Judgment Chapter 6: Rise of Equestria

Part 2

The doors of the courtroom opened once more letting the now very familiar figure of Spike walk inside again. The walk to his seat was slow but calm, as always offering smiles to those that dared to look his way. But there was something different this time; Spike wasn’t wearing his pants anymore, he now completely nude. Not that it mattered much to him or any other dragon to begin with.

Spike sat on his chair and relaxed.

“Prisoner,” the ursa judge called. “Are you ready to proceed?”

“Of course,” Spike cleared his throat. “Now, where was I?”

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*Ponyville-Town Center-Three years, six months and two weeks into the Fall- 7:27 a.m.*

Spike spun around in a swift and graceful motion while at the same time using his extended claws and tail tip to cut the caribou that had surrounded him. He stopped the moment the screams began and the warmth of their blood and meat touched his scales. Spike looked down and around him and saw twelve caribou soldiers on the ground, two of them were already dead; their heads sliced in three or four parts while the rest now laid without arms, legs or intestines. One in particular caught his attention and made him giggle seeing the stag trying to stop the blood gushing out of his neck.

“Three hundred and seventy six!” he declared before using his tail to pierce the heart of one stag that tried to crawl away without both arms, his scream of absolute pain followed by his pathetic whimpers made the dragon feel giddy with joy. “Seventy seven!” Spike sang again before stomping on the heads of another two, uncaring of adding more guts, brains, blood or whatever other disgusting substance onto him. “Eighty one!” he then snarled before breathing out a stream of orange fire onto three stags before kneeling down and grabbing the last two survivors by their antlers and dragged them out of the house they were hiding and onto the ongoing battle outside.

“You-Arrgggg!- You fucking traitor!” one of the stags shouted through his pain, clinging as hard as he could to his stomach trying to retain his insides, well, inside him. Spike didn’t respond.

“Three hundred and eighty four,” Spike said in a tone he could barely hear while he watched the spectacle before him.

The battle had started only forty minutes ago and already the remaining surviving caribou were trying to hide inside the buildings or run away from the battle. Spike knew Chrysalis and the rebels lacked numbers even when attacking a town like Ponyville that barely had twenty five thousand inhabitants, including the garrison and the two thousand soldiers already stationed there for whatever plan Dainn had in mind.

Spike chuckled. Four thousand against twenty five thousand, the odds were not in their favour and he knew they had no hope of winning. That is, if they had attacked blindly.

The dragon looked around seeing the mist he had created remaining strong and cloudy; allowing the changelings and diamond dog soldiers attack freely and unseen most of the time. The small army had taken the town by surprise and attacked as one with brutal, overwhelming force. The hydras, bugbears and manticore tamers had spearheaded the attack against the garrison forces and the army stationed in Ponyville. The result was inordinate and effective. Meanwhile hours before the actual attack, changeling mimickers had infiltrated the town to drug the water supply with a special drug Zecora designed. At least half the town was asleep and would be none-the-wiser thanks to that.

“Zzzzzrrrkkkkeeee!”

Spike turned his head to the left to see an entire division of changelings fight against female guardians while their masters, both caribou and otherwise, tried to flee but to no avail. Timberwolves leaped onto the caribou using their wooden claws; hard as steel and just as sharp, to tear them apart while they screamed. Some unfortunate ponies and donkeys fell prey to the timberwolves but the orders of Chrysalis were clear.

Spike closed his eyes letting the sounds of the ongoing carnage put a genuine smile on his face. Suddenly he felt the caribou on his right start to struggle harder. Opening his eyes he looked down on the caribou trying to pull away with his now only hand. He saw something at the corner of his eye, let go of the caribou on his left, shifted his stance to grab the caribou on his right by his antlers, lifted him up in a single motion effortlessly and then tossed him to the rooftop on the other side of the street. The caribou archer barely had enough time to notice the living missile coming his way before it hit him; knocking them down to the street and letting the timberwolves rip them to shreds.

Without batting an eye Spike grabbed the caribou on his left again, dragged him to the middle of the street and then using the same technique he used previously he tossed the caribou. Only this time higher and stronger. Spike stood still until the stag landed on top of Sugar Cube Corner; impaling himself against one of the phallic pillars that had replaced the candles of the cupcake on top three years ago.

“Three hundred and eighty five,” Spike whispered to himself. He looked to see the changeling division and found they were already taking the surviving females and non-caribou males away to a safe zone. He could see two or three caribou prisoners but they weren’t important. The real important targets were the caribou officers. But even they fell into the ‘Knock out if possible’ rule, mostly to squeeze out any secrets they could possibly be hiding later on.

“And speaking of which,” Spike said to himself before turning his gaze to the town hall, one of the few buildings still intact.

*Inside the town hall*

Magistrate Gunne stood still watching from his window the battle that ravaged the entire town. The moment he heard the initial roar he knew there was no escape, no reason to even try. And so he did the only thing he could do now, wait. And for forty minutes he had done just that, all the while watching his brothers die at the hands of the rebels and the heretics that defied the divine rule of Dainn and the regime of male superiority.

Suddenly the door to his office burst open and he turned back just enough to see the familiar figure of a dragon looking at him through the obscured room with two shining white eyes.

“Where is Mayor Mare?” Spike asked in a dark, icy tone.

Gunne turned his gaze back to the window and sighed. “When the attack began I told her to flee if she wanted to be free again,” there was a moment of silence between the two, broken only by the muffled sounds of the war outside. “It’s….surprising to see you alive, Spike. Care to talk?” There was another moment of silence before the sound of steps echoed inside the room. After a few of them silence reigned once more. Gunne glanced at his right and saw the dragon standing silently at his side whilst also looking the scene outside the window; currently featuring a manticore and a warbeast fighting across the street. After a full minute of silence, and watching the warbeast best the manticore (only for it to be tackled by another two) Gunne sighed heavily.

“I always thought you were just acting. Lying your way to the top,” Gunne put his arms behind his back. “That you were a Heretic, to be precise. Guess this proves I was right, don’t you think so, Spike?” the dragon didn’t respond. Gunne stared in silence while he saw five of his brothers run down the street, a moment later they were jumped by a dozen or so marelings, pony mares and one diamond dog bitch. Moments later the females began to stab his brothers to death while they cut off their members and held them up as trophies.

“Doesn’t matter now I suppose,” Gunne’s shoulders fell slightly.

“Master…” Ginna called sitting quietly until now on the corner.

“Why didn’t you ever say anything, or filed a report then?” Spike asked in a more neutral tone; his white eyes never blinking.

“I did, many times in fact. But I never got clearance,” Gunne sighed again. “You were under the direct protection of Dainn, you were virtually untouchable and as long as you succeed on your missions nothing else mattered,” silence followed suit for a couple of seconds. “It was frustrating seeing you climb up on the social ladder so fast. I fought so hard to achieve the rank of Magistrate but you achieved the rank of General with a mere command, and then Dainn elevated you to a new rank created just for you. All that was left was for him to name you his heir or something,” Gunne joked unnoticing the slight descent of temperature. “All the more reason I had to suspect of you, but I never found anything to prove you were a Heretic in disguise,” Spike didn’t respond for several seconds.

“You do know I’m going to kill you, right?” Spike asked in that same neutral tone.

Gunne sighed again. “Yes, I know. There’s no point in keeping me alive since you already know everything I could possibly know. But before you do, can you tell me when did you turn into a Heretic? Or were you one since the start?”

“I turned into a Faker the day Applejack escaped. Indirectly, I was the one that let her go and that earned me the end of my slavery to your dark corruption.”

“Applejack?....Applejack….Ah! The sister of sir Macintosh; one of the national prizes. That was little over year and a half ago if I remember correctly,” Gunne let out a mirthful laugh. “Mister Macintosh was hard to deal with at the beginning, even before I became Magistrate he was guilty of treating females nicely, especially his black collar sister,” Gunne sighed again feeling the room turning a bit colder. “He avoided re-education, fortunately, it would’ve been a shame to lose him like that. But I suppose that his disappearance means he is also a….what did you call it? Faker?”

“Yes, and Soarin too. Just my closest friends were Fakers like me, some since the beginning of this Tartarus.”

“Ah, I see,” Gunne remained silent for several seconds watching at least thirty of his brothers chained, nude and with their antlers cut off, being forced to crawl through the street while pulling a cart filled with corpses. Meanwhile a zebra wearing caribou armor was hugging a zebra mare wearing a black armor nearby, while two changeling soldiers took away the armor of the zebra stallion. “So this is what father was talking about.”

“Master, please don’t!” Ginna called from her spot but a single hand movement from Gunne made her shut up.

“What do you mean by that?” Spike asked.

“Our father, that is Ginna’s and mine, was an odd one. He believed females should be treated with more compassion and care. He was a stag through and through, don’t mistake that, but yet he always tried to be as nice as possible to females,” Gunne clenched his hands. “I really don’t like calling females bitch, or whore or any of those titles. They may be lowly and stupid females but they have names,” he glanced at Ginna. “Father said, on his death bed, that the caribou would pay one day for everything we’ve done. I never understood what he meant by it until now,” Gunne turned to face Spike, whom was still looking outside the window.

“I always had a feeling that what my people do is wrong, ‘but how can it be wrong if everyone is so happy with the way we do things’. I always told myself that, but deep down I knew there had to be another way to keep male superiority in the power it deserved without treating females like...things. My Ginna is not a thing. She is a female. A stupid, worthless female, but she is not a thing. She’s my sister and my pet...and I love her despite that,” Gunne smiled.

“Gunne!” Ginna called in a whimper.

“Spike,” Gunne ignored her call. “You do realise you can’t defeat Dainn, right? He is too powerful. He is our king and the ultimate male in the world, nothing can stop his might,” suddenly the dragon turned to face him making Gunne jump a little.

“Of course I know,” Spike’s eyes turned even whiter, the light coming out of them increasing in volume and bright. “But that doesn’t mean I won’t try,” Spike snarled.

“Spike,” Gunne swallowed. “Just...just promise me you won’t harm her, please. Promise me you won’t harm my Ginna,” at the mention of her name, Ginna crawled her way to Gunne until she was embracing his leg shakily.

Spike turned his attention to Ginna before pushing Gunne aside. The stag grunted but did nothing else aside staring in worry. Spike knelt down placing a shining blue hand on top of her head. A few seconds later he retreated his hand and glared Gunne making the stag take a step back in fear. Spike then placed his right hand over the slightly bulged stomach of Ginna. Seconds later he gasped sadly and got up.

“Even like that you have no salvation,” Spike said in a chilly tone. The dragon moved to face Gunne and a blink of an eye later he had his left claw piercing the abdomen of Gunne. The attack had been so sudden that Gunne didn’t scream, he simply opened his mouth in shock while blood started to dribble out. Spike’s body began to glow with a white like and for the first time Gunne was able to see the dragon without the darkness of the room partially covering him.

Spike was drenched in blood, his scales were no longer purple but now they resembled a deep red scheme. Not to mention the pieces of meat, muscles and brains hanging from his head spines, shoulders, talons and tail. And the stench was now unbearable. Gunne had barely smelt anything when Spike entered or even when he was standing next to him, but now all he wanted to do was puke. He couldn’t, however, and limited himself to cough some of his blood all over Spike’s face.

“P---Please….*cough*---d--don’t kill….my Ginna,” Gunne gazed into the white orbs of Spike and began to cry. “I...I beg of you--Not Ginna...not….not my babe,” his answer was silence. Complete absolute silence inside that room. “G--arrrggg!--Ginna?....Ginna!” but his sister didn’t answer. He then felt being pulled forward until he was just an inch away from touching the face of Spike.

“I made it quick for them,” Spike said in a cold, heartless tone just a moment before a soft thud was heard behind the dragon. “Your sister didn’t even feel a thing,” using his free arm he pierced the back of Gunne making the stag squirm and shout out in pain. “Unlike you, Gunne. I don’t care what you believe or what you didn’t do. What matters is what you did, and for that, you’ll die right here,” there was a horrible crunching noise followed by a muffled scream of Gunne. “Right now.”

Letting go of Gunne the body hit the floor unceremoniously, an empty and lifeless stare on the eyes of Spike’s newest victim. Spike turned around and made his way to Ginna, once he was close enough he knelt down and carefully lifted her up like she was a bride. Looking down he noticed her breathing was weak but calm, peacefully asleep. Spike walked out of the building and was soon greeted by a small group of griffons and thestrals, all of them doing their best to not look away from his bloodstained form.

“Take her,” Spike ordered giving the cow to a bat pony before placing a hand over her stomach, he focused letting a blue light cover his hand and her abdomen for a few moments; then Ginna grunted in displeasure and pain while she slept for a few seconds. “And make sure the medical bay treats her right; she just had an abortion,” Spike said before he jumped to one of the nearby rooftops and contemplated the battle slowly coming to an end.

“Three hundred and eighty seven,” Spike whispered to himself before spotting a small group of ponies trying to run away from the battle. All of them wearing either caribou armor or royal armor.

*A few minutes later*

“You will pay for this treason, you fucking female sympathizer!” a unicorn guard shouted before Spike slapped him unconscious.

“And I hope you will thank me in a few hours,” Spike replied letting a unicorn rebel pick the group he had stopped up with his magic and take them away.

“Sir?” Spike turned to his left to see a cervidae doe, a rare sight to behold since just a handful of cervidae lived in Equestria before the Fall. She swallowed while trying not to cover her nose. “I bring a report from commander Applejack. She says the fields have been purged of rape-vines, the warbeast stables destroyed and that the south, east and central districts of Ponyville are cleared out entirely.”

“She really does work fast,” Spike said with a smirk. “What about the rest of the districts, the garrison and the outskirts?”

“Commander Applejack is taking charge of the rest of the districts as we speak while her brother, major Macintosh, has formed a perimeter along the outskirts. His last report marked them as secured,” the doe opened the bag at her left side and took out a paper fold. “The garrison was almost completely destroyed during the initial assault and only the central command post remains unsecured. Queen Chrysalis herself is leading the attack but the caribou inside and the remaining Enslaved and Corrupted have taken several females as hostages.”

“Figures,” Spike hummed. “Is commander Yog nearby?” the doe nodded. “Tell him to bring as many caribou corpses as he and his troops can outside the castle and leave them there. I already cleared it myself so they have nothing to worry about,” Spike smiled at the doe making her flinch in reflex upon seeing his fangs. “I’ll head on to the garrison to give Chrysalis a hand in the meantime.”

“R-Right away, sir,” the doe said in a shaky tone before leaving in a hasty retreat.

Spike could hear the doe run away to fulfill her orders while he turned in direction of the local garrison. He crouched for some seconds before giving a mighty jump forward. From his view, forty maybe fifty meters above ground, he was able to see much of the chaos the battle for Ponyville had left despite the white mist; it wasn’t a problem for him since he made it. Almost everything in his immediate line of sight was either crumbling, burning or being cleared out. He could see all kinds of ponies and changelings, amongst some of other species carrying out sleeping or knocked-out victims. Some others were claiming vengeance or prizes from the caribou in the middle of the streets while some others escorted prisoners.

Still, what made him smile were the corpses littering almost every cleared street or open zone; most of them belonging to the caribou and while he was able to see corpses of several ponies and from other species, he knew it was for the best.

I would’ve killed them myself if given the chance, at least they are free once again, he thought grimly. After everything they’ve done the fucking caribou deserve no less than death. Killing them is the right retribution. Killing is so...delectable, Spike grinned for a moment but soon he dropped it. But why...why do I feel like I’m not doing enough?

Spike stopped his train of thoughts when he noticed he was starting to lose altitude and speed, but sure enough he was now able to see the garrison and the central command post. He was still far away to make anything out properly but he noticed a magic shield around the building and several bolts of magic, mostly green, shooting at it. Moments later he landed quite softly in front of the gates of the garrison and scaring the nearby friendly soldiers. Without a word he quickly made his way to his next objective while dodging any soldier or occasional medic in his way; most barely noticed him since he was moving in a speed that could give Pinkie Pie a run for her bits.

It took him about two or three minutes to reach his target and, like he had seen from the air, the central command post was surrounded by a light blue barrier. The building in itself wasn’t all that big, probably fifty meter long by twenty meters wide and just two stories high. The barrier was currently receiving a barrage of magic bolts from changelings and unicorns; meanwhile some pegasi dropped thunderbolt spheres over it and other non-magic users used bows, slings or ballistas to attack it. And despite all that the barrier held strong.

“Spike?” A voice behind him asked in a tone he could only describe as incredulity. He turned around to see Diamond Tiara looking at him with wide eyes while her long time friend (and once a black collar under his care during the first year of the Fall) Silver Spoon at her side giving him a similar look mixed with fear. He noticed both of them were wearing black chitin armor, had their manes cut down to barely touch their shoulders and Diamond Tiara herself didn’t have her trademark tiara from years before. Both of them seemed to be fine, except maybe for the fresh scar on Diamond Tiara’s left cheek and looking a bit tired.

“Diamond Tiara….Silver Spoon,” Spike greeted letting the young mares look up and down on him; Silver Spoon even covered her mouth. “Like my new outfit?” he asked before striking a pose. “I design it myself! I can assure you it is to kill for!” the two mares looked at him directly at his white shining eyes but their expressions never changed. “Man I’ve grown rusty, that was by far the worst joke I’ve come up with,” he commented before sighing. “It’s good to see you two again, I mean it.”

“Thanks, it’s good to see you too, Spike,” Diamond Tiara replied avoiding his eyes. “Queen Chrysalis ordered us a minute ago to go and find you.”

“She sent you and not one of her drones or someone that could fly?”

“The queen needs all her current soldiers firing at the barrier,” Silver Spoon said looking at the barrier. “As long as we keep attacking they can’t harm their hostages or counterattack.”

“I see,” Spike took a quick glance at the barrier and saw some soldiers holding crossbows ready to fire from the few windows the building had while the main door was surely reinforced and barricaded. “Can you guide me to her?” Spike asked before the two mares turned around and Diamond Tiara signaled him to follow her. Spike didn’t said anything to them and paid little care to the soldiers around that saluted him or simply stared.

Less than a minute later Spike arrived at a table with a map on top of it while Chrysalis, five of her lieutenants and Cranky stood around said table; all of them looking down at the map unaware of his arrival.

“Queen Chrysalis, ma'am, we have brought Spike the Dragon as requested,” Diamond Tiara said with genuine respect.

Chrysalis looked up to her and then glanced at the dragon. “That was surprisingly quick,” Chrysalis commented with a stern look. “Good job you two, you may retire and help with the western evacuation of the town,” the two mares saluted before going to perform their new orders.

Spike stared as they left for a few seconds before approaching the table. “Does Diamond Tiara know what happened to Filthy?”

“I told her myself,” Cranky replied, the old donkey wearing his casual janitor clothes and no armor except for a helmet. “She took it well, considering, and is proud to be his daughter after everything he did.”

“Without his help I doubt I would be here like I am today,” Spike and Cranky shared a few seconds of wordless gazing before he turned to face the changeling queen. “Need any help?”

“That’s why I was forced to call you, Spike. Those bastards dug themselves inside before my soldiers could catch them,” Chrysalis hit the table. “There are around two hundred of them and almost a hundred females by our best guess and, according to the scout party, all of them are blacks.”

“The ones in retraining,” Cranky grumbled.

“Precisely. They are the last solid defence in Ponyville, rescuing those poor females is our top priority,” a changeling lieutenant added.

“Right, got any ideas?” Spike asked.

“That’s why I called for you, the only options we currently have are either keep blasting at the barrier until it does down, use a single powerful magic blast or you. For the first time is a luxury we don’t have and for the second we could end up killing everyone in the building; that is something I would rather avoid this time around. In the end calling you is the best solution so far,” Chrysalis explained. “Think you can do something about it?”

Spike hummed nodding once. “I think I could try to force the barrier open, enter the building and kill every caribou inside it while keeping the females and the brainwashed safe. Or maybe I could try to destroy the barrier or disable it long enough for your soldiers to pour in,” Spike crossed his arms. “Although, maybe I could trick them into dropping the barrier for us.”

“How exactly would you do that?” Cranky asked with intrigue.

“By showing their mighty Marshal has captured the changeling queen,” the five lieutenants stared at him with blank expressions while Cranky covered his eyes with one hand and mumbled something that sounded very similar to ‘idiot’. “Think about it, as far as they know I could be doing a mission for the fucker king,” he added making Chrysalis ponder his ideas. “But since it’s you calling the shots here you get to decide, Chrysalis. Follow one of my ideas or come up with another option.”

Chrysalis looked at him straight into his glowing eyes and smirked darkly.

*Inside the Command Post*

Captain Harald was having a bad day. The attack by the rebel forces fell upon them mere moments after the strange mist covered the entire town and beyond and, while he hated to admit it, it had been ferocious, sudden and utterly devastating; most of the troops were either asleep or unequipped when it started. Not only that but apparently the damnable rebels knew where and, most importantly, who to strike, effectively cutting down their chain of command and bringing with them chaos and disorder. All in all a carefully planned surprise assault.

By the blessing of Dainn he managed to set up a defensive perimeter around the central command post before the changelings and the rebels got him and his troops. He was also lucky to bring ninety four black collar sluts for protection. Females were precious to the rebels and as long as they had them the rebels wouldn’t dare to overwhelm them; although he was sure the rest of Ponyville was probably claimed by the enemy (with his brothers either captured or slaughtered) he was certain it was only a matter of time before receiving aid from Canterlot.

“Once reinforcements arrive those fucking heretics will pay for this humiliation! We will show them the might of male superiority!” Harald declared earning a round of cheers from his troops. “We’ll switch those heretical males for aiding the worthless females and then they will join them in their punishment for turning against their rightful masters! We’ll remind those whores their proper place by fucking some sense into them by the end of this day!” Another round of cheers echoed through the command post.

But the cheering didn’t last long when they heard a mighty roar that dared turning their blood to ice.

“HARALD!” A voice shouted his name loudly a second after the roar ended. A voice he was familiar with.

“Marshal Spike?” Harald, incredulous and his knees still shaking with fear, approached the nearby window to peek outside. He noticed the constant attack of the rebels had come to a halt, he also noticed Spike making his way calmly towards the barrier. Harald watched in stunned silence while the marshal approached; his eyes shining with a white unnatural light and a soft blue glow enveloping his hands. What made stunned him, however, was the mostly dried blood covering almost every inch of his scales and the few pieces of meat hanging from his spines and parts of his dancing tail.

“I’m going to say this just one time, Harald. Surrender now, drop the barrier and let the females go and I promise you won’t be harmed!” Spike reached the barrier stopping just half a meter in front of it. “If you don’t then I’ll break this barrier down and I will kill you all,” Spike liked his lips slowly. “Please, go on, make my day all the better.”

“Spike, what is the meaning of this!? What are you doing with those fucking rebels!?” Harald shouted from his spot, his anger able to push away the fear the previous roar had installed inside him.

“I just invited them to a nice picnic!” Spike chuckled for a second or two...then suddenly shouted angrily, “What the fuck does it look like I’m doing!?” Harald glare at him. “Now, do as I say or die, all of you!”

Harald huffed and grunted angrily. He was about to curse Spike and use the females as a shield chip when he noticed the dragon smirk and then wink twice at him with his left eye. Harald’s anger subdued, being replaced by mild confusion. Then he saw Spike make a barely perceptible move with his head to the right. Harald glanced at said direction and saw none other than the bitch queen of the changelings holding an oversized scythe and a few changelings around her; silently watching the scene from a safe distance.

The stag glanced back at Spike now openingly smiling at him before nodding slowly. Then Harald smiled back and retreated from the window.

“You have a minute to decide, Harald!” Spike shouted once Harald was out of his sight.

“You’re a genius, Spike!” Harald said enthusiastically and only loud enough to let those nearby hear him. Harald looked at his fellow males. “Rejoice, brothers, for our marshal has brought the bitch queen of the changelings to us! He has lured her to her death! Our great king, Dainn, may he forever reign, will reward us beyond our wildest dreams!”

“Praise Spike, our marshal, my brothers!” Harald said while the rest of the males around him chuckled darkly, some of them even stroking their dicks in anticipation for what promised to be a great celebration. Harald rose to see Spike through the open window.

I don’t know how you did it, Spike, but you convinced the fucking rebels you were on their side! Now I understand why king Dainn had his eyes on you from the start. Harald thought before holding both arms in the air. I shall put my trust in you from now on, my Marshal. “For male superiority,” Harald muttered, followed by his male brothers. “We surrender!” Harald shouted, a smug smirk adorning his lips. “Drop the shield!” he ordered and a second later the barrier around the building disappeared. “Liberate the whores!”

A full minute of uneasy silence followed until the main doors opened letting the ninety four unfortunate females run towards their long awaited freedom; all of them were either crying or thanking the divine creators.

“Smart choice, Harald!” Spike called still from his spot. “Now, all secondary races leave orderly in a tight Triple Line formation, unarmed and with your hands in the air!” Spike ordered while at the same time watching the females arrive with the changeling soldiers and medics nearby, the males already covering them up and removing their collars. Everything else, like tattoos, piercings, ‘enhancement’ implants and any other perverted thing the caribou might have put on their bodies would have to wait.

A couple of minutes later the non-caribou males walked out like instructed, letting the rebel soldiers that approached them to shackle their wrists and/or wings, and in the case of the unicorns put a nullifier ring on their horns.

“Now you, Harald, come to my side!” Spike ordered smirking while Harald smirked back at him. A minute later Harald was outside the building and made his way calmly towards Spike. “Glad you caught on,” Spike said in a low tone, just loud enough to let the two of them hear it. “It’s good to see you again, Harald.”

“I can say the same for you, Spike,” Harald hummed. “I thought you were at the Empire?”

“Undercover mission with the blessing of our king, Dainn,” Spike smiled wildly. “‘Trick the idiots to their death’ I call it, and it worked like a charm.”

“Most impressive, my marshal, but was it necessary to sacrifice the entire town?” Harald asked with caution.

“Sacrifices are needed to achieve victory; a town and the lives it holds are nothing compared to it,” Spike said as he saw the rest of the non-caribou males be taken away quietly. “How many of our warriors are still in there?”

“Two hundred and twelve, my marshal, all of them ready to follow your lead against the changeling slut herself,” Harald let out a raspy groan. “I can’t imagine being among those misguided insects pretending to be like them.”

“You have no idea,” Spike said in a neutral tone.

“But our victory is nigh and male superiority will show its strength once again,” Harald chuckled. “Although, if I may ask, why are your eyes glowing like that?”

Spike crossed his arms. “Dragon thing,” he glanced at his right to see Chrysalis rose her blood drenched scythe. “It’s time. Here are my orders, Harald,” he turned to face the stag eagerly waiting to take action. “Suffer.”

Harald’s eyes snapped open when he felt a punch to his stomach so powerful that it shattered his armor. He fell to his knees, half conscious, and looked up to see Spike facing to the command post. A moment later the dragon took a deep, long breath of air and then a thick stream of orange fire emerged from his mouth. The last thing that Harald was able to hear before darkness consumed him were the agonizing, pain filled screams of his brothers and the cheering of the rebels.

And the laughter of Spike.

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“Took you long enough,” Chrysalis said crossing her arms. “What exactly were you doing in the castle?”

“As I said, leaving a message,” Spike said landing a meter or two in front of Chrysalis, Applejack, Big Mac, Yog, a few other officers and at least a hundred guards standing nearby. Spike had left the moment the command post began to collapse, leaving the few survivors of the blazing inferno he had created be killed off by some lucky soldier. “Is the town clear, Applejack?”

“Not a single soul is left in it Ah tells yah,” Applejack’s eyes turned nostalgic. “Yah really goin’ tah destroy Ponyville, Spike?”

“Our Ponyville died when the caribou came, A.J. And after this is over we can rebuild the farm, Ah reckon we can make it bigger, maybe raise a barn or two,” Big Macintosh said calmly at her sister’s side. Though the look on his face betrayed his tone.

“Ah know,” Applejack sighed heavily. “Do yer thing, Spike.”

Spike turned back and faced the town he had come to both love and hate for vastly different reasons. He approached the end of the small hill they were in, providing him a clear view of almost the entire town, and a painful direct view to the desecrated remains of the library he once called home. Bowing to reconstruct the town one day, he closed his eyes for a few moments. Then he re-opened them, the white light replaced by a intense blue flow while the lines between his scales started shining with the same intensity. The light emerged from his body uncontrollably for almost an entire minute then, to the surprise of everyone, Spike started to levitate two or three meters above the ground while the blue light was slowly being replaced by green flames.

After almost two minutes of concentration, grunting and snarling finally it all ended with a roar so powerful it made all the presents cover their ears. A moment later Spike opened his mouth and a bright, massive and hot stream of green fire erupted directly towards Ponyville; almost everyone had to cover their eyes and face due to the sheer intensity of the dragon’s fire. The flames danced in and on themselves while they washed the landscape without discrimination like a velvety wave of death. Spike began to move his head from side to side, completely covering the entire town in a mantle of green doom. After almost two minutes the flames finally stopped coming out and the green flames below slowly turned to orange, burning whatever was still left standing; the charred remains turning the earth itself black as coal.

Spike landed on the ground and, while he gasped for breath and held his chest tightly he saw that practically the entire town was no more; only the crystal palace remained intact.

“Just what in the name of all that is holy did yah get, Spike,” Applejack said clearly impressed. Impressed and frightened at his display of power.

Spike looked at her, his eyes finally back to normal. “What I told Zecora. *pant* Hope,” he burped out a tiny cloud of grey smoke. “Pardon. *pant* Also, I lost track of *pant* my kill count before, I’m *pant* certain most died because *pant* of my flames sooooo…..*pant* four hundred and sixty sounds fair?” he asked just as the mist finally began to dissipate.

*Hours later-Central Hive*

Spike, now clean from the guts and blood of battle, watched from the top balcony of the fortress all the activity down below. The sheer number of it had put the entire secluded area into full capacity; especially after he had freed the thousands of Enslaved and Corrupted, at least the ones that could be saved. The rest, less than two thousand counting females and males, were given a quick, painless death. Meanwhile the caribou males remained in tight vigilance in the farthest part of the cave and only the top ranking captured officers were being interrogated.

So far the only ones that remained the same were the blanked ones. But he was sure Zecora and her fellow Mystics would develop a way to bring them back to normal. They had to, for their sake. And of course he couldn’t count out the ones that had tragically died during the assault; although he was thankful only a little over three hundred had perished.

A sudden knock at the door snapped him out of his line of thought.

“Come in,” the door opened and revealed Applejack followed closely by Rainbow Dash (now wearing a chitin armor but her wings still wrapped up in green bandages) and Yog. “Hi.”

“Howdy,” Applejack replied seeing Spike turn to see down again. “Yah should be resting after all yah bein’ doin’ lately, Spike. When was the last time yah had some shut eye?”

“And you didn’t even touch your food,” Yog said eying a plate full of fruit, a couple of gemstones, a bowl of soup and a slice of black bread.

“I’m not hungry or tired. I’m not even thirsty,” Spike said nonchalantly. “Ever since I...fused with this power I don’t have the need for it anymore, I think I can even go without breathing,” Spike sighed and turned to see the trio. “How are the wings coming along, Dash?”

“Better,” she flexed her wings twice. “It feels so good to be rid of those damn wing-sheats,” Rainbow stared into Spike’s eyes for a few seconds then smiled wildly. “But I’ll be back into the air in no-time, ready to make the caribou taste the rainbow!”

Spike’s lips formed a small sincere smile. “I bet you are, Dash,” he then dropped it. “And the others? How are they?”

“Twilight is locked inside the library. Rarity is doing her best in the kitchen while Sweetie Belle watches her. Fluttershy is locked inside her room but she does come out every now and then to help around the hospital,” Rainbow answered before looking away. “And Pinkie Pie doesn’t leave the fire pits, she just stares at them in silence. Sometimes she cries while singing a song.”

“I see,” Spike closed his eyes. “Yog, any news?” He asked in such a tone that it sent chills down their spines.

“Mostly good for once. Blueblood sent a message saying that Dainn has been informed of what happened and is returning to Canterlot in a few hours, maybe tomorrow if the weather is bad enough. Also, the troops gathering in Ponyville have stopped and are now returning from where they came from.”

“That ain’t all, the rest of the attacks did their job mighty fine and say they’ll be sending their Enslaved and Corrupted our way once they can. Chrysalis already ordered the expansion of the camp and the defences of the ones outside.”

“I also have a letter for you, Spike. It’s from Empress Shifting Sands, I decided to come and give it to you personally,” Yog said pulling a paper fold out of his armor and handed it over to Spike.

Spike opened the letter and began to read it. After an entire minute of silence he let out a single victorious laugh. “The Empress has good news for us as well! King Blood Talons has agreed to aid her, not directly in fear of weakening his country and his borders but he has placed his most trusted general, Sebastian Wing Cutter, in charge of half the army; they stand ready to help Equestria if the barrier falls,” at his words the trio smiled and Rainbow cheered loudly in a manner that would make Bulk Biceps proud.

“That’s not all though. Groups of ponies that were outside of Equestria before the Fall are also doing their part trying to hire or establish mercenary groups; they know Equestria needs help and are trying to bring down the barrier from the outside. There are also entire zebra tribes ready to bring aid,” Spike shut up for a moment bringing the letter closer to his face. “And there are also over two hundred dragons ready to fight for us.”

“Dragons?” Applejack and Rainbow asked with incredulity.

“Yes,” his already big smile got even wider. “The Empress says that, apparently, most of them are old friends of Mom and aunt Luna and wish to help them now in their time of need. The rest have been bought as mercenaries by the Empress herself,” The mares hugged and cheered while Spike smiled in a relieved way. Yog, on the other hand, was silent but not for long.

“But they can’t do anything unless we take down the barrier first,” at his statement the two mares stopped and their gleeful expressions dropped a bit before Applejack walked over to Spike and patted him on the shoulder twice.

“Don’t yah worry yer silly changeling head, Yog,” Applejack said enthusiastically. “Didn’t yah see what Spike did back in Ponyville? Ah bet he can take Dainn down on his own!”

“No, I can’t,” Spike said in a serious tone. “Dainn is too strong for me.”

“B-but yah burn the town to a crisp on yer own!” Applejack protested, taking a step back.

“Yes, and it took a lot out of me,” Spike argued back silencing Applejack. He raised his right claw and a second later it began to shine with a blue shimmer as mist came out of it. “Now I’m strong, Applejack, and I would be lying if I told you that thought didn’t cross my mind, even when the power warned me it wouldn’t be enough to defeat Dainn alone,” his claw stopped glowing and he brought it down.

“The power, this feeling of invincibility...now I feel how they all felt,” Spike closed his eyes. “Nightmare Moon, Discord, Sombra, Chrysalis, Tirek. All of them were powerful beyond our dreams and understanding,” he opened his eyes now shining white. “Now I know how they felt having a power to change and dominate everything; power to do anything you want,” His eyes returned to normal.

“But do you remember why they lost?” he asked but didn’t waited for an answer. “Now I understand. They lost because they got cocky, arrogant and underestimated you. They had the power to destroy you but didn’t, because they thought nothing could ever defeat them,” he clenched his fists. “A mistake I almost made. I’m not invincible, but nor is Dainn even if the bastard believes he is and, while he is more powerful than me, he is vulnerable,” Spike turned to see the activity below in the camp.

“Spike?” Rainbow asked taking a tentative step towards him. “W-what do you mean by that?” Rainbow asked with a pang of worry in her voice.

“When I fused with this power I knew exactly everything I could do with it and how to do it, but now I see that knowledge isn’t the same thing as control,” he dug his claws into the black stone-like bars of the balcony. “And I have little control over this power. If I want...no, if WE hope to stand a chance against Dainn and the caribou then I need to control my power to near perfection.”

“How long will it take you to master your powers, Spike?” A new voice asked from the doorway making the ones inside turn to face the owner.

“Chrysalis!” Applejack and Rainbow said in surprise.

“My Queen,” Yog said calmly while bowing.

“I don’t know,” Spike stared at her, his eyes suddenly turning white. “But if you give me four months and I assure you I will master my powers in full.”

“Four months its a long time,” Chrysalis said entering the room. “And how is that fucking bastard, son of the vilest demon vulnerable?”

“The power told me that Dainn has his power divided in two parts, the weakest being the Crystal Cock that powers the barrier and the wide-spread taint of his dark magic. The other is himself.”

“And you didn’t tell me anything about that because?”

“Because I’m the only one capable of bringing the barrier down,” Spike’s eyes shifted from a white light to a blue one. “And I’m the hero of the Crystal Empire, it’s my duty and privilege to do it myself. Chrysalis, give me four months and I will not only bring that barrier down but also destroy whatever that Crystal Cock is; I promise.”

Chrysalis crossed her arms and closed her eyes for a few moments. “Very well, but how will you...train your powers?” Chrysalis smirked looking at the dragon but soon her expression turned into one of worry and soon after into one of consternation; mainly due to the eery glow in Spike’s eyes and the cold, unfeeling smirk he was giving.

“I think the best way is to have something to practice on with, mainly to test my limits,” Spike’s eyes returned to normal. “Tell me, have the officers revealed something important so far?” Chrysalis negated. “Then I think I know where to begin.”

*Half an hour later*

“You will pay for this treason with your lives, scum!” a brute of a caribou said. His antlers adorned by a nullifier ring on the base of them. He, just like the rest of the fifty top officers inside the vast building they were currently in, was chained to the ground forcing him to kneel in front of their enemy. “You female-loving assholes will share their fate, you have lost all right to be called males!” A griffon male punched the caribou drawing some blood out. The caribou spit out some of his blood. “Is that the best you got, our future cockwarmer?” the griffon hit him again meanwhile a zebra guard walked out of the room.

“This is pointless,” the zebra said annoyingly as he stepped out of the building. “No matter how much we hit them, torture them, threaten them or execute one in front of them all they say is that same bullshit over and over,” the zebra sat down on the ground. “Why can’t we just kill them all now?”

“We’ll break them eventually,” a mareling said at his side. “But for the moment we need to make them talk, after that we can move them to public executions. Just be patient.”

The zebra chuckled. “They’re halfway there already,” he said glancing at the gathered crowd in front of the building built specifically to allow everyone to hear the screams of pain and the torture sessions of the caribou. And most were eagerly awaiting for more.

Suddenly the crowd began to split in two. Seconds later Spike the Dragon, flanked by two Elements Bearers and Chrysalis herself approached the P.I.C. (Public Interrogation Center). The mareling rose up and screeched as she saluted, Chrysalis nodded at her before the mareling turned and entered the building once more. The zebra stood up before saluting.

“Any progress?” Chrysalis asked the zebra.

“None since you left, your majesty,” the zebra answered respectfully. “Do you wish to question them again, your grace?”

“Not me, him,” Chrysalis pointed to Spike. “Go on, we’ll wait for you here. The guards in turn are waiting for you inside,” Chrysalis walked up to Spike and placed a hand over his shoulder. “Remember, I don’t care what you do with them as long as you make them talk.”

“Thanks, and about what we talked on the way here?”

“Yog is searching for them, they’ll be here any minute now.”

“Perfect. Well then, if you’ll excuse me, I have to give our audience a good show!” Spike called loudly before making his way inside the building skipping and hopping excitedly. To his surprise the entrance was not guarded but was instead blocked by a thin green barrier. He walked past it with no troubles and the sounds from outside suddenly died down, replaced in full from the curses and hexes the caribou spat out. Travelling through a darkened corridor Spike was soon able to see an ample room barely lit by blue flames on the walls. Around the room he could notice several instruments of torture, such as curved blades, thick ropes, multiple whips, glass jars holding liquids and many devices meant to bring pain to their victims.

He was also able to see at least two dozen guards scattered around the room, most of them males and just three marelings. On the ground, scattered around room, the caribou laid in their forced kneeling position, naked and deprived of their weak magic. The moment they saw him all of them began to curse, shout and threaten Spike for his treason to male superiority. The guards were about to move in to silence them but Spike moved first.

“Shut up,” Spike commanded but the caribou didn’t obey. “I said, SHUT UP!” Spike roared loudly silencing the room in an instant. The only sound that could be heard were the slight clinking noises their chains made as they trembled. “That’s better. Isn’t things so much better when you obey your Marshal? Don’t you think so, Harald?”

“Fuck you,” Harald spat. “How could you betray us, Spike? How could you betray his glorious eternal majesty, Dainn?”

“Well, for starters, fuck you too. Secondly, I didn’t betray you. I was your slave and later I became a spy, sort to speak, for the rebel forces. Thirdly, and most importantly, fuck Dainn and all his stinking race to Tartarus, back and to Tartarus again.”

“How dare you insult his majesty's, dragon bitch!?” a caribou shouted angrily trying his best to get up and confront Spike.

“Dragon bitch?” Spike asked surprised. “Last time I checked I’m pretty sure I was still a male,” he looked down before his dragon phallus emerged from between its protective cavern. “Yep, still a male.”

“Not for long, asshole,” another caribou said. “You will pay for your treason and your insolence, we will switch you and then we will fuck you to death! Just like we will to all these fucking sluts and future cocksuking bitches.”

“How threatening, I’m trembling, ohhhh~” Spike scoffed retracting his penis. “But in all seriousness now, why don’t you just give us the information we want? It would end your pain and humiliation you know. How many more of your brothers have to die in front of your eyes for you to finally talk?”

“We will never betray his supreme majesty, we shall never say anything you want, fucking heretical bastard!” the biggest caribou of them all said full of pride. “Do your worst, traitor, we won’t talk!”

“Oh?” Spike said in a dark, icy tone and in such a way that the caribou that defied him lost his smug grin. “Do my worst you say? Do my….worst?” Spike smiled. “As if I could do anything worse than everything I did as your slave and thereafter. No, my dear fucker, I can’t imagine myself doing anything worse than that. But, I do believe I can come to a close second,” he put his arms behind his back. “You see, I’m not interested in what my dear friends want from you, oh no, I’m interested in something much more valuable.”

“I’m interested in one subject in particular, you see. I know for a fact that Dainn was never as strong as he is now, not even close. So, the only logical conclusion is that he gained his power from somewhere else. That’s what I want to know. And now a perfect opportunity has presented itself for me,” Spike crouched to be at eye level with the caribou in front of him. “Only a few caribou took part on the convoy that tricked Shining Armor and Cadance into your trap, but who are they is surprisingly a well hidden secret. I wonder why,” Spike scoffed again.

“But, as fortune has it, one of you was part of said convoy, wouldn’t you say agree,” Spike turned to see a white caribou with brown spots on his chest kneeling beside Harald. “Therkin? Or should I say, Sergeant Therkin?”

The caribou in question looked at him with wide eyes. “How did you--”

“Dainn himself told me all about you and a few others, but I only need one so you shall do nicely,” Spike said getting up and walking up to Therkin, once in front of him Spike crouched. “It’s surprising how much of a blabber mouth Dainn is with a few cups of wine on him. Sadly, he only really talks about the not so important stuff, but still, important to those who know what they’re searching,” Spike suddenly grabbed Therkin by his throat pulling his face mere inches in front of his own. “Tell me how did Dainn gain so much power.”

Therkin didn’t say anything, he simply stared at the dragon for several seconds before spitting him in the face. “Fuck you, asshole.”

Spike got up, not even bothering to clean the spit away. “Guards, would you be so kind to leave me alone with these fine gentleman?”

The guards glanced at each other before a mareling stepped forward. “The Queen ordered us to stay put, sir.”

“And now I’m ordering you to leave,” Spike said without looking at the mareling. “But if you want to stay, then by all means stay. But it will be under your own risk,” Spike said in that same dark, icy manner as before. The guards glanced at each other once again and a few seconds later they began to leave. “Oh, and by the way, could you take down the barrier on the way out? I want everyone outside to hear completely and not just the screams.”

“......As you command,” The same mareling said before leaving.

A few moments later Spike could hear the barrier pop out of existence and his attention turned fully to Therkin.

“I studied a lot during my time as General and Marshal. I studied things I never even dreamt of studying before you and that fucking bastard of Dainn came.”

“You dare to-!”

“Yes I fucking dare, what are you going to do about it?” Spike cut off the threat of Therkin making the temperature of the room drop several degrees. “I began to study anatomy, warfare and logistics. My favorite read was ‘The Proper Way to Humiliate a Fucking Slut’, such a great book and, contrary to what the title is, it’s about anatomy. Stag anatomy. The book goes on and on about how great caribou stags are, how many bones and muscles you have, where you are more sensitive, where should a female lick or suck,” Spike’s voice turned even darker. “Where your joints are, where is….hurts,” Thorkin’s smile started to drop at that word. But his eyes widened in terror once the eyes of Spike turned white in front of him. “If you don’t tell me what I need then I’ll just have to find another who can, and I know who they are,” Spike said in the same tone while Therkin stared at him for almost an entire minute.

“Do you have any idea how sensitive your skin and coat can truly be? Of course you don’t. But don’t worry, I will show you,” Spike licked his lips in anticipation. “First I’m going to pierce your abdomen with my right claws. Then I’m going to pull out whatever I can grab before I plunge my hand inside you again and drive it up inside you until I reach your heart,” Therkin paled and his mouth opened in disbelief. “At this moment the pain will be so great you won’t be able to scream or hear anything else but white noise. THEN I’m going to rip out your heart and show it to you while it still beats before I crush it.”

“After that I’m going to pull you up while you bleed out and I bathe with your blood. The world will turn grey for you at this point and you will be in such unbearable pain that you’ll wish to die, but unfortunately for you, death will look you dead in the eye and wait patiently for a bit longer,” Therkin began to sweat and his breathing turned erratic. “Finally I’m going to drop you just enough to grab your head and take my sweet time to crush your skull, allowing you the unique opportunity to hear it crack and in those final moments of unworldly pain and suffering you will welcome death with open arms; right before your brains splatter the faces of your brothers.”

After Spike was done talking silence, only disturbed by Therkin’s breathing, met him. For ten seconds Spike stood still and then he brought up his right claw.

“Wait, wait! I’ll talk, I’ll talk!” Therkin said with panic. “I’ll talk! Wait, please….please…..I’ll….talk,” Therkin breathed out seeing the dragon standing still as a statue. “I...I don’t...I don’t k-know how our king gained so much power…but….but I know he found something….I...I think it was a….a horn, yes! It was a horn! Our glorious king found a horn before he grew stronger. He said...He said the time had come to fulfill the ancient promise!” Therkin said as fast as he could despite his stuttering. “Please….I swear by Dainn t-t-that’s all I know….please...d-don’t kill me,” Therkin begged with tears running down his eyes.

“See, was that so difficult?” Spike said without a trace of emotion. “Now you’re useless to me.”

“What-?” was all Therkin could say before the right hand of Spike impaled itself inside his stomach. “AAARRRRRRGGGGGGGG!” Therkin let out a tortuous howl of pain feeling the fingers and claws of the dragon pierce his entrails like they were butter. A second later the pain he felt escalated to untold levels when, just as Spike said, he felt his intestines and vital organs being pulled out by his draconic might.

Suddenly he felt his hand pierce his inside once more, uncaring for what was in the way of his hand until he reached his heart. Therkin was able to feel the hand of Spike wrap his heart in a strong grip right before he pulled it out; skyrocketing his pain to dimensions he never even dared believe could exist. He tried to scream or say anything as he felt his blood flow freely everywhere, even to his lungs and throat.

Spike paused for a moment seeing the heart in his hand, then he forced Therkin to see his own heart beating a few times in his hand before the crushed it in a single mighty motion. Using his tail he cut the chains pinning the caribou to the ground before he brought Therkin up and held him above his head; uncaring that the entrails, blood and other vile juices of the caribou ran down on him, the only sounds Therkin made were those of choking and forced grunts that told just how much pain he was really in.

A couple of seconds later Spike let go of Therkin and grabbed his head, pressing a hand at each side of his head where his antlers were. He pressed his skull slowly, the entire room echoing with the sound of breaking and splintered bones. With a sudden press the head of Therkin exploded sending pieces of his brains, skull and face flying forward to stain his brothers.

Spike let go of the remains in his hands, letting the corpse fall to the ground while it twitched every now and again. The purple dragon breathed out a sigh of utter and unrivaled satisfaction before turning his gaze to the rest of the caribou officers, all of them looking at the white, piercing, cold, emotionless voids he currently called eyes.

He stared at them.

They stared at him.

The two parties stared at the other in a room devoid of sound for the longest time.

--------------------------------------------------**************************************************

*Griffon Kingdom - Outskirts of the Capital City Wind Heaven - Court of The Great Tribunal* Present Time.

The entire room was silent once more; all gazes fixed on Spike.

“I don’t know how much time passed while I stared at them and them at me. They were like statues, never moving, never blinking and I bet they even forgot how to breathe,” Spike leaned in into his desk, silently watching his hands. “They did nothing for what felt like millennia. They did absolutely nothing.”

Spike slowly rose his head to see the judges in front of him. His expression one of seriousness.

“They did…...nothing,” the judges saw the corners of his lips beginning to curl up into a smile while his eyes shone with pure white light. “Nothing,” the smile forming in his lips widened and morphed into something they hadn’t seen before. Not even Chrysalis. His lips arched up and down so much that it let his fangs exposed in all their deadly glory while his spittle and saliva (now looking more like slobber or slime) clinged to his fangs and drooled down to the table. Meanwhile his eyes snapped open to the max. Everyone gasped.

“They did nothing…...until I smiled,” the judges stared at him with terror at his horrific excuse of a smile. And then the room fell silent again. At least, for a couple of seconds. At first there was a faint sound but it quickly escalated. The source of the sound all too obvious when Spike’s body started to tremble.

“.......Ha…….Mhahaha…….Mhahaha hahaha!” Spike threw his head back. “Mhahahahahaha! HAHAHAHA! MHAHAHAHAHAHA!” Spike laughed hard and long. His maniacal laughter full of cold mirt and dreadful joy. Suddenly he got up from his seat sending the chair tumbling back to the ground and the small desk to flip over. His arms held up to the sky as he laughed without remorse or guilt.

“MHAHAHAHAHAHAHA! It was glorious!” he suddenly shouted. “I discovered what I was missing! It wasn’t just about killing them, it was about killing them as painfully or as violently as I could! It was a marvelous experience!” Spike shouted at the judges with borderline fanaticism. “Seeing the dread in their eyes, hearing them begging for my mercy, their screams and howls of agony like a choir of heavenly sirens to my ears!”

“You bloodthirsty barbarian!” the minotauress judge shouted with indignity at the laughing dragon. “Honorless brute! They were your prisoners, not your playthings!” Spike kept laughing. “Stop laughing! I command you to stop laughing this instant, monster!”

“Silveria!” Keltu, the ursa judge, shouted her name in protest. “Retake your seat this instant!”

“It doesn’t matter to me, dear judge!” Spike called. His laughter coming to a halt and his smile dropped. “Bloodthirsty barbarian? Undoubtedly. Honorless brute? Why, yes. Monster!? You bet your ass. But here’s the thing, I was a monster only to bigger monsters. They deserved what I did to them and more, I pray to every divine creator that their suffering in Tartarus, or wherever the fuck they are, be a hundred times worse! And I pray that when my time ends they send me with them as their eternal punisher!”

The minotaur judge glared at him along with half the other judges not because of what he said, but because of his sincerity. Silveria sat down on her seat reluctantly while Spike picked the chair and the desk up and then sat down.

“But my dear judge, Silveria is it?” the minotauress glared him harder. “You did brought up an excellent point. We already talked about morality, but what about honor? Well, let me answer that with this. I dare you, all six of you, to go to Equestria after this is over. Take a nice trip through all the crumbling cities and through the Crystal Empire. Go visit the rehabilitation centers, the medical centers, the orphanages and, above all, go visit the cemeteries and graveyards housing millions of our fallen brothers and sisters,” Spike glared at them. “I fucking dare you to have the guts to stand amongst the ashes of all who died during the regime of the caribou as their slaves, their playthings, their property….and ask them if honor matters,” the judges didn’t answer. Spike then turned his focus to Sebastian.

“Sebastian, I know why King Blood Talons sent you in his regard,” Sebastian was taken aback at his declaration and saw the dragon look up to the crystals in the ceiling. “I know you must be somewhere out there, Blood Talons, and I understand. I’m not blaming you for anything, don’t be ashamed or guilty,” Spike finished his little speech with a sincere smile before looking back at the judges.

“Shall we continue?”

-------------------------------------------------------************************************************

*Central Hive- P.I.C*

“NO! NO! PLEASE, DON--Argggggghh”

“LET ME OUT OF HERE!”

“HE’S KILLING EVERYONE!”

“MY EYES, MY EYES!”

“I DON’T WANT TO DIE! FATHE---*Srrlcchhhhh*---UUUhhhhgdgdaaaaaaa……”

“MY KING! SAVE ME, PLEASE!”

“*GGRRRAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAOOOOOOOOOOO*”

Applejack and Rainbow stood frozen in place like everyone around listening to the carnage going inside the P.I.C.

Spike had managed the impossible, scare a caribou half to death and get the information he wanted with a threat that sounded so very convincing. The caribou spilled the beans and Spike congratulated him; right before killing him in what she guessed was the same way he had threaten the caribou in the first place. A scream of sudden, unbearable pain started it all. Everyone cheered, at least at the beginning. Then the sounds of bones breaking, howls of pain and gurgling sounds came out, finally ending with the horrible crushing sound of the caribou’s skull. A body hit the floor, a sigh was heard and then, silence.

Applejack, Rainbow and Chrysalis stood there waiting for the silence to end. One minute, two minutes or maybe five, they didn’t know how long it lasted but when it ended everyone, including the veteran changeling guards and Chrysalis flinched at the sudden cries and screams of horrific panic; followed shortly by the roar of a dragon. Then the massacre began. Meat being ripped apart, bones breaking against metal or the chitin material. Cries for mercy filled the entire area only to be silenced quickly and replaced, in most cases, with screams of pain. Objects shattered, wood splintered and constant banging against the solid walls created a dark, morbid rhythm along with the shouting of the caribou.

For several minutes it went on, the screams slowly turned into utter crying while the crashing and banging was also coming to a halt. Suddenly a caribou without his left arm and drenched in blood came running through the entrance before he fell to the ground. He looked up at the crowd and tried to use his right arm to crawl to them, his eyes full of tears and his expression one of panic and terror instead of pain.

“Help me, please! Don’t let him get me!” the stag managed to say before a white mist emerged from the entrance and soon reached him. “GAHH! NO! NO! Please, you worthless whores, save your master! NO! NO! NOOOOOOOooooooo!” the stag cried whilst the mist carried him back inside the building. He shouted, begged and cried for a few seconds before ripping noises ended his pleas and replaced them with screams of pain. About fifteen seconds later the screams ended with a loud cracking noise followed by a heavy sigh.

“Yog,” Spike called from inside, the building getting the attention of everyone present and said changeling. “Bring them to the front, I have a very nice gift for them.”

Halve a minute later Spike walked out of the building holding a chained up, gagged and naked caribou. He heard many gasps once he came into light revealing his blood stained scales and still dripping fresh droplets of it in most places. There were pieces of meat, bone, brain and even an eye hanging all over his body. Meanwhile his walk reflected security, satisfaction and fulfillment.

With a forceful pull he tossed the caribou, Harald to be precise, in front of him and at the hooves of three mares.

“I didn’t kill him because I thought you deserved that pleasure. Rose, Lily, Daisy.”

At the mention of those names Harald looked up to see that, in fact, the three flower sisters, his favorite and personal pets, now stood wearing a grey robe while they looked down at him with nothing short of pure hatred.

“Thanks...Spike,” Rose thanked the dragon before looking down at the bounded caribou at their hooves. “What do you think sisters, should we show him our love and gratitude?”

“No, I think we should use him to pull our wagon with his teeth!” Daisy said with a glimmer of tears clouding her eyes.

“Better yet, let’s stick an oversized dildo up his asshole and show him who is Master!” Lily shouted while clenching her hands into fists.

“No,” the three sisters stopped to look at Spike once more. “I said kill him, not do to him what he did to you.”

“What!? After everything he did to us! WHY!?” the three of them protested at the same while some other females from the gathered group began to protest as well.

“Because I won’t let you degrade yourselves to their level!” Spike said loudly for all to hear. “Don’t give them the satisfaction to see you crawl down and do to them what they did to you! I’d rather kill you all myself than see you behave like these fucking bastards even if they deserve it!”

“You want pay back? Then KILL THEM! Make them suffer,” Spike glared down at Harald, the caribou trying his best to crawl away from the dragon. “Break their bones, pull out their nails, cut down their fingers, skin them alive, bathe them with acid. Smash their testicles, cut off their cocks, rip out their antlers, take out their teeth one by one, gouge out their eyes and cut out their tongues!” Spike kicked Harald once making him wince and cry in terror.

“Throw them into the manticore and timberwolf pits, impale them, burn them, drown them, bury them alive, boil them, crush them. I don’t care what you do to them but never do to them what they did to you. And don’t let them live, show them pain, make them pay for what they’ve done and at the end of it all kill them all! Don’t give them a chance to turn the tables or take revenge!”

The crowd suddenly exploded in a wave of cheering and screeching. Spike turned to see the three sisters looking at him with vivid fire in their eyes. And he smiled at them.

“I’m sorry for everything I did to you three, I hope this gift is enough to start making amends,” Spike said in a tone full with remorse. “Now go and have some fun,” Spike said to them before the trio dragged Harald to his certain death.

“Consider yourself forgiven, Spike, and….thank you for freeing us,” Lily said with a small cute smile before she and her sisters disappeared into the crowd.

“Everyone!” Spike called. “There are at least three thousand of them ready to receive your justice, more than enough for everyone to enjoy a good show! Go and get them, kill them all!”

“KILL THEM ALL!” the crowd cheered.

“For Equestria!” Spike shouted.

“FOR EQUESTRIA!” the crowd cheered again as they went to fulfill their justice upon the caribou. And not only them, but everyone in the Central Hive.

Spike turned to see the only four figures still standing nearby. “Ah, that felt good.”

“Spike…..what the hay happened to you?” Rainbow asked with genuine fear in her voice. “You...the Spike I know would never harm a fly! I mean, sure they had it fucking coming but...you enjoyed it….you enjoyed killing them.”

“The Spike you knew died the day of the Fall, Rainbow,” Spike grinned at her showcasing his bloodstained fangs. “Now only I remain. A monster that won’t stop until the caribou are dead and Equestria and the Empire are free once again,” Spike sighed. “Now, how about we go back to your castle-fortress-stronghold thing, Chrysalis? I suddenly have this urge to bake something. Ah! I know, I’ll bake some of my famous triple chocolate fudge cookies! They are delicious~”

Applejack, Rainbow, Chrysalis and Yog watched in silence as the dragon hopped his way to the fortress. The two mares let their tears fall freely, finally seeing in full what the caribou had done to their long time dragon friend. And they knew things would never be the same again.

---------------------------------------------------***********************************************

*Remains of Ponyville- Crystal Tree Castle- Two days later*

Dainn stood in front of the closed gates of the castle in Ponyville, practically the only building still standing in the entire town and literally the only one without a scratch over it; even the flags and banners with the mark of his would-be son were still dancing in the wind.

He watched in silence and with a frown as some of his soldiers tried to open the gates. Dainn considered himself very patient and understanding, but with all the events that had transpired in the past few days it had drove him to the very edge. The moment he returned to the Empire from Solitude there was a report from Equestria already waiting for him. His initial burst of rage after reading its contents claimed the lives of at least twenty soldiers and some cunts.

Suddenly the gates of the castle cracked open and a second later a foul smell reached his nose, any other lesser male would cover their noses (just like his soldiers and two sons did) but not him; Dainn frown hardened instead before making his way inside the castle with his two sons close behind him and a handful of royal guards.

“By all the….,” Akios managed to say when he saw a pile of bodies scattered around the entrance. Dry up blood, entrails, body parts and shit coating the floor around them.

“Look at the walls,” a guard behind him said while they kept following Dainn.

Akios looked at the walls and his eyes widened with fear. “What the fuck did this?” he asked in a tone barely louder than a whisper.

“Look at those holes, Akios. Whatever did this had the strength to cling to the walls with ease,” Calvin said with more composure. “That’s not what worries me though, look at the bodies. All of them have been beheaded.”

“What!?” Akios shouted while the guards began to murmur between themselves. Looking around he noticed that, in fact, the corpses were headless. He also noticed a second constant. All of the corpses were caribou. He was pulled from his line of thought, however, when the rotting smell of the corpses worsened. “What the fucking shit is that smell!?”

His answer came quickly when Dainn used his magic to open the door leading to the throne room.

Upon opening it even Dainn stopped and flinched at what he saw. Akios and at least half of the guards lost the control over their stomachs and puked all over the corpse littered floor.

The throne room was flooded with the heads of several dozens, perhaps even hundreds of their caribou brothers, stacked into several small mountains with the largest of all covering the central throne. The walls were also adorned with impaled heads all made to stare down at the entrance while messages written with blood littered the free spaces:

‘Fuck Male Superiority’

‘Death to the Caribou’

‘Revenge and Justice’

‘Equestria Will Rise Again’

Those were some of the most prominent ones. Still, Dainn stepped forward uncaring that the heads of his late subjects and caribou brothers looked directly at him in silent dead. He clenched his fists and his antlers ignited with magic seeing the biggest written message of all. There was a big ‘S’ drawn with blood with an X over it; below it the words that read:

‘I’m Coming For You, Dainn’

“I lost Spike. Ponyville suffered a massive disappearing spree. A few days later Ponyville gets attacked by those fucking shit-eating rebels and is completely burnt to the ground crippling the ‘Second Invasion’. Three other settlements are attacked the same day and suffered heavy casualties and plentiful kidnappings,” Dainn said in a tone so full of contained rage that it threatened to choke even the dead. “And now the rebels dare to insult me further by threatening me? And what’s worse, they use the castle of my one true son and heir to deliver their petty ditch challenge?” Dainn asked to no one in particular. A few seconds of silence followed before he spread his wings and let out a dark chuckle.

“I will kill them all.”

*Central Hive*

Spike sat on a chair in front of his six mare friends, all of them taking a seat on a large U-shaped sofa.

“Are your horns regrowing well?” Spike asked breaking a five minute long silence. For the past two hours that’s what they were doing; stare at the other, he would initiate conversation, they would talk for about ten or fifteen minutes then fall silent for five or ten minutes.

“Yes, although they’re starting to hurt,” Rarity answered softly, giving Spike her best forced smile. “They’ll be back in a couple of months.”

“Good to hear,” Spike nodded. “Have you tried the nachos or the cookies I made?” he asked seeing the now cold dishes sitting in the middle table. “Well, not those, they’re already cold and probably taste awful by now, except the cookies, my cookies are always good,” Spike ginned with pride. “I remember you all loved them, especially you Fluttershy.”

“........” Fluttershy didn’t answer for almost thirty seconds. Slowly she began to reach for a cookie, taking one with her left hand she brought it to her mouth and took a tiny bite out of it. A few munches later she swallowed, the hint of a smile appearing on her lips. “They’re good,” she whispered.

“What did I tell you? Even Chrysalis loves them now!” Spike said enthusiastically. “Don’t you want a cookie, Pinkie Pie?”

“I’m not very hungry,” Pinkie said emotionlessly. “But thanks, I’m sure you worked hard to make them,” she said looking at the cookies.

Spike noticed the longing reflected in her eyes and leaned in slightly. “If you want we can bake some later. Perhaps a cake or some cupcakes?” silence met him for the longest time.

“...E--Even….vanilla cupcakes?” Pinkie asked with tears forming on her eyes.

“Yes, even vanilla cupcakes,” Spike reassured seeing the silent tears of the mare fall from her eyes, and feeling a knot form in his throat. “What about you, Twilight? Found anything interesting?”

“Not much,” she said trying to sound convincing. “Although I was able to find a very interesting book on Windigoes. Did you know changelings also fought against them thousands of years ago? According to their legends, when the Windigoes mysteriously vanished a few managed to survive and escape to the coldest and loneliest corners of the world!” Twilight said with genuine happiness. “You said you fought against one right? Then that means there must be more out there somewhere. I’ve always wanted to study one!”

“I promise I’ll capture one if I ever come across it,” Spike answered happy to see a small fraction of the old Twilight come to light even if for a few short seconds. He glanced at Applejack and Rainbow Dash, both of them looking at him warmly. Spike was about to say something else when someone knocked at the door softly. “Who is it?”

“It’s us, Spike. Can we come in?”

Spike smiled widely before looking to the mares in front of him, all of them looking at him. A couple of seconds later one by one gave a nod.

“Come in, but keep your distance,” Spike said and a second later the door opened letting three figures walk inside. “How did it go?”

“As good as it could,” Blueblood said, now wearing a black chitin armor, while he made his way to Spike careful to keep a minimum three meters space between him and the Element Bearers until he took a seat next to Spike. “The leaders have agreed to let you train your newfound powers. They do had a condition, they want to send you on some missions if the situation calls for it.”

Spike chortled. “I was planning on it anyways, I do need to test myself as time passes to notice my progress,” Blueblood nodded. “How is Mister Cake? I haven’t heard of him since I arrived.”

“Better now that Miss Cake is free and his twins are with them,” Big Mac said crossing his arms behind Spike before looking at Pinkie. “They miss yah, Pinkie. They want tah see yah,if yah can.”

“That would be….nice,” Pinkie said with a monotone voice, but the small smile on her lips was enough to put his mind at ease.

“Rainbow Dash,” Soarin began looking at her. “I know I’ve said this said so before but...I’m….I’m sorry, for everything I--”

“And I told you every time that I forgive you,” Rainbow Dash said in a serious tone. “You weren’t yourself back then and when you broke free you did it to protect me and the others. Trust me, I understand, at least, now I do,” Rainbow smiled at him. “It takes more than that to take the Dash down. But, are you okay Soarin?”

Soarin stiffened for a moment but then relaxed while his hands formed into shaky fists. “I’ll be when this is over.”

“Well said my friend, well said,” Blueblood congratulated. “But back to the reason we’re here. Spike, do you think you could use your power to cleanse….him?”

Spike crossed his arms while glancing at Fluttershy, her eyes widened a bit and her posture stiffened. “I’m not sure, as far as I can tell his corruption is unique or at least it doesn’t work the same as the rest. And honestly, I think I have a better chance going one on one against the fu--that king bastard than going against Discord.”

“Can you free him!?” Fluttershy suddenly asked getting up from her seat. “Please, Spike, help Discord! He’s hurting, he….he needs me! Please!” everyone was perplexed at her sudden outburst.

“I promise I’ll do what I can for him, Fluttershy,” Spike promised. “But right now I don’t know how can I help him. And speaking of,” Spike turned to see Blueblood once Fluttershy sat back. “I can’t go on cleansing the curse of everyone like I’ve been doing. The camps outside are expanding to accommodate the new integrants but there are still hundreds in chains and more will arrive.”

“Not to mention the camps across Equestria are too small or are not as well protected as the ones inside the forest,” Soarin said crossing his arms. “And I think you’re right, Spike. It took you four days to free over twenty thousand from their enslavement. And there are millions more in Equestria and the Empire.”

“Yah have some idea inside that noggin yah call head?”

Spike shook his head. “I’ll figure something out,” Spike stared at Blueblood for a few seconds. “What’s with the armor, it suits you by the way, aren’t you returning to Canterlot later?”

“I’m not returning to Canterlot. After he arrived I gave my reports on the attacks shifting the blame to one of those traitors, but it’s only a matter of time before they realize it was me who altered the reports before the attacks,” Blueblood leaned to Spike placing a hand over his shoulder. “I can finally join the fight at your side, cousin,” Spike placed his hand over Blueblood’s while they stared at each other for several seconds. “Don’t worry about my dear aunts, I have friends on the inside that will keep an eye on them.”

“We will free the princesses as well,” Soarin said with a dark smile. “My Blood Hunters are ready to strike on them.”

“The leaders agreed tah continue the attacks all over Equestria and the Empire. We won’t give ‘em time tah prepare another attack,” Big Mac said while his eyes narrowed.

“He is going to attack, he is angry and won’t be able to focus on everything at the same time,” Spike’s expression turned grim. “Thousands will die once he starts, but that will give us an advantage.”

“Time,” Blueblood completed. “While we attack randomly he will want to track us down and won’t be able to put up a large scale force at the same time. Just out curiosity, what was your message?” Blueblood asked making the mares look at Spike questioningly.

“Simply put? That I’m coming for him,” Spike said in a cold, emotionless tone. “He will pay, I promise he will pay for everything he’s done.”

“And we will help you,” Twilight said softly. “We will fight together.”

“No, you won’t,” Spike commanded. “I won’t risk you and I will not lose you again, any of you.”

“But-”

“I said. No,” Spike’s eyes turned white. “If we fail….if I fail you’ll be the only hope left for everyone and everything.”

Silence roared. After about a minute Spike got up from his seat and made his way to the exit followed by his three stallion friends.

“You’re the most precious gems of my hoard….and the last. I won’t lose you again. If I have to give my life to save you, I’ll gladly do so...I…..I love you all, my dearest friends,” Spike opened the the door letting the three stallion walk out first. “I’ll be back later with more cookies and maybe a cake. For now I have training to do.”

And with that Spike closed the door leaving the six mares on their seats, all of them trying to hold back their tears. Trying.

Outside on the hallway the four friends walked in relative silence. Until the red stallion broke it.

“Yah mean it?”

“Of course I do. I’ll arrange it with Chrysalis, they won’t be near the fighting.”

“Then what are we going to do now?”

“I have no idea, all I know is that I have to master this power and I’ll need a lot of practise dummies,” Spike snarled excitedly. “Everyone deserves their chance to take revenge and justice on the caribou. I’ll be sure to give them that chance, but Dainn? Dainn is mine,” light began to emerge from his chest. “I was a brute and a sex starved idiot for over a year raping everything that had a hole and breasts. We all lost love ones and what’s worse, we even saw many fall to their corruption. We lost our homes and our families, we were forced to do unspeakable things to all those we loved and cared; we even did it to complete strangers. All thanks to Dainn.”

“The caribou will pay,” Soarin said with clear rage staining his voice. “I will hunt them down until they’re all dead.”

“For Equestria and The Crystal Empire, for us, for everyone. Equestria shall rise again,” Blueblood commented with an icy tone.

“And the caribou will Fall,” Big Macintosh completed in a similar tone like Blueblood.

“I will kill them all,” Spike finished at the same time the four friends turned on a corner, eager to bring freedom and justice to their lands.

Chapter 6 part 2 End.

Author's Notes:

Special thanks to allwho read this, you are all amazing!

Special thanks to FamousLastWords for his up-coming proofread version!

Anyone that wishes to be my editor for this chapter or more please PM me, your help will be most welcomed.

*I know I said this would be longer but I decided to, instead, add some bits originally planned for this part into the next chapter.*