"...Just us guys," finished Zealus.  Spike was seriously starting to regret not going with twilight as the monster in pony form leaned over him.  He smelled like brimstone.  "I know you know how to play," Zealus continued. "So, lets play.  Go ahead and go first."  

Spike simply stared.  Maybe he could still catch up to Twilight.  Or, go anywhere else.  But he had to stay and defend the library!  "Sorry," began Spike.  "I have no idea what your going on about."

Zealus crooked an eyebrow at him.  "Really?  Then, unless your lying, you truly are the most worthless creature i have ever come across."  Zealus turned away and lay on the ground.  "Why do you exist?"

Spike had no answer, just a scowl.  Zealus cracked a smile.  "As i thought."

There was a moment of uncomfortable silence, at least for Spike.  Zealus was fast asleep, if the snoring was anything to judge by.  Spike sighed and go back to work, doing his best to stay away from the red pony in the center of the library.  "Sheesh," he said finally.  "You'd think he owns the place."

Zealus suddenly spoke up, making Spike jump and drop a bunch of books in a mess on the ground.  "Give it time."  Spike scowled again.  "And wipe that dumb look off your face.  Its poisonous."  Spike had no response to that.

Eventually, Zealus got back up.  "Don't worry buddy," he said with a starling different tone.  "We'll get you trained up in no time!"  

Spike just stared again.  Zealus waited patiently.

Spike spoke up "What?"

It was Zealus' turn to stare.  "Why, the game of course!  I'm going to give you the powers of darkness!"

Spike, once again, stared.  "What?"

Zealus sat down.  "Okay...  lemme start from the beginning. I am from a different world" He explained.  

Spike's eyes went wide.  "A different world?  Like, you mean far away in distant lands?"

"Not exactly.  I mean, a completely different universe.  You have to use the powers of darkness to get from one world to another."

Zealus suddenly realized that this little initiation was exactly like what he himself had gone through.

"It all happens in the form of this game, the rules and powers and bets of which are all held together by, and draw power from..."

Zealus hesitated.  "the ancient ones."  He swallowed, and looked around.  Spike could have sworn the sun went behind a cloud for just a moment.

Zealus continued.  "I want to teach it to you.  It will make you mighty," he said dramatically.  "But, we have little time.  I need to get you trained fast, so i have set up a little training zone, just inside the Everfree Forest.  There-"

"-Question!"  Said Spike with a hand raised.  Zealus said nothing.  Spike said nothing, just continued to raise his hand.

"...Spike?"

"Yes?"

"...What is your question?"

"I'm not allowed in the Everfree Forest!"

"That's not a question, Spike.  Anyway, that's-"

"-Zealus, seriously.  I cant go into the Everfree Forest.  Bad things happen in there."

That's exactly why i'm sending you, thought Zealus.

"Look, i'll explain to everypony, alright?  I guarantee your safety.  You only have to go in far enough that no one will see you when you meet my friend."

"I thought you had no friends?"

"Did i say friend?  I meant slave."

There was yet another pause between them.  Zealus was starting to get sick of this creature.

"Understand?"

"I suppose..."

"Then get going,"  Zealus said suddenly happy.  "I'm excited for you, I really am."

Spike hesitated, he opened his mouth, but Zealus cut him off.

"It wont take long, you wont turn into a monster, and there will no powers of darkness that you have to embrace.  This is just a quick session to ensure you don't get left behind."  Zealus lifted an eyebrow at him.  "You don't want your friends to leave you behind, do you?"

"Well, no..."

"Wonderful!  My ally should already be waiting for you."

With that, Spike slowly left the library, carefully closing the door behind him.  As he left, "You'll explain?  To everypony?"

Zealus smiled.  "To everypony."

Finally, Spike closed door to the library and left.  Zealus listened to his footsteps just outside as he left.  He relaxed.  "Equest?"  He said out loud.  "You know what to do."

Zealus curled up on the carpet in the center of the library.  He was hungry again, and now cold.  His fire was getting weaker, he would need to duel again soon, or go back to the shadow realm, before the stuff Equestria was made of got inside of him.

He wasn't laying there long before six ponies crashed in through the door, each of them shouting, especially Rainbow Dash.  There each also wore a strange necklace with a different color except for Twilight, who wore a what looked like a tiara. Twilight was the mare who stepped forward and said "right where I left you."  Then she looked around suspiciously.  "Where's Spike?"

Zealus slowly got to wobbly feet, He yawned, as if from a groggy sleep.  Zealus looked around, feigning confusion, before he lazily murmured "dunno."

Twilight and several others lifted an eyebrow at him.  "You dunno?"

"Nope."

"I see."  Twilight looked back at the others.  "Somepony would have heard if he did something,"  she said.  They started to discuss it, but Zealus could only stare at the perfect Twilight Sparkle.  Even her name seemed to entice him, make him want to use every resource he had available, every power he could muster, every trick he could think of, to-

"Anyway," said Twilight, "He better show back up soon.  I'm sure he just went to buy some food, books, or something."  She rolled her eyes.  "Its not like I didn't leave him enough to do."

Zealus sat down at gazed at each of them individually.  Some glared at him, some seemed to hold him in apathy, and one (Fluttershy?) avoided his gaze completely.  Finally, He spoke.

"Thank you for coming.  I believe you wanted an explanation?"

Many of them nodded.

"Well, here it is.  A spirit has invaded from another world.  I am a wanderer who vanquishes them.  It got your May Flower, so i got it.  That's as simple as it is."

Immediately, there were shouts at him.  Zealus was never good at multitasking, so he just looked at Twilight.  He didn't even try to speak.  

Finally, Twilight said "Hold on, girls!"  After a little squabbling, Twilight managed to get them to speak one at time, though Rainbow went first.

"Why should we trust anything you say?  After all, what about that big temple some ponies floating over the direction you came from?"

"The result of our duel."  Zealus said simply.

"Did you hurt her?"  

"No," Zealus said, "But contact with me tends to leave ponies burned.  It is a power I posses.  As you may have guessed, I am more than just a pony.  I am unlike anything-"

He was interrupted by more yelling.

"I can prove it."  He said quietly

"What did he say?"  asked Pinkie Pie.

"I said, I can PROVE IT!"

That got them to be silent.  Zealus smiled more at himself, and waited a moment.

"Were listening," said an unconvinced Applejack.

"You have to be silent,"  said Zealus.  "This will be a lot to absorb."

"I don't even ask to be believed, because before you leave, i will prove everything I've said, and everything I will say."

Each of them leaned forward a little.

Zealus stood up to his full height, which was not very impressive.  He talked rather quietly, as if to deter listeners.

"I am about to make you all duelists, like myself.  That means something.  A duelist uses the card granted to him to grow strong.  But there is another reason.  The more you duel a person, the deeper your bound can become."

Zealus found himself thinking about Cirendomor.

"The cards themselves draw power from the ancient ones,"  he said, thankful that were no questions.

"The ancient ones are a group of monsters that live in the shadow realm.  There, they have dominion over all that enter, even me.  They hold this game together, decide that rules, create the cards, and enforce bets on the games.  But not all the games are so simple.  A heated game, or one agreed upon, can become a shadow game.  The monsters used in the duel, the attacks that they use, and the bets placed upon the games, become very real.  Any loser gives his or her soul to the shadow realm, and the winner gains all the powers that his foe possessed.  My rival, the spirit Cirendomor, won a bet to gain the power to posses the innocent in the name of the common good."

Zealus made a face.

"After you've known that guy for just a few minuets, all words like common and good lose meaning.  Anyway, where was I?  He possessed May Flower to get at me, and he lost.  I sent him to the shadow realm, and now her body and soul belong to me,"  He finished with pride.

"Of course, being the gentle, heroic stallion that I am, I brought them back, instead of letting them become magical energy.  Your welcome."

While the arguing started up again, Zealus waved his hoof over the ground, and watched as the all-too-familiar cards appeared from his own energy.  One of each of the different kinds of cards appeared before him, and he looked at them with pride.  

"Dragon's Rebirth!"  He said more to himself.  "Dragon-Knight Draco-Equistie, Red Dragon Archfiend, Galaxy-Eyes Tachyon Dragon, Blue-Eyes-"

Zealus was being stared at.  He didn't care.

"Divine Dragon Apocralph, and Dragonic tactics."  He didn't think he was missing any.

"These are some examples of the cards we use to play the game.  These cards, these dragons, are my soul.  Channeled through my thoughts, feelings, and memories.  I find it easiest to use thoughts, but every duelist is different.  The truely strong can channel all three, but whatever."

He looked up.  "Any questions?"

For awhile after that, he answered questions, explained the game, and walked each mare through a practice duel.  Once they got the hang of the game, he got back to business.

"Will Cirendomor come back?"  Asked Pinkie Pie.

"I dunno.  Time is dynamic in the shadow realm.  Sometimes a minuet here is a year, sometimes its the other way around."

Zealus walked up to her.

"These cards can make you mighty.  Are you ready to channel your soul?  I caution you, once you give into the ancient ones, there is no going back.  But you gain so much more."

Pinkie thought for a moment.  "Why are we doing this again?"

Zealus' eyes opened wide.

"But...Mighty..."

"Well, that's fine and all, but what the point?"

Zealus sighed.  "It'll be a great way to bound with your friends!"  He said with cheer.

"Sign me up!"  Sang Pinkie.

Zealus bent his head over, and everything got a lot darker.

"Then-"

Applejack cut him off.

"How do we know this ain't some trick?"  She asked.

Zealus put a hoof to his head.  "If this exact act is some kind of trick, I will happily give up my body and soul to you six.  This is for the point of defending your land of others threats like Cirendomor."  He said.  "I cant be the only to do it.  If any of you don't want to play and gain the powers of darkness, that is your choice."

Applejack looked away.  "If this is a trick, ill find out about it."

Zealus turned back to Pinkie.  "Then..." He said as he waited for another interruption...

There was none.

"Touch the power inside me."

The light went dark, the room got cold and blank, and tons of eyes opened up from every shadow, every corner of the room.  Each of the six tried hard to trust Zealus.  He smiled at them.  "Its just the powers of darkness!  Nothing to be scared of!"  Monsters from far away began to roar, and smaller ones started to crawl from the shadows towards them.  Zealus made a sound that was like a bark and like and sneeze, and the monsters froze.  Each of the six mares crept a little closer to Zealus.

A golden eye opened on Zealus forehead as a loud howl could be heard.  A rushing sound started as well.  Somepony screamed.  Applejack tried the door, but it wouldn't budge.

"Its made of the shadows!"  Yelled Zealus over the noise.  "Hurry, touch my symbol so we can leave!"

Pinkie Hopped over Zealus, and placed her hoof on the symbol on Zealus' forehead.  "Pinkie no!"  Shouted somepony.  The symbol on Zealus shone brightly, and appeared on Pinkie's head as well.  Then it was over.  The light restored, the monsters vanished, and the door blew open, sending Applejack flying backwards and crashing into a bookcase.  Pinkie rubbed her forhead before both her and Zealus' symbol vanished.

"Anyone else?"  Said Zealus.