And I will show you something different from either
Your shadow at morning striding behind you
Or your shadow at evening rising to meet you;
I will show you fear in a handful of dust.

//Fluttershy's cottage, midday. Sounds of the burbling water, chickens clucking, and squirrels skittering about come in through the open windows on warm air. The chicken coop outside is being repaired by some earth pony with a hammer on her flank, interrupting the melody with occasional whacks.
//I wish Jebed responded as quickly as the carpenter.
//Fluttershy flies throughout the house with loops of string in her mouth, re-tying it to the ceiling. I don't know what she did with all the furniture.
Spike: So, is this how it normally is here? Animals running about everywhere?
//It would drive me mad. It must be a predator thing.
Fluttershy: I'm not here very often, so I let the animals have it when I'm gone.
//...Avatar of Temptation. Probably doesn't spend very many nights in her own home.
//Angel, the rabbit who follows Fluttershy around for some reason, opens the door a creak and hops in. He gives me a wide berth.
FS: Yes? What is it?
//She lands so the rabbit can speak into her ear. If I still had my Patatrin-Vikramana, I'd be able to hear him...
FS: Oh, dear, already?
Spike: What's going on?
//Fluttershy mutters something to Angel and noses him away, hair bobbing.
FS: I'm afraid you may not be able to stay for the rat tail soup, Spike. Jebed's come a little bit early.
Spike: Oh, well.
//I kind of doubt that the soup has real rat tail in it, anyway.
//The Strategy board is already packed away, and the pedestal which held the Element of Kindness has been pushed into a corner. I won the board game, but I haven't had any of the tea yet.
Spike: (So, what did she and Jebed argue about, again?)
T: (Nothing important now.)
//I hurry up to Fluttershy and walk next to her as she leaves the house. A bronze full dragon is sitting on her haunches beyond the bridge, gazing at us. I wave, and give her a thumbs up, pointing at the Element. She smiles.
//We walk over the bridge, meeting Jebed.
Jebed: Hello, Spike.
Spike: Hi, Jebed. Did Kezno and Celel make it back safe?
JBD: They're fine, thanks to you.
//I shrug.
Spike: Fluttershy helped.
//Jebed swishes her tail through the grass once, bouncing up a few stones.
JBD: I sincerely doubt that.
//Fluttershy still has her welcoming smile on, looking up at Jebed. It's true that she made it a little harder than it needed to be...
//I scratch my scales and mutter:
Spike: Jebed, don't be rude...
//She snaps her teeth together and responds:
JBD: Honesty, little one, is a responsibility of those granted power, because it is an empowerment of others. I do you and this one a disservice by holding my tongue.
FS: I'm sorry if I made you worry about your friends, Jebed. Even with their bonds, if something went wrong I'd feel just awful.
//Our...
Spike: Wait, did I not think of that?
//Jebed puts her face in front of Fluttershy, snorting. Her head is as big as Fluttershy's torso.
JBD: Spike is unbound.
//Kezno is bound to Celel, right. If he did die from the curse, he'd just revive in full health...
//Fluttershy opens her eyes a little wider. She glances at me before responding:
FS: ...Then I'm very happy everything turned out alright, in the end.
Spike: So Kezno would have just revived... there was no reason to include him in this whole thing. He would have been fine!
T: (What, is death the only ill that matters?)
//Well, in a way... it kind of takes precedence.
//Fluttershy shakes her head, mane bouncing against her shoulders.
FS: Kezno was in a lot of pain. Whether he would die or not isn't as important as making sure our choices don't hurt others.
//...I see how shrugging off his sickness with 'He'll live' wouldn't be compatible with the Element of Kindness...
JBD: Then you should check your own methods. You achieve your ends through trickery and deception, using harmful methods to bring the same ends because it is easier. Spike, take a lesson from this one, and never fall to the same kind of temptation.
//Fluttershy shakes her head slightly.
FS: If you'll remember, Jebed, I told you many times that Kezno would be healed. I'm sorry for not setting a date for when it would happen. It seems Spike here travels on his own schedule, hmm-hmm!
JBD: There was no reason to convolute his recovery by weaving him into a Hero's test.
FS: Wouldn't you say a Hero's close ones are often endangered by their relation to her?
//Jebed growls:
JBD: Yes. By evildoers.
Spike: Woah, Jebed, that's a little--
FS: Isn't it more dishonest for each of them not to understand that?
JBD: You risked their _lives_ to teach them a lesson? Are words no longer in your repertoire?
//Fluttershy lowers her head a little, staring vaguely in front of her as Jebed smolders.
FS: Do the ones you love listen to your words, Jebed?
//Slowly, Jebed retreats her head and neck, rising her whole body up. I can't tell if she's preparing her words or firebreath, so I step in front of Fluttershy.
//WOW YOU ARE DUMB.
Spike: Jebed, come on. Fluttershy's not a bad person.
JBD: There are no 'bad people' in this world, Spike. Only bad deeds.
//'This world'? Is there some other world I should know about?
Spike: She thought about it a little more than normal, that's all. In the end, everyone's okay. She knew she wouldn't hurt others or herself, and found a way to teach us all a lesson.
//Jebed snorts, blowing smoke out of her nostrils. Behind me, Fluttershy paws at the ground, lightly.
JBD: Your life was in great danger at her hooves.
Spike: Well, she didn't know that. And I'm a Hero, so I'm used to it. Besides, if someone really was going to be hurt, I'm sure Fluttershy would have stepped in. It just looked like we were in danger, when we really weren't.
T: (Oh, you're trying to draw a parallel between what you did in the test and Fluttershy. Smart!)
//Thanks for clarifying, Twilight...
//I don't want there to be tensions between Fluttershy and Jebed. They're both important people, and dislike between them will echo down into others.
Spike: I'm not asking you to agree with it, Jebed. I'm just asking, as your friend... let it be. It's over now.
//The past is a lesson, not a duty.
//Jebed looks at me for a long time, inspecting me with eyes like amethysts. As hammer sounds come from the pony working on the chicken coop, she opens her wings to their full span, and then closes them. Fluttershy's mane floats in the wind created.
JBD: For you.
Spike: Good!
//More painful than it needed to be, but now that that's over with, we can move on to important things. I hope.
JBD: I'm ready to take you to Forlegsandria now. Are you done with everything you wanted to do here?

[[SAVE LOCATION]]

>>STAY
>>GO TO FORLEGSANDRIA

\\Think, think. Are there any unlockables you didn't get yet? You searched every corner? I don't want an item to be lost forever if we can't come back here later. Man, I wish I had a walkthrough...
Spike: Actually...
T: (If you're staying, avoid the rat tail soup. Things get socially awkward in the immediate future.)
Spike: So, Fluttershy, it's true that I lived in Ponyville before I lost my memory, right?
FS: Yes, you did. We all had such a fun time together.
Spike: Who's 'we'?
FS: Me, you, Pinkie Pie, Rainbow Dash, Rarity, and Applejack. We all used to live in Ponyville before Princess Celestia disappeared. And Twilight, of course.
JBD: Until she got herself and her parents killed, that is.
//...I guess the dragon instinct really was telling the truth earlier.
//WHY WOULD I EVER FUCKING LIE
//You said I went on this journey to find a pony to assault me.
//STILL NOT LYING
Spike: So, there should be someone in Ponyville who knows me?
//Fluttershy bites her lip and looks away.
FS: There are probably ponies who know _of_ you, but you've been away for a long time...
Spike: It's been six weeks.
FS: ...
//Fluttershy lets her soft pink hair fall in front of her face. She opens her mouth to say something, but I have a feeling I know how it sounds already.
Spike: If you're gonna be vague again, like everyone else, don't bother.
FS: ...A person's history is her own. It's not my place to tell you, Spike.
//I roll my eyes and turn back to Jebed.
Spike: Hey, I want to check out Ponyville for a little while. Is that okay?
//Jebed nods.
JBD: Of course. Just tell me if you need anything, you know how to contact me.
//Didn't Herr Yyz tell you to wear the cape in Ponyville and only refer to yourself as a Hero? Why do you want to meet people in Ponyville like that?
\\I'm not going to wear the cloak until I'm in Hero mode. Besides, Celestia never said anything about anonymity, that's all on the Faceless.
//Jebed flaps her wings and takes off vertically, causing waves of grass around us. The birds stop singing for a minute, scared as she leaves.
Spike: So, uh... bye.
//I need to learn how to say goodbye to people.
FS: Goodbye, Spike. I have a feeling we'll be meeting each other again very soon.
Spike: For what it's worth, I hope everything turns out alright with Jebed.
FS: Hmm-hmm, I'm sure it will. We just have to work to make it so.
//With that, the Avatar walks back to her chickens. The carpenter pony, almost the same color as Fluttershy save the red mane, tries to shoo away a curious Elizibeak.
Spike: ...Hold on. Why did you think I was bound?
//Fluttershy looks over her shoulder, and smiles with eyes closed.
FS: I did? I'm sorry, I must have assumed. You know what they say about assuming, hmm-hmm.
Spike: Uh, no. What do they say?
//I stare at the Avatar of Temptation's back as she walks away, not responding.
T: (I think it makes sense. What kind of adventurer passes up a 'get-out-of-death free' card?)
Spike: (No, seriously. What do they say about assuming?)
//Twilight shrugs as she fades into view. Guess it's not important.
Spike: If I'm bound to someone I'm dedicated to them forever. I can't ask the first pony I see to mount me 'just in case'.
//A bird flies by overhead, carrying a stick to its nest. Fluttershy tuts at her livestock to leave the carpenter be.
T: ...Why not?
Spike: 'Cause then I'd end up serving microwaved food to ungrateful old people who tip poorly for sixty years because my rebirth-mate's dream in life is to own a diner.
T: I think it would be appropriate for your quest. You just have to find the right pony!
Spike: Or dragon.
//Her eyes flit to the ground for a second.
T: Or dragon.
Spike: It seems more trouble than it's worth. If I'm going to be a Hero in the name of Celestia, can I do that while being attached to -- I don't know, Starshine Glitterflank the librarian?
//Twilight Sparkle leans her head in, serious.
T: Spike, as your close friend, you should think about it! I don't want to see someone... something bad happen to you.
Spike: Nothing bad happen to me? Please.
//I roll my eyes and walk past Twilight, towards Ponyville.
Spike: You may as well tell me not to be a Hero.

Spike: You know, '-ville' implies village.
T: And?
Spike: This place is not what I was expecting by the name.
//The middle of Ponyville. We're both standing next to a fountain in the afternoon sun, watching ponies mill about. It seems quiet enough, but not sinister. There are a lot of smiles, and only a few of them seem fake.
Spike: Not as Lovecraftian as I was expecting, honestly.
T: It's a great place to raise a baby dragon.
Spike: And I suppose you would know about that?
T: Yes, hah-hah, I would!
//She pokes me as she's laughing. How did I forget that she raised me?
Spike: But it's not a place you feel comfortable taking off the displacement cloak.
//Twilight leans against the fountain as she checks that the cloak is still on correctly.
T: ...Compartmentalizing.
Spike: Is not a synonym for lies of omission. Speaking of that--
Mysterious Caller: Hold on... is that you, Spike?
//At the sound of my name, I turn away from Twilight. A plump mare with an apron has her head cocked, looking me up and down. As she sees my face, she brightens up.
MC: Dearie me, it is you! I haven't seen you in forever and ever, don'tchya know!
//...Who is this person?
Spike: Sorry, I've been away for so long that I think I've forgotten everybody's names...
MC: Don't worry, dear. You moved on to bigger and better things, I hear!
//She snickers to herself like a schoolgirl. I don't know if I want to admit I have amnesia, or just pretend to make it easier...
Mrs. Cake: Pleased to meetchya again, I'm Mrs. Cake!
Spike: I can see that.
//Twilight prods me with a hoof, saying:
T: (Don't be rude.)
MC: Ya know, you had a lot more to you last time you were here!
//She pokes at my stomach with a hoof. Why do some ponies think it's okay to touch me without asking?
MC: Come on by Sugarcube Corner when you get a chance, we'll fix that right up! See you later, dearie!
//Mrs. Cake waddles off towards the sun, smiling and humming. I guess some people's lives aren't all that bad.
Spike: She seemed nice.
T: She has to be nice. Both her kids are dead.
//What?!
Spike: ...The hell did that come from?
//Twilight looks around, making sure no one is around, before muttering:
T: After the disappearance, a dragon named Opterix attacked Ponyville. Killed five ponies.
//Opterix was the person Na-Mira was talking about in the battle records... I knew I could trust Na-Mira, but does that really mean...
T: I'm frankly surprised Mrs. Cake can stand the sight of you.
Spike: Wh-- because I'm a dragon? You're surprised that she isn't racist because of one bad experience?
T: She's a good person. (And it's speciesist.) But there are people out there who do blame dragonkind for things like that. Pursuing your journey to make dragonkind and ponykind equal, not only do you have to deal with those people, but also people like Mrs. Cake who lost everything because of dragonkind, or dragons who lost everything to ponykind. Telling them to just get along and everything will be hunky-dory disrespects what they've been through.
Spike: ...But she doesn't let on that anything like that happened in how she acts.
//Twilight shrugs.
T: Of course not. The world's tough, and reacting to something like that you either have to laugh or you have to cry. At some point you run out of tears.
Spike: ...That's really messed up.
//Twilight snorts and looks away.
Spike: Uh... Twilight... can I ask you something?
//She keeps looking away, down the street.
T: About what Jebed said?
Spike: No, actually, I figured that out when you said Opterix. Na-Mira told me about the battle records.
//There's no response by Twilight, but she is turned away from me, so I can't see her face.
//It's kind of obvious. To better serve Equestria after the disappearance, she faked her own death so she wouldn't have to be weighed down by all the mundane stuff a ruler has to do. And, her parents, Fluttershy said that herself. A Hero's close ones are often endangered by their relation to her. So Twilight faked their deaths, too. A simple battle report would be easy to forge for a person who... does whatever it is that she does.
//She's probably wearing the displacement cloak because most of these ponies think she's dead.
Spike: What I was going to ask, was: do you _ever_ have any fun?
//...Strangely enough, that did not help her mood.
T: Oh, that reminds me! Tomorrow's Nightmare Night!
Spike: Why would that remind you?
New Joiner: Ahem.
//I turn around. A pony is sitting in front of us, staring at me. She has a white cap on, with a red plus sign on it.
Spike: Oh. Hi, Nurse Joyful.
Nurse Joyful: Hi, Spike. And... someone with a displacement cloak on.
//Woah, what? You can recognize that? How do you do that?
//Twilight nods. I wonder if, to Joyful, her blur's head moves up and down.
Nurse Joyful: Hmm, fifty/fifty shot... Twilight?
T: Yes, it's me.
//Wait, 'fifty/fifty'? Who else could she have been?
//Nurse Joyful curtly nods. She turns back to me.
NJ: What happened to that followup appointment you were going to make?
//Oh, right. That thing I was never going to do.
NJ: It's been six weeks. Where have you been, young dragon?
Spike: I, uh...
//For some reason, I think a medical professional would look down on being a Hero.
NJ: And...
//Nurse Joyful stares at my chest for half a second. She then grabs my hands with her hooves and brings them closer, inspecting.
NJ: Are these _scars_?
Spike: No, they're hands.
//I pull my hands away from Nurse Joyful's grip. Why do ponies just think they can crawl all over me? Is there a sign on my back that says 'Public Property'?
NJ: What the hell have you been doing?
Spike: I, uh...
NJ: Did you ever see a doctor? Or did Twilight throw you into a pit of rabid wolverines?
//To some of the enemies I've faced, I'd prefer the wolverines...
T: No to both.
Spike: I did see a doctor, actually.
//Nurse Joyful's tone immediately softens.
NJ: Who was it? Where? What did she say?
Spike: I... rescued him from a cult that was going to sacrifice him to their weird snake god. He said I'd probably be fine.
//The conversation stops dead, like a train crash. Nurse Joyful looks at me, blinking every so often. The sun falls a few notches in the sky as she stares, speechless. She then turns her gaze on Twilight. I can feel the disappointment radiating outward from her.
//Twilight adds in an embarrassed voice:
T: He's the one who decided he should be a Hero, not me.
Spike: I lost all my memories after I hit my head, so I decided to become a Hero and ran off. Sorry.
//Nurse Joyful now turns her disappointment ray on me. 'Swings, that look could get a charging dragon to back down...
NJ: How was it not clear you should have seen me before doing anything?
Spike: No, it's okay, really.
NJ: You needed to see a neurologist, and still do. Three, if you can afford it. Spike, you hit your head hard enough to knock out your memories, and you want to run around making it _worse_?
//Hey, it's not making it worse. I can't lose memories I still don't have.
NJ: And you, why would you let him do this?! What part of 'hit his head and was knocked out for a quarter hour' says 'let him make dramatic life decisions' to you?!
//Twilight stays silent. It's a really good question...
//If not for one thing.
Spike: No, Nurse Joyful, it's okay. Celestia told me so.
//Joyful's eyebrows almost leap off her face. She says nothing.
Spike: Yeah, I saw Princess Celestia in a vision after hitting my head. She said I should be a Hero, so everything's going to be alright.
//Nurse Joyful shakes her head. It's so strange how with a simple gesture she can totally dismiss everything I've known and believed in...
NJ: Spike, you hit your head, got knocked out, have total amnesia, then hallucinated, and you're telling me everything's going to be fine?
T: It wasn't a hallucination, Joyful.
NJ: The kid sees a goddess after blunt force trauma to the head, and it's 'not a hallucination'? By rights he's a mental patient. I should call and have him locked up; he's a danger to himself and others as he is.
//You know, I don't want to think my next fight is going to be in the middle of Ponyville, but it seems like it will be if things keep going like this...
Spike: Woah, hey, let's not jump to conclusions here.
NJ: Spike, it's okay. I'm going to get you the help you need.
//Twilight's horn glows, very quickly. SCRUNCH is heard as Nurse Joyful's pager is crumpled into a cube and drops from her belt.
T: That's not necessary, Nurse.
//She steps away from the destroyed pager, glancing up at Twilight once. The nurse kicks it to the side and mutters:
NJ: Of all the people that could've been there when he said Celestia told him to be a Hero, only you'd be stupid enough to let him.
//There's a loaded, Wild West pause. Thousands of miles away, someone somewhere is not watching two ponies try to strangle each other with only their eyes.
Spike: So, aside from all that, how've you been doing?
//She shrugs, relieving the tension. But only a little.
NJ: It's been mostly quiet. Today's the night before Nightmare Night, though, so I am expecting a little activity. Especially with those Four Bandits around.
//Why does it sound like she's saying that in capital letters?
Spike: Who?
NJ: Four Bandits. Group of ponies located in the Everfree Forest. Few days ago, roughed up a little colt pretty badly. He said they were trying to take him to Deific Castle, but he hasn't said anything else. They've also been threatening travelers in the region. Probably something for you to check out, Twilight.
//Twilight nods. I don't think she feels like speaking right now.
Spike: Thanks for telling us, Nurse Joyful. I'll get on it, too.
NJ: No, Spike. You just see me as soon as possible, and that's all you worry about.
//Disgust visible in her body language, Nurse Joyful trots off, into the setting sun. That conversation took a lot out of everybody, it seems.
Spike: You know, after all that, the world seems so much simpler!
//Twilight snorts, amused.
T: Oh? How so?
Spike: Well, the rest of it is all mucky and weird and I don't know yet. But for now, I have four bandits to defeat!
//I start walking away from the fountain. Everfree Forest was that way, right?
T: Wait! Spike, you can't just wander into Everfree Forest without finding out where you're headed!
Spike: Isn't that exactly what Heroes do?
//STUPID SHIT? YES.
//Twilight gallops to catch up with me. Out of nowhere, she summons a map and puts it in my hands. Her horn is still glowing.
T: Deific Castle is the old castle of the pony sisters, the two ex-Princesses; it's marked there. Joyful made me feel bad enough about mentoring you in the first place. Don't make me be a mentor to a dead Hero.
//In a burst of scentless air, Twilight disappears.
//...
Spike: Yeah. That makes me feel a whole lot better.

//Everfree Forest seemed more pleasant when I was walking out of it.
//Night has fallen, bringing a sky of bruised plums and tiny holes. The moon's full tonight, which is good; I wouldn't want to be out here in the complete dark. The tree cover blocks a lot of light, though...
Spike: Oh, I think I'm coming up on that river.
T: River? What river?
Spike: This one, here, that's shaped like a sea serpent.
T: You mean dragon? (And it's more like a stream.)
Spike: Uh, no, sea serpent. They're different things. (And whatever.)
//I should probably look on the map for a ford somewhere. The sound of rushing water tells me it might be a little late for that.
T: The stream's shallow over most of its length. You should be fine.
Spike: And if it's not?
T: You'll drown in a deep, dark forest where nobody will ever find your body.
Spike: ...I think you're re-using that line.
//Twilight shrugs. I walk out of the forest, to the bank of the river. It's about thirty feet to the other side, but the river is a blue pastel that I can't see into. There's no telling how deep it is.
T: Don't you know how to swim?
Spike: Uh...
//I mean, unless it's muscle memory, I don't really think so...
T: Don't worry! You'll probably be fine, Spike.
//'Probably'?
Spike: Yeah, dying isn't something people worry about.
//I wade into the water. It's running fast, and trying to drag me by the cape, but I'm able to stand in it without too much trouble.
T: See? You're a natural!
//I walk further in, probing the ground in front of me with a foot every time I take a step. It's pebbles underneath, thankfully, but the ground slopes down further and further. Almost halfway into the river, I'm standing on the tips of my toes just to keep my chin above water.
Spike: Natural.
//'Swings, this water is cold.
//Twilight is floating above the water, amused.
T: Spike, you should try out that new power Fluttershy gave you.
Spike: Not the time, Twilight.
T: You never know. It could be a walk on water spell.
//_Why_ would it be a walk on water spell? From the Avatar of Temptation. Holder of the Element of Kindness. To a dragon Hero who is journeying in the name of Celestia. How is any of that related to water?
Spike: Sure, why not.
//Standing on the tip of my toes, I breathe in and try to concentrate.

The Drakeling breathes in and focuses, casting Walk of the Third!

//...Huh. This kind of does feel like Patatrin-Vikramana, but it doesn't do anything to my senses. In fact, I'm not feeling the water pushing against me as strongly now, and everything feels a little less cold. All the background noises of the forest seem downshifted, as if played in a lower register. If anything, this dulls all my senses, not heightens them! What a useless technique!
//I try to move my arm in front of me. I have to work harder to do it, as if the water is thicker.

The Drakeling's Walk of the Third ends.

//I hop up as the river pushes harder against me, floating a foot or two before sticking my toes down. Twilight floats over to me.
T: What a useful technique...
Spike: Nothing interesting happened.
T: Is that what you saw?
Spike: Uh, yeah.
//Twilight puts her hoof to her chin.
T: Let's see, how would you do that with magic?... It's not invisibility, because the water didn't flow around you but through you, and you didn't see it... conditional illusion, maybe? Or sense manipulation?
//Invisibility?
Spike: Did I just disappear?
T: I saw you disappear for a second. What did you think happened?
Spike: I stood here feeling silly.
//It's cold and I want to get out. I hop forward a few times, standing on my toes, and then start walking out of the river. It's slow progress.
T: You should use the technique in combat sometime. Hold on...
//Twilight sniffs the air. She points her head towards the side of the river where I'm wading.
Spike: I forgot about the nose thing.
T: Oh, so that's how it is.
//In a puff of air that makes an inch-high wave, Twilight disappears.
//I step out of the river. Suppose that wasn't so bad.
Spike: So, river defeated. What next?
//A great shake works its way down my body, from head all the way down the tip of my tail. Blue pastel water is thrown in all directions. I take my cape off and wring it out, then beat it against a tree. Hypothermia is nothing to--

[[SAVE LOCATION]]

Bumbling Attacker: Hah ha! I got yo--wooaaaa-ah!
//A pony leaps out of the bushes, but she trips on a root and faceplants into the rocks!

The Drakeling leaps backwards, away from The Filly!

Spike: The hell do you think you're doing?
//The pony extracts her face from the rocks and stands up. Huh, she's smaller than most of the ponies I'm used to fighting.
BA: You-- I did that on purpose!
Spike: Sure.
BA: I'm Erubetie, of the Four Heavenly -- wait, no, hold on.
//This girl is exceedingly silly.
BA: I'm Beatrice, of the Four Bandits! I'm the strong one!
Spike: Uh, are you sure?
//She's the strong one? She looks smaller than the first pony I ever fought...
BA: Quiet, slave!
Spike: Woah, what's that about? There's no need to call people names.
BA: You're my prisoner now! I've captured you!
//...Not really, no.
//Her voice is much higher than I'm used to hearing. Was this person's growth stunted, or something?
Spike: You're really part of the Four Bandits? Why would they need a runt like you?
BA: Rrrr... say that again, to my face! I dare you!
Spike: You're really part of the Four Bandits? Why would they need--
//She shouts:
BA: I didn't mean it like that, idiot!
//Hold on, it sounds like... I try to lean to the side and look at her flank.
Spike: _Celestia_, you're a child?!
BA: I'm not a little kid!
Spike: Saying it like that doesn't help your case.
//She doesn't have a cutie mark yet, and here she is, in the middle of Everfree Forest, threatening travelers...
BA: I'm gonna make you shut up!
//What happened to the whole 'childhood innocence' thing?!

The Filly leaps at The Drakeling!
The Filly kicks The Drakeling in the left upper arm with her right front hoof, shattering the scale!
The Drakeling counterattacks!
The Drakeling punches The Filly in the right rear leg, bruising the skin, bruising the muscle and bruising the bone!
The Filly has been propelled away by the force of the blow!
The Filly rushes by The Drakeling!

//She sails past me, spinning in the air, and faceplants again into the rocks!
BA: Owowowowow, ow...
//That kick didn't even make it past my scales, even without Terrae Corpus. I guess I'm really getting above the abilities of normal people now.
//The filly extracts her face from the rocks again, and says:
BA: Why'd you do that, you big dumb idiot!
Spike: You just said you'd make a slave out of me, do you not know how a fight works?
BA: You're not supposed to hit back! You're a slave!
//...How does that make _any_ sense?!
\\Child. Come on, dude.
//...Oh, right.
Spike: If you try to hit someone they're going to hit you back.
BA: The last one didn't hit back!
Spike: Is that the colt you were trying to take to Deific Castle?
//Beatrice's face immediately drops. Terrified, she looks away from me, at her own hooves.
BA: ...You know about that?
Spike: Yes. You are in a _lot_ of trouble, little filly.
//She pouts, and spits:
BA: Sugar sticks.
//Huh. I guess this is working.
BA: Are you gonna tell my parents?
Spike: If you cooperate, your parents are the only people I'm going to tell.
//A long groan. She throws herself on the rocks dramatically.

The Bandit of Strength was defeated!
Spike earned 9000 experience points!
Spike is now level 25!
//9000 experience points? For that? Wow.

[[SAVE LOCATION]]

//Then again, I guess I did defuse a situation where an innocent person was on the road to evil deeds. That deserves some sort of reward.
//I THOUGHT THE EXPERIENCE POINTS WERE FOR NOT FALLING ON YOUR FUCKING KNEES AND BEGGING FOR IT LIKE IN EVERY OTHER ENCOUNTER. GOOD ON YOU.
Spike: It's dangerous out here, so you're going back to Ponyville. You're not hurt that badly, you can walk, right?
//She grumbles:
BA: Yeah, I can swim.
Spike: Okay, good, we're going across the river. Stay in front of me.
//I roll up the displacement cape and tie it around my waist. If I'm going to be wading through the water again, I want to try to catch Beatrice if she tries to escape, and I need to be as mobile as possible for that.
BA: Eh, I suppose it's not so bad.
//The filly leaps into the crystal clear river and starts swimming. I hurry after her.
Spike: This is no place for a pony to hang out at night.
BA: Yeah, and I didn't really like being a Bandit, anyway. It was actually kind of boring.
Spike: What do you like to do for fun, Beatrice?
BA: I love knitting! But they never let me take my needles with me when we're out here.
//To each her own, I guess.
//Still paddling close in front of me, we've reached a third of the way into the river. It's up to my chest here.
Spike: Okay, Beatrice, you're going to want to swim at an angle to offset the flow of the river...
//...The river's not moving.
BA: What do you mean?
Spike: Hold on.
//The river's not moving at all, it's almost perfectly still. The only perturbations are from me and Beatrice moving through it. How can this be?
\\'Swings, it's cold, just keep moving so we don't freeze, please.
//But it's almost like it's thicker here, like it's a different kind of water entirely... and the river was blue pastel a minute ago, not clear.
//The water swells over my shoulders on a movement of its own.
Spike: Get out of the water! Now!
BA: What--

The Drakeling grabs The Filly by the left rear hoof with his left hand!
The Drakeling throws The Filly by the left rear hoof!
BA: Aaaaaaaah!
The Filly splashes into the water!

//I threw her closer to shore, and myself further out! Damn you, conservation of momentum!
//I wade like mad, trying to get back to the riverbank!
BA: Why--
Spike: Just keep moving!
//A ball of water forms above the level surface, bulging out like a knot. It spins, and lets off a wobbly voice:
Water Fabrication: ~I think I recognize you~, hehehehe...
BA: Did it just _speak_?
Spike: It's a Kelpie! Swim!
WF: And it looks like you remember me... who are ~you~?
Spike: Not particularly a fan, Wafa.
//Beatrice makes it to shore, scrambling out of the water. I'm wading through at stomach level now. Come on...
Spike: Dry yourself off!
BA: With what? Do you have a towel?
//Does it look like I have a towel?
Spike: I don't know, roll around in the grass! Is that something ponies do?
T: (Hay, more often.)
WF: That's too bad! Did I tell you that I'm a Princess?
BA: She is?
Spike: Are you kidding?! She's a murderous fish!! Why would she be a Princess?!
//Beatrice leaves, hopefully to find a way to dry herself off. I've waded to thigh level, almost there...
WF: Well, if you're not a fan of me, you are shaped like a drakeling! So I'll just have to ~make~ you a fan of me!
//I get to the edge of the water and dash onto the riverbank!

[[SAVE LOCATION]]

WF: AND I AM NOT A FISH!!
The Kelpie attacks!

The Kelpie assaults The Drakeling! The Drakeling's resistance is lowered!

//Water's covering my entire body, but there's only one place she's concentrating on...
Spike: That won't work this time.
WF: I think it ~will~, hehehe.
//I'm not on a ladder now.

The Drakeling breathes fire!
The Drakeling has been caught in the dragonfire! The Drakeling's scales are heated!
The Drakeling is caught in a burst of steam!
//Not the most flattering of positions I've been in, but hey, if it gets the job done...

//Out of the river, I can sense the orb which must be Wafa pouting. Spouting. Whatever.
WF: You're no fun anymore.
Spike: I'm not sure I ever was.
T: (I'll say.)
WF: Take this!
//A pony-sized glob of water leaps out of the pool and onto the dry land, ready to attack!

The Drakeling breathes fire!
The Kelpie jumps away from the dragonfire! The Kelpie is absorbed into the water!
//She just jumped back into the river. At least I know how to scare her...
\\I can't boil off an entire river!

WF: No fair! Meanie!
Spike: Get away from me!
The Drakeling leaps backwards, away from the river!

WF: I'll get you for that!
//Three large orbs, each the size of a boulder, rise up from the water, lifted on water tendrils!
//THE HELL IS THAT WHAT THE SHIT
//She's going to throw them at me! Remember last time?! That's bad!

The Kelpie throws water at The Drakeling! The Kelpie throws water at The Drakeling! The Kelpie throws water at The Drakeling!

//I can't dodge all three! Maybe I'm going to have to trust Twilight about this move...

The Drakeling breathes in and focuses, casting Walk of the Third!

//Everything slows down dramatically. The huge orbs of water hurling towards me hover in the air, wobbling in place, but on closer inspection they are moving towards me. I step out of the way.
The spinning ball of water strikes The Drakeling in the first finger, left hand, shattering the bone!
//'Swings, didn't move far enough!
The spinning ball of water strikes the ground, and is absorbed!
The spinning ball of water strikes the ground, and is absorbed!

//From a deep, low rumbling, it sounds like Wafa is saying something. But I can't manage to figure out what.

The Drakeling's Walk of the Third ends.

WF: --did you go? _Where did you_-- oh, ~there~ you are!
//I guess I really do disappear while I'm using that technique, and everything slows down for me... but it doesn't last all that long. Even so, it's extremely powerful.
Spike: Not anymore!
WF: What do you--

The Drakeling breathes in and focuses, casting Walk of the Third!
The Drakeling disappears!

//Slowed down in time, I think I hear Wafa say:
WF: Hey!

The Drakeling runs away!

The Kelpie was defeated!
Spike earned 10000 experience points!
Spike is now level 26!
//Crazy watery bint...

[[SAVE LOCATION]]

//Not far into the forest, Beatrice is rolling around in a grassy patch, getting the water off of her. I tell her she can stop.
BA: Good, I was getting tired.
//She stands up.
Spike: You... didn't have to roll around until I told you to stop, you know.
BA: How was I supposed to know that?
//That... completely derails the train of thought I had about orienting myself with the map and sending her -- aww, darn it!
Spike: The ink's ran!
BA: What is that?
Spike: A map of Everfree Forest. (I'm borrowing it from a friend.) And now it's ruined!
//An owl hoots far away, disturbed by our voices and ushering us out. Twilight is identifying mushrooms with the displacement cloak around her shoulders, not five feet in front of us.
BA: Is your friend going to be mad?
//It's amazing how well that cloak works.
Spike: ...I'm going to apologize and get her another map.
//Beatrice twists up her face in half surprise, half shock.
BA: Ewww hahaha, you're friends with a _girl_? What a weirdo!
Spike: (Yeah, she is sometimes.)
//Twilight gives me a mock-angry look. I wink back at her.
BA: What is she, your _girlfriend_ or something?
Spike: Know what, let's -- do you know which way Deific Castle is?
BA: Yeah! It's this way! Follow me!
//Wow, I guess she really changed her tune after seeing Wafa. Wafa's not exactly someone to take lightly...
BA: After the rockslide, there's an easy path right up to the bridge!
Spike: Rockslide?
//We might want to choose another path.
BA: Don't worry! It happened ages and ages ago!
//Twilight grumbles:
T: (I wouldn't call it ages...)
Spike: If it's all the same to you, Beatrice, I'd like to keep quiet anyway, just in case.
T: (That's avalanches.)
Spike: (Not the reason.)
//I don't want to have to listen to a kid for an entire long walk. Palla-Walla already taught me that lesson.
//We keep walking through Everfree Forest, full moon illuminating our way.

Spike: ...Is this the bridge?
BA: ...Yeah.
Spike: The bridge which is still there which certainly does lead to Deific Castle?
BA: I don't know! It was fine last time!
//Deific Castle looms worn and decrepit in front of us. Rotting banners, torn by wind and rain, hang off the tallest tower on the far end of the castle ground, bouncing against the dark stones in the breeze. A thick fog (mist?) envelops the area, not grey but a strange purple that brings to mind bioluminescence. A huge gash in the landscape cuts the ground in front of us, and the bridge that is supposed to connect the two pieces of land has been untied on our end.
//It's not that far, I could probably jump it... but I can't see how far I'd fall if I missed. I toss a stone down there to check.
BA: So what do we do now?
//A voice comes from the other side of the bridge, out of the mist:
Giddy Braggart: Hehehe, someone must be here to worship my greatness! Who is it?
Spike: (Hide!)
//Beatrice leaps into the bushes as a small pegasus flies into view, hovering over the gap!
GB: Of course he is! I'm Granberia, of the Four Heavenly-- wait, no I'm not!
//These are the silliest bandits I've ever met.
GB: I'm Gabrielle, of the Four Bandits! I'm the speedy one!
//I lean over, trying to get a glance of her flank. Just like I thought, it's blank. Are all the bandits children?
GB: Everyone is amazed by my quickness!
Spike: Then get on with it already!
GB: Uh... get on with what?
//If they're trying to be like the Avatars, Gabrielle certainly has Rainbow Dash's intelligence...
Spike: The fighting, what else did you expect?
GB: Fighting? I'm not a brute!
//I guess she's not like Rainbow Dash...
GB: You want to get over the bridge, right?
Spike: No, I just came here to look at the Castle and walk away.
GB: If you want me to re-tie the bridge, you have to answer my three riddles!
//Really?
Spike: ('Swings, the only thing older than this scene is Twilight...)
T: (Hey!)
GB: But be warned! They're really, really hard! Do you take up the challenge?
Spike: Yeah, yeah, riddle me, come on. I take the challenge.
GB: And also, if you get any one of them wrong, you have to become my personal slave for ever and ever!
Spike: Woah, wait, hey, you didn't say anything--

[[SAVE LOCATION]]

GB: Okay, prepare yourself! Here's the first riddle!
//She's not going to listen to my protests, so I pay attention.
//YOU'RE TEACHING HER SILENCE IS ACCEPTANCE? YOU SICK PIECE OF SHIT.
//What?! No!!
GB: What walks on--
Spike: Demons, next riddle.
//Really? The riddle of the sphinx?
GB: You didn't let me finish! What walks on four legs at morning, three legs at noon, and not at all at evening?
//Oh, it's a bit different. Still easy, though.
Spike: A dragon. Next riddle.
GB: Come on, you didn't even think about it!
Spike: Uh, am I wrong? A hatchling crawls, a drakeling's tail drags along the ground as he walks, and full dragons fly.
GB: ...You won't get this next one!
//I sincerely doubt that.

[[SAVE LOCATION]]

GB: I curl without folding, I sneak without feet. I break my own molding, without teeth I eat. My front is the end, my circle has two holes. Myself I have rend, my movement is in rolls. What am I?
Spike: ...I wish I could write that down.
GB: Just ask me to repeat it. Unless... you give up?
//She raises an eyebrow at me mockingly, hovering up and down in place. It looks like she hasn't figured out subtlety in facial expressions yet.
Spike: Of course not! I'm a Hero, and Heroes never give in!
//EXCEPT TO MONSTROUS SPIDER-PONIES.
//...Shut up.
//I UNDERSTAND YOU'RE UNCHARACTERISTICALLY OPPOSED TO PRESENTING YOURSELF SPREAD-EAGLE TO THIS LITTLE SHIT, BUT EVERYTHING'S GOING TO BE OKAY. THERE'S A CREVICE RIGHT THERE, YOU CAN WALK IN AND DIE NO PROBLEM. IT'D BE LIKE FLYING, WHICH YOU'LL ALSO NEVER GET TO EXPERIENCE YOU FUCKING WASTE--
//So, the riddle. The first line says it sneaks, so it's an animal or person or personification. Which is a huge category of nouns dismissed, and an uncountably infinite number left.
\\It doesn't have feet. Which rules out, if we're being technical, drakelings and demons and precious little else (ponies have hooves). It also doesn't have teeth, or doesn't use them in eating. Could it be a fish of some sort?
//Fish don't move in rolls. The last half of the poem is the stranger part, because the first half could just be an animal. It comes out of a molding... what breaks its own shell? An insect of some sort?
Spike: Can you give me a hint?
GB: Nope!
Spike: So, probably an animal, something without feet, that eats without teeth, breaks its own -- a snake! It's a snake of some sort!
//Gabrielle flies back a little bit, raising her head.
GB: ...Is that your answer?
Spike: ...No. It doesn't fit the last part.
//'My front is the end'... certainly could be, to the snake's prey. And maybe it has a circular mouth, or bite cross-section, explaining the two holes. 'My movement is in rolls, though'... snakes slither, only things that are in a circular shapes can roll. 'Myself I have rend'...
Spike: Oh! That, uh, that snake thing! The one that bit itself in the tail!
T: (Ouroboros?)
Spike: Yeah, that one!
//Still hovering in midair, the flying filly waves for me to continue.
Spike: It's a snake, so it curls and doesn't fold, eats without teeth because it just swallows things, sneaks without feet, and sheds its scales every so often. It bit itself in the tail, rending itself and putting its tail and head in the same place, making it a continuous circle -- and the two holes are from its own fangs. Hyaa!
//I punch the air in front of me, excited. I'm sure this is it!
//Gabrielle shrugs in midair, and says:
GB: Sure, sounds good to me.
Spike: Wh-- what? What's the answer?
//She shrugs again.
GB: I don't know! I overheard the riddle one time, and it sounded cool. Your answer makes sense.
Spike: You can't ask a riddle if you don't know--

[[SAVE LOCATION]]

GB: Okay, last and final question!
Spike: But I'm not done yelling at you!
T: (If every enemy waited for that you'd still be in Westside Caves.)
GB: Hey, you got it right, so quit complaining! You big baby.
//Ugh, fine. I stand in a fighting stance, waiting for the next riddle.
Spike: Bring it on!
//Gabrielle flies side to side, laughing as she leaves holes in the mist.
GB: Haha, you're not going to get this question right! I can just feel it! And when you don't, you're going to do everything I want forever!
//For the Bandit of Speed, she's not very quick about these things...
GB: So, here's the question: do you want to join us and be the Fifth Bandit?
Spike: What?
GB: Sure! You're pretty smart, you know, and after a few days with us we'd roughen you up quick! You'd be a great Bandit!
//I think being a Hero kind of precludes that.
Spike: Why would you think I'd be okay with this?
GB: That way, we could all be like the Avatars! Five of us!
//I thought they were trying to emulate someone, but they're a cheap knockoff of the Avatars...
GB: I'm the Bandit of Speed! We have the Bandit of Luck, the Bandit of Strength, and the Bandit of Avarice! So you can be Fluttershy!
//Bandit of Temptation, eh? How my adventure's been going, kind of seems like it...
Spike: I'm gonna have to say 'no' on that one. Sorry. Can you tie the bridge for me now, please?
GB: Pffff, no! You got the question wrong, dummy!
//I got the question right!
GB: Sorry, kid! I can't let you through!
//'Kid'?! I'm older than you!
GB: Unless you agree to become my personal slave for forever, then I'm sure we could work something out...
//...I think I'll pass.
//I turn my back to Gabrielle and walk away from the crevice. Beatrice is still hiding in the bushes, watching us. That wasn't even a fair riddle, it was just a dumb question!
GB: Hey! Don't walk away from me! I'm talking to--

[[SAVE LOCATION]]

The Drakeling starts to run!

//I run as fast as I can at the crevace edge, aiming for the other side. It's far away, but I have to make it!
BA: Hey! Wait!
//The dirt here is dry and packed hard, so I get a good run-up to the edge, going fast -- it might be fast enough! All I need is a good jump!
GB: Wh-- waaaaaagh!
//I'm running straight at her. Here's hoping she stays there, I could use a little assistance.
//I place my foot on the edge and push off--
//HEY, REMEMBER THAT STONE YOU DROPPED? WHATEVER HAPPENED TO THAT?
//The dirt crumbles underneath my foot halfway through the motion, falling off into the deep! I launch into the air at a shallow angle!

//Beatrice rushes out of the bushes, towards the forest-side edge!
BA: He's not gonna make it!
//The mist catches my cape and clings to it, slowing me down as it forms running droplets. My arc won't reach the cliff edge now!
//I reach to Gabrielle, trying to get a hand on her -- if I can toss her back, and me forward, it might work!

The Pegasus Filly speeds backwards, away from The Drakeling!

Spike: No!
//No... I'm not going to make it...
//The mist waits in front of and below me, clinging to my legs in anticipation, covering jagged rocks in the crack that look like teeth.
//CLICK.

The Drakeling draws power from within himself, and casts Walk of the Third!

//The world slows down around me, mist swirling slower. I'm drenched in odd purple water, but now it's not as cold. I'm not even falling as fast...
//I'm... not falling at all.
Spike: What is this?
//IT'S A WALL, DUMBASS.

The Drakeling collides with the obstacle! The Drakeling's upper body takes the full force of the impact, bruising the muscle and bruising the left true ribs!
The Drakeling grabs on firmly!
Spike: Hoo--
//Drove the wind out of me. Hold on, how was I still moving forward?!

The Drakeling's Walk of the Third ends.

BA: No! Hero!
GB: Oh my skies, he...
BA: I lost him in the mist! Hero, did you make it?!
//I still haven't got my breath back. I don't respond.
//What the hell happened there? I just cast Walk of the Third spontaneously, and the world slowed down, even gravity, and that's all normal, but... it was like I was gliding.
//YOU'RE FUCKING WELCOME.
GB: Aaaaaaahannh no, no, this is all my fault!
//Gabrielle starts bawling, in midair.
BA: Hero?! Talk to me!!
//What did you do?!
//YOU WEREN'T USING WALK OF THE THIRD RIGHT, HALF BECAUSE THERE'S NO CUTESY PINK PONY TO TEACH IT TO YOU LIKE A DOG ON A LEASH AND HALF BECAUSE YOU FUCKING SUCK AT EVERYTHING YOU DO. I DECIDED TO LET YOU USE IT RIGHT.
//Why would it do that? Why would I... glide?
//BECAUSE THIS FUCKING SHIT METAPHOR WASN'T OBVIOUS ENOUGH.
BA: He didn't... he couldn't have...
GB: I, I, I, he was coming right at me, and I...
BA: ...fell?
//Gabrielle digs her hooves into her eyes.
GB: He was reaching out for me, for me to help him, and I just...
//Why would you help me out? You've never helped me out.
//COME THE FUCK ON. I MEAN, I'M AN ASSHOLE, BUT THAT'S JUST UNFAIR.
//Fine, you barely ever help me out.
//YOUR DUMB SHIT HAS TOO MUCH OF MY ATTENTION ALREADY, I'M NOT GOING TO LET AN INVESTMENT OF MINE FUCKING ROT AT THE BOTTOM OF A PIT. SO I UNLOCKED A PART IN YOUR HEAD YOU COULD HAVE REACHED WITH TRAINING, BECAUSE IT WAS EASIER THAN SEEING MY FUCKING VALUABLE TIME AND EFFORT GO TO WASTE.
//You know that's actually a fallacy, right? Sunk costs are ignored in healthy decision-making, they don't change anything.
//WELL IF YOU REALLY FEEL THAT WAY THERE'S THIS NICE BIG CLUSTER OF NERVES HERE I CAN FUCKING PINCH OFF--
//And you totally made the right decision despite that please don't kill me.
GB: I... he fell, and I didn't catch him, he...
BA: Hero...
GB: This is all my fault!
//On the ledge, Beatrice strains out to yell at Gabrielle:
BA: No, don't say that! It's not your fault!
GB: It is, it is, he wouldn't have jumped if I had a better riddle, if I -- oh my skies, he's dead because of meeeeee-he-he-he!
//Regaining my breath (and taking advantage of fortuitous timing, I'll admit) I pull myself up onto solid ground and roll a little bit inwards.
Spike: Hoof, 'Swings, that was bad...
//If the dragon instinct didn't save me from the danger he caused himself, I might have had an angrier (and much shorter) journey.
//I DIDN'T DO SHIT, THAT WAS JUST BAD LUCK.
//At the sound of my voice, both fillies pipe up:
BA: Hero!
GB: Is that you? You're okay?!
T: (What happened there, Spike?)
//My chest hurts, and the finger that Wafa broke is starting to throb. I stand up.
//Gabrielle flies over to where I'm standing and lands. She stares at the ground at my feet, eyes twisted up. She's scared and trying not to cry...
GB: I'm... sorry, I really am...
//I walk towards Gabrielle, kneel down, and put a hand on her shoulder.
//WOW CREEP.
Spike: You should be.
//HOLY FUCKING SHIT THAT WAS AN ACCUSATION NOT A COMMAND, CALM THE FUCK DOWN.
Spike: You feel bad because someone almost got really, really hurt.
GB: ...Sorry...
//She just keeps repeating that, I guess.
Spike: If you feel this bad, even though no one actually got hurt this time, how do you think you'd feel if someone did get hurt because of your actions?
GB: ...Sorry... I don't wanna be a Bandit, anymore...

The Pegasus Filly was defeated!
Spike earned 10000 experience points!
Spike is now level 27!

[[SAVE LOCATION]]

//I stand up, trying to listen to the ambient noise around us. Besides the echoes in the crevace, I think I can hear two young fillies talking off in the distance.
Spike: You can start making up what you've done by reconnecting the bridge here.
//Sniffing and looking at the ground, Gabrielle mutters:
GB: Uh-huh.
Spike: Then, stay here with Beatrice.
BA: Wait! Hero, where are you going?!
//I stalk off into the mists, fists at the ready, ignoring Beatrice.
T: (You're leaving two scared little fillies in the middle of Everfree Forest without supervision?)
Spike: (Uh, they hang out here themselves. And why do people think this place is scary, anyway?)
T: (Back when Celestia was around, Everfree Forest was the only location in all of Equestria where the clouds moved, the trees grew, and the animals lived all on their own. Everywhere else, ponies were in charge of those jobs.)
Spike: (So... ponies worked growing trees? Were they also gainfully employed to dry paint?)
//Twilight groans and trots away.
Spike: (No wait, I have a great one about the government paying people to dig a ditch and fill it in -- come back! I'm not done telling you how stupid this is!)