and attacking refugees.
DG: Tax houses? Quine has burnt down entire villages, man. And hell, if I could, I would too.
Spike: What?! Why?!
//The guard cocks his head and stares at me for a little while. I think he's starting to realize I'm not from around here.
DG: Because Hazel is doing the same to us. She sends her soldiers out to harass Quine's clan to draw him out, so we do the same to draw her out. We're willing to see the fight further, and in the end, that's what will win.
//...
Spike: That is the dumbest thing I have ever heard.
//Words float through my head, though I have no idea where they're coming from.
\\You believe that your side has suffered an injustice, and the other side are the aggressors. Nobody ever goes to war thinking they're the ones at fault.
DG: What, you think I'm lying?
\\Neither side is lying... Both sides believe they are in the right. Believing to be the side of justice opposing cruelty, both sides slaughter the other, feeling justified in their own cruelty.
DG: Quine made his land claim _the hour_ Celestia disappeared. The word of a dragon is as good as his gold, and he's been protecting us ever since -- he swore to protect and provide for every dragon in his clan.
//He opens his arms wide, raising his voice a bit.
DG: And then, a month later, that bitch Hazel makes her claim and starts sending settlers to our land. What are we supposed to do, roll over and die for them?!
\\Each side in this war believe they are on the side of justice. Their enemies are nothing but evil incarnate, and so each gets drunk on the violence when able to punish the other for their perceived misdeeds.
\\It's not just the war here, but the wars of the world itself. When you stand on the side of justice and the other of evil, it's quite easy to shrug off your own brutality.
Spike: ...Why can't you just coexist, on the same land?
DG: We shouldn't have to, these are our--
Spike: Aside from your pride, why can't you just coexist? Isn't it better for the average person just to live a normal life, instead of being in the middle of all this destruction?
DG: That is not the dragon way. The strongest rules because those who are strongest are oldest, and those who are oldest are wisest. Compromise is a sign of weakness. It's not who we are as a people.
//I put my hand on my forehead and squeeze. Somehow, someone as stubborn as this exists, and perspectives like this, too.
Spike: Whatever. You're an idiot, but whatever.
//The guard rolls his eyes, and leans back on the wall.
DG: Sure, throw in your lot with Hazel. She's the worst thing to happen to Equestria since Celestia, honestly.
Spike: Uh... what?
DG: Celestia is the damn reason dragonkind is so weak in the first place. Things wouldn't be so bad for us if it weren't for her, missus dragon slaughterer prime. But what do you care about what I have to say? Get out of here, race traitor!
//He spits on the ground in front of him, and stares at me. I decide to walk off, looking for Uuareg.
//What an ass.

Spike: (Is that all true, what he said?)
T: (For the most part. It's a common mentality in these parts.)
Spike: (Even what he said about Celestia?)
T: (I can't say.)
Spike: (Can't? Or won't?)
//The inside of the temple is hardly decorated; I would call it more of a circular hole in the cavern wall than a temple. A dragon, barely sprouting wings, sits on a makeshift wooden throne near the far end of the circle; next to him, a pedestal with an item.
Spike: Uh, hi, are you Uuareg?
//The dragon shifts in his chair. The scales on his knees are cracked and look like knotted treebark more than feathers.
Spike: (He must pray a lot.)
T: (Or he has a second, nighttime job.)
Spike: (Don't be rude.)
Knotted Knee: I was once the one called Uuareg. But called that I no longer am.
Spike: I'm told you're able to contact Quine for me.
//Uuareg quickly sits up in a chair. For a long time he stares at me... I blink once or twice and look away.
KK: Have you come here from pony lands?!
//Uh, he thinks I'm a spy, crap... what do I do?

[[SAVE LOCATION]]

>>TELL THE TRUTH
>>LIE

Spike: Uh... no.
T: (You're a bad liar.)
Spike: (Thanks for the vote of confidence. And it's not a lie, I came here from wildlands.)
T: (Ashen lands, you mean?)
Spike: (Quiet.)
//The newly turned full dragon slumps back in his chair, shoulders falling. He rambles,
KK: For long have I served Celestia, and she has decided to make me her knowledge keeper of the dragon people in this world. I do have of Quine's ear. But... Celestia has instructed me only to serve the drakeling 'with roots in lands of the four-legs'.
//Wait, crap; I was supposed to say yes?! Damn, I should probably get him back on my side... Celestia instructed him to tell me, so it must mean I have to meet Quine!
Spike: Oh! That's, uh, that's me. I come from Ponyville. Can't get more four-legged than that. I, er, thought you were talking about... where I just was. Ashen wasteland, that place.
//The knowledge keeper leans forward.
KK: You... is your name Spike?
Spike: Yes! It is!
//Wow, he's good!
//A smile breaks across his face, like a child being rewarded.
KK: Ah, Celestia, you have brought the one to me, as you promised! I will see him true!
Spike: (Another follower of Celestia's wisdom, great!)
T: (Something seems funny about him, though...)
Knowledge Keeper: Several nights ago, Celestia came to me in a dream. With her flowing mane, and shapely wings... her appearance was angel's breath, and--
T: (Get to the important part, 'Swings.)
Spike: (He's reciting fanfiction; have some respect.)
//The Knowledge Keeper shudders and returns back to reality.
KK: ...Anyway, so Celestia gave me a revelation. A drakeling, raised by ponies, would come before me. And this drakeling without a proper background would be the one to dethrone Princess Hazel.
Spike: That's me!
//Through Celestia we all see the path!
KK: Now, it is up to me to indicate the path you should take! Three mystical items, infused with magic, you must gather to prove your worth. The Trident of Power, the sword called Reality, and the necklace named Leave A Tin Out For The Cat Will You I Don't Want It To Starve.
Spike: (_What_?)
T: (Latoftcwyidwits was a product of one of the most evil minds to ever cast spells.)
Spike: (Necromancer?)
T: (Jester. But the necklace has been destroyed.)
KK: I shall bestow this only upon the one who has obtained all three artifacts.
//The keeper motions to an amazing helmet set next to his seat. It shines like a star, gems pulsing.
KK: The helmet of a true predator... The Goddess Helm! If you wear this cap, it's said out of respect for Celestia's power all ponies -- even Princess Hazel herself -- will bow to you! No pony may even approach it!
T: (...)
//Twilight looks calm. She's certainly in the same room as the helm...
KK: Now, begin your journey to gather the three artifacts! Only they can protect you from the Helm's power, so that you can control it.
T: What a crock of shit.
//Twilight lowers her hood as she approaches the helm.
Spike: Twilight, what are you doing?
KK: 'Twilight'? You couldn't mean--
T: Saving time.
//Twilight bites the helm and tosses it above her head! In the next moment, the Goddess Helm shatters into pieces!
KK: No! This cannot be!
Spike: Twilight!
T: It's a helm enchanted to glow, Spike. If you fall for crap like that, you'll never put a scratch on anyone. Trident, Reality, Latoftcwyidwits? If you had those things, Princess Hazel would be looking for an audience with _you_, not the other way around. He may as well ask you to get the Rod of Asclopius! This con is transparent. A bunch of malarkey!
KK: ...ooo...
//At the loss of his helm, the keeper is struck pale and stares at the floor. Is he going to be okay?
T: Here's what you should do. Ignore the fact you're a dragon, it has about as much to do with who you are as the fact that you're purple or do a little squeak when you sneeze. There's nothing for you here.
//I really do that?
T: After you go to Everfree Forest and get cured, find out about the Avatars. They're the Princess's knights.
//Fluttershy, Pinkie Pie, Applejack, Rainbow Dash, and Rarity. Also known as the best fighters in the world, the knights of the Princess, and the Avatars.
Spike: Why the Avatars?
T: Locate them, and if you pass their test, they'll give you their blessings.
Spike: What will that do for me?
T: You'll gain a mighty power from each of them. And a holder of all five Elements can request an audience with the Princess.
Spike: ...Really...?
//I thought she was listening while Rainbow Dash told me this earlier. Hell, she _commented_, why is this being repeated?
Spike: Why are you just telling me this now?
T: Are you going to do what he said, then? Even your judgment can't be that poor.
//Even if I don't know why, it sounds like she's telling the truth.
Spike: ...Okay, I believe you.
//As I say that, fell laughter rings out.
KK: Fuaahaahoha! Oooo Celestia. Look at what happened! Fufuhaha!
T: (Hey... did he break?)
//It seems like the helm breaking caused some psychological damage to him...
Spike: (I'm getting out of here before someone checks what's going on.)
T: (Good idea.)
//We leave the temple. There's nothing left for me here.
Spike: You know...
T: What?
Spike: ...I still really want to meet Quine.
T: Ugh, you're such an idiot. What does it matter? You still have the curse to dispel, you know!
//Twilight storms off in a huff, and disappears in a burst of scentless air.
//Today has not been a good day for conversations for me.

//Quine's Lair.
//Or, the only mountain path up to it. Gah, why did it have to blizzard today of all days?!
T: It's such a nice day outside. Aren't you glad we came this way?
//I shout over the snow being blown into my face:
Spike: I couldn't hear you over being carried away by the wind and freezing to death! It sounded like you said it was a nice day! But you haven't been struck in the head recently, so that couldn't be it!
T: I said--
Spike: I heard you!
//When you look at a piece of paper, a thirty degree slope doesn't look intimidating. Wading through waist-high, wet snow uphill against a biting wind, thirty degrees is about sixty too many. Visibility is less than ten feet, and I doubt the temperature's much higher.
T: Why are you complaining? Dragons can't feel heat!
Spike: We can feel cold!
//And I really wish we couldn't.
Spike: How are you standing on this?!
//Twilight walks on top of the snow, leaving only light hoofprints. Any snow that hits her slides off, like water off a duck's back.
T: Magic!
Spike: Damnit, magic can't solve everything! Even with four hooves, you're too heavy to stand on the snow like that!
T: Wh-- are you calling me fat?
//I keep struggling through the snow. Yeah, this is exactly what I need right now.
Spike: No, I--
T: Because it sounds like you're calling me fat!
Spike: Gravity, mass, and surface area! The pressure should compress the snow!
T: Dimensional analysis doesn't change what you said!
Spike: Fine! You're not fat; gravity is just too strong!
//Or her hooves are too small. Whichever.
Spike: Also, _how are you not freezing_?!
T: Also magic!
//Go to hell, magic! Why do you make everyone's life convenient but mine?
Spike: Can you throw some of that magic my way?!
T: You can breathe fire, right?
Spike: Only so much of it!
//I turn my back to the wind, and breathe fire on my hands until I can feel them again. Immediately, I feel a little colder inside. It really is dangerous out here...
Spike: Do you know a magic spell for everything?
T: I'm very good at research!
Spike: How about a 'dispel-blizzard' spell? Do you have one of those?!
T: Give me ten days and I'll make one!
Spike: How-- you can _make_ spells?!
T: There's a lot you can do with magic! You see this?
//Behind where I've dug into the snow, Twilight wiggles her butt. I don't get it.
Spike: What is that, a tattoo?
T: I thought you read about pony anatomy!
Spike: I didn't get to the tramp stamp section!
T: It's not -- ugh, you're such an idiot!
Spike: You got the windrose on your flank so, what? Your lover would know which side of the bed is north?
T: It's a cutie mark! They're a biological part of puberty! They reflect what a pony wants to do with his or her life!
//How does that make any sense?! Genetics doesn't work like that!
//THE UBIQUITOUS ANSWER TO EVERYTHING, FUCKING MAGIC. AND NO, THAT'S FUCKING MAGIC, NOT FUCKING MAGIC. YOU FUCK.
//Repeating something twice doesn't change its meaning!
T: The star represents magic! It's what I do and who I am!
Spike: It should have been a book and a whip!
//OR DEAD PARENTS.
//Suddenly, I fall into the snow!

[[SAVE LOCATION]]

The Drakeling slams into the ground!
//There's less snow here. I extract my face from the snow-sprinkled rocks and look up.
//This is some sort of short tunnel, dug without any sort of precision or craftsmanship. In fact, it looks like it was carved by some sort of claw. Behind me, high drifts block sight out of the cave, broken only by a me-shaped hole which is quickly filling in. Ahead is a brightly lit cavern, and a slow wave of heat coming towards us.
//Twilight steps next to me. She casts a quick spell and disappears.
Spike: (Gone?)
T: (Invisible. Quiet.)
Spike: (Is this Quine's Lair?)
T: (What were you expecting, a baker's?)
//I walk forward, into the heat. The tunnel ends abruptly in thin air, dropping away below me. Torches every so often are lit, hanging on the great cavern walls. The ceiling is only a few stories above me, but the floor is far down below where the torches reach, shrouded in darkness. Similar tunnels are dug into the walls of the cavern, all around and in levels... like a ring, I guess.
Spike: (So, what, do I knock?)
//I knock on the stone wall.
Spike: Hellooo-oo? Is Quine home?
//Two sniffs and a grunt come from the darkness below. Like a long, silver serpent, an immense head and neck rises out of the darkness.
//Quine rises to the level of the tunnel, smoke drifting out of his nostrils. He points his head directly towards me, eyes closed. A long, forked tongue flicks in and out between razor-sharp teeth as he snarls.
//'Swings, one tooth is bigger than my entire torso...
//Quine snaps his eyes open and roars:
Quine: What arrogant mare dares to disturb the great Quine's slumboh I'm sorry.
//Quine looks me over with a great eye. He takes quite some time to do so.
Quine: ...Should I have been expecting you?
Spike: Uh... what was that bit about the mare?
//A short pause. Quine flicks his eyes downwards for a second, and then raises his eyebrows.
Quine: Well, I, you see,
//mumble cough ratter murmur,
Quine: Was expecting that you were, um, you see, it smelled just a bit like... Please excuse me for a moment.
//The great silver head retreats again into the darkness.
Spike: (Er... what was that?)
T: (How should I know?)
Spike: (He said it smelled like a mare.)
T: (He didn't say that.)
Spike: (It was implied.)
T: (Probably a reaction to intimidate and scare a potential enemy he thought was here, but it turned out to be a dragon.)
Spike: (But he was expecting someone?)
//Quine's head rises again from the darkness, to face me. It is far less menacing this time.
Quine: Can I help you with something?
Spike: Y-yeah, we met in Forlegsandria when Rainbow Dash attacked.
//He nods slightly, continuing to look at me.
//A pause in the conversation.
Quine: Who is that, exactly?
Spike: The Avatar of Speed.
//Quine opens his eyes wide.
Quine: Oh! Oh, I see, yes, you were that small drakeling, in the courtyard. I see. So you came to the Aquinatics, despite all I'd said?
Spike: I did.
Quine: Shame, really, we can't do much for you here. You gathered my location from one of the Holes, I'm sure; you see what kind of state they're in. If you came here to help... well, I much appreciate the spirit.
Spike: I can't help?
//Quine bites his upper lip and rocks his head from side to side.
Quine: I'm sure there's a little you could do, if I put my head to it, but what we really need is any dragon with wings, I'm afraid.
Spike: I'm... not exactly here to fight.
//I don't have a stake in either side, and it doesn't look like in the near future any sort of harmony is going to be possible. There's no reason for me to waste my efforts, or make things even worse.
T: (Ankh.)
Quine: Did you say something?
Spike: I, uh, said I came here to return something to you.
//I hold out the grey ankh for Quine to see. He squints his eyes and peers at it over his nostrils. His tone becomes a bit more serious.
Quine: Jebed told you about that, did she?
Spike: Not as much as I would have liked. What is it?
Quine: It's an old trinket. Nothing more. Keep it.
Spike: I came here to give this back to you. Isn't it yours?
Quine: ...Back in the distant past, these symbols were worn by a certain cult of people. Celestial Inquisitors, they were called. Holy warriors in the name of Celestia, dedicated to hunting down and eradicating dissent and threats to the throne. They were known for their ferocity, and willingness to embrace death. Legend had it Celestia herself ripped fear from their skulls.
Spike: (Is this true?)
T: (A dark, but surprisingly well documented, time in Equestrian history.)
Quine: During this time, dragons were fighting each other as well as Equestrian soldiers. These necklaces were taken from the corpses of Inquisitors for two reasons: firstly, to demonstrate to other dragons one's power, and secondly, to publicly declare by wearing it eternal enmity against Celestia and all she stood for.
//Eternal enmity?
Spike: I thought Celestia was generally regarded as a benevolent figure.
Quine: Even among ponies you will find that is not always true, but it is most certainly true that Celestia's perfect Equestria included no dragons. But that is a long and troublesome subject. The ankh came to symbolize fanaticism; it became a generic symbol for those who fought without fear of death and drove themselves to their goals with no compulsions. It will intimidate your enemies, at least the ones who know what it represents. So, keep it.
Spike: ...Are you sure?
Quine: Of course I'm sure. (It's also a communications device, but that part will come up later.)
//I put the ankh back around my neck. It feels warm.
Spike: Okay. Do you think Applejack would know what it means?
//I wonder if I can get the upper hand by intimidation...
//A long pause.
Quine: Who?
Spike: Avatar of Strength.
//Immediately, Quine narrows his eyes.
Quine: I would doubt it. She is as short-sighted and insular as she is predictable.
Spike: Okay... there were two other things I wanted to ask for your advice on.
Quine: I have some time, drakeling; please continue.
Spike: I caught this thing called a dying curse. It's--
Quine: Fighting spellcasters? Surprising, at your tender age, that you should even survive such a task. Perhaps I underestimated you.
//He nods his head sagely.
Quine: What was your name again?
Spike: Spike.
Quine: Spike, you wish to remove the dying curse, I take it?
//I nod vigorously. Spewing bloody vomit everywhere until I die doesn't sound fun.
Quine: There is a pony, in the village of Ponyville, who tends to a mystical glade in the Everfree Forest. As Keeper of the Glade, she can commune with it, and should she grant you her favor, the pristine waters will cleanse you of this foul affliction. Seek out Fluttershy, Keeper of--
T: Fluttershy?!
//I quickly open my mouth so it looks like I said that. Quine snaps his mouth closed, narrows his eyes, and starts peering into the tunnel behind me...
//I cough, rubbing my throat.
Spike: Sorry, squeaked out there. Fluttershy, you said?
T: (Oh... oh, Celestia, why?!)
Quine: Yes. She will be the judge of your fate.
T: (I did _not_ need to know that about her; 'swings, that's just... _wrong_.)
Spike: (What are you complaining about?)
T: (He knows Fluttershy by name but not the other Avatars.)
Spike: (So?)
T: (Expecting a mare to enter his lair. Greeting with cheesy, roleplay-esque language. First name basis. Avatar of Temptation.)
//Is she saying...?
Spike: (That's not... by Celestia, _how_ would that _work_?!)
T: (It wouldn't! _It's bigger than her torso_!)
Quine: Spike? Are you talking to someone?
//YOU SHOULDN'T DROP OUT OF ONE-ON-ONE CONVERSATIONS WITH PEOPLE WHO ARE MORE HANDSOME AND STRONGER AND MORE INTELLIGENT AND BETTER THAN YOU ARE, IT'S KIND OF RUDE.
Spike: Er... yeah, I was... talking to the dragon instinct.
//Quine rolls his eyes and smiles. He understands.
Spike: There's something else I wanted to talk to you about. I, uh, talked a bit with Jebed in Forlegsandria about it and I decided I want to be a Hero.
Quine: Hero? Like, slay the menacing dragon, rescue--
Spike: --the damsel Hero, yeah, not as much. I want to be a powerful, so I can fight for what's right.
Quine: And what would you like to discuss about that?
Spike: I want your advice on how to do that. You're the oldest dragon I know of, and it's said you fight the Avatar of Strength -- if anyone can give me the wisdom I seek, it's you.
//Quine snorts, amused. Twin puffs of smoke wash over me and pull my cloak back.
Quine: You wish for power? Wait five hundred years; you'll be strong.
//I can't just do that. Ponies and dragons are outside slaughtering each other for dumb reasons as we speak, I can't let that happen for five hundred more years! I need power, so I can show how cooperation is possible!
Spike: I can't. I'm not fighting for myself.
Quine: Then why fight?
//Why am I fighting? If I don't fight, evil -- pirates like Marquise's and cults like Saccr-Ulkip's and goons like Osto Bacchus's -- they'll hurt innocent people! That's reason enough to fight!
\\You want to protect others? Join the guard. That can't be it.
//Because... because the world could fall apart. Ponies and dragons are at odds with one another right now, and maybe it's a little better in Forlegsandria but I'm sure there's a lot of work to do there. If people start tearing each other limb from limb because of hatred... there will be no end to it.
\\So start a drum circle. Why are you trying to overthrow the Princess? What help does that do, except increase the enmity between ponies and dragons?
//...The Princess let threats like Osto Bacchus rise in her own kingdom. She does nothing to end the Aquinatic conflict, she put 'hundreds of dragons' underground herself... Princess Hazel has to be defeated for any dragon to have sympathy with the Equestrian crown. No dragon will respect ponies if they're represented by her.
\\And ponies themselves will start to respect dragons? After one and a half years of war?
//That's why I have to be a Hero. I have to be the best -- the strongest, the brightest, and the most glorified! If I'm universally loved as a noble Hero, ponies will see me -- and all of dragonkind -- in a better light! If I keep defeating evil where I find it, fame has to follow.
\\And you're going to do all that by killing their Princess.
//...If I'm a Hero, I'll be able to show them why someone else needs to rule. Someone better.
\\Who? You?
//HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA
Spike: ...If I wait too long, hate between dragons and ponies will get too entrenched in who we both are. If I show people -- with my words and my actions -- that coexistence is possible, I'm sure it can be done.
Quine: You want the masses to embrace an ideology?
Spike: I guess, when you put it like that, yeah.
Quine: Gather power. With gold, buy an army; with magic, summon one. Start a religion, or hijack an existing one; usurp the throne. Whichever. Then, force your ideas into the schools, and kill anyone who doesn't agree. That is my advice. Your ideology will be the only one as far as your spears reach.
//That's not any sort of advice at all!
Spike: That's not the point! You can't just go around killing people who don't agree with you!
Quine: On the contrary, young drakeling, you can. Dragons have been doing it for thousands of years. It is our way.
Spike: That... it's not the way I want to be.
Quine: A fish could want to grow wings and fly, and what does that change? Ideas attach themselves to power. That is the nature of our world.
Spike: You said 'power', not violence. There's a difference.
Quine: To dragonkind, the words are one and the same. Violence is the call of power, like thunder is the sound of lightning. One cannot exist without the other.
Spike: Then, then... that's not the kind of dragon I want to be.
Quine: Then you would not be any kind of dragon at all.
Spike: 'Dragon' isn't a mentality; it's just a species.
Quine: With instincts and traditions, youngling, that you would toss aside for your own whims. You will find that if you try to replace them, you will be met with violence.
Spike: There are other kinds of power besides violence. I'll use it only as a last resort.
//Here I'm saying that, when Celestia gave me the quest of killing Princess Hazel.
\\...I'll only kill Princess Hazel if there's really no other way. I'm sure there's a way to get her off the throne without doing that.
//She said there wasn't another way. Are you saying Celestia is wrong?
\\No... no... there has to be some way to reconcile all these things.
Spike: ...I want dragons and ponies to live in harmony. I want Princess Hazel off the throne. And I want to do it all without killing anybody. Which is why I want to be your student.
//Quine narrows his eyes and looks at me. A long while passes, as smoke drifts up from his nostrils. Eventually, a smile breaks.
//He purrs, like a cat.
Quine: Now, that... _That_ is a challenge worthy of a _dragon_.