Spike threw his head back against the coach and groaned. “Tell me, Twilight. Is this what it feels like to be a lawyer? I feel like we’ve been trying to swim out of quicksand, but no matter what we do, we can’t seem to reach the surface.”

Twilight rubbed her head. “I’ll admit, that was a bit tougher than I thought. Still, we made it through the first hour of that trial and made some progress.”

Spike raised his head and looked shocked. “That was only the first hour!? I feel like this has been going on much longer!”

Rarity smiled warmly. “If it helps, I think you two are doing wonderful out there.”

Spike couldn’t help but smile back. “Thanks, Rarity. I just never expected Master Ash to come in and prosecute. I guess this is the so called ‘surprise’ Garble told me about yesterday.” He looked at Twilight. “So what’s next? We’ve managed to undermine Garble’s story so far.”

“We’ve only started to scratch at the surface, Spike,” said the alicorn. “We need to show Garble was behind everything, and it’s not going to be easy.”

The doors opened up. “Princess Twilight.”

The trio turned around to see Matches and all of their friends walking in.

“You did good out there, Twi,” complimented Applejack.

Twilight smiled back. “Thanks, girls, but we’ve only gotten started. I have a feeling from this point on, it’ll get a lot tougher.” She looked behind the group. “Where are the princesses?”

“Master Ash called them to the prosecution’s lobby to speak with them,” answered Matches. “I figured I’d check in on you two on behalf of them.”

“What did Master Ash want?” wondered Spike.

“No idea,” replied Matches. “I must say though, you two are handling yourselves well against him.”

“Barely,” said Spike. “With how much he keeps pressuring and getting under our skin, I wonder how long we’ll last.”

“That’s one of his best methods,” stated Matches.

“You’ve seen his cases before?” asked Twilight.

Matches nodded. “When I was a kid, my parents would sometimes drag me to court to watch. Master Ash, known as the Silver Knight, was a prosecutor that was respected for his work, but feared in the courtroom. One of his best tactics was getting under the scales of other defense attorneys and make them so frustrated, they’d lose focus and he would use that to his advantage to win.”

“I guess we got to see that up close and personal,” said Spike.

“I’m worried about what’ll happen,” said Twilight. “If he’s already this ruthless to us, it’ll only get worse the more we dig up Garble’s crimes.”

“Maybe or maybe not.”

Spike looked at Matches with a puzzled look. “What do you mean?”

“Master Ash is tough in court, but he does value the truth above all else. When I watched him in court, he always wants to make sure that there’s no doubts left when he takes on a case and get the full truth.”

Spike rubbed his chin. “So if we somehow plant some doubt into Master Ash’s mind, it should then help us.”

“Exactly,” stated Matches, “but I don’t know how he’ll react when it comes to his grandson being the culprit. He may have a hard time believing such a harsh truth.”

“We have no choice,” said Spike. “We need to completely unravel Garble’s story and show Ash the truth.”

“We should probably then start at when he came to Ponyville,” suggested Twilight. She looked at Spike. “Are you sure you saw Garble on the night of the party?”

The drake nodded. “I’m sure of it. That pony I met must’ve been him, and he wanted to get close to Ember.”

“But you still can’t prove that because–” Spike quickly slapped a hand across Pinkie’s face.

Rarity looked alarmed. “What did she just say?”

Spike looked down with an angry expression on him. “Damn it, Pinkie,” he muttered.

“Because we still haven’t connected them yet!” Twilight quickly explained. “We still need to show that before we can finally corner him on that.”

Rarity raised an eyebrow at the forced smile the alicorn had on her, and then looked at Spike. “What’s going on here?”

“Don’t worry about it, Rarity,” assured the drake. “We first need to show everyone of Garble’s other crimes. If we can do that, it should all but make Garble’s ‘heroic’ actions be questioned and doubt the jury.”

Rarity stared suspiciously at Spike. “Okay,” she said, hesitantly, “I’m not sure what’s going on between you and Twilight, but I hope you both have a plan on taking down Garble.”

“Of course we do,” Spike said with a forced smile of his own. Just as soon as we think of one.

“Court is about to reconvene,” announced a guard at the door. “Head back to the courtroom at once for the proceedings to resume.”

Spike sighed. “Guess it’s time again.”

Rarity smiled softly. “Spikey, I appreciate what you and Twilight are doing. Just don’t let Master Ash get to you two. Who knows what else he has up that armor of his?”

“Depending on where this trial goes, I’m not sure what he’ll do next. It’s going to be a tough fight.”

Twilight frowned slightly. Spike couldn’t be anymore right. I just hope Master Ash is ready for the whole truth about Garble.

The courtroom was filled with dragons muttering and talking to each other. Ember raised the scepter and banged it on the ground; silencing the room instantly.

“This court is back in session,” said the dragoness.

“During the recess, I talked to the Royal Sisters of Equestria,” said Ash. “I asked them about the reporter who was attacked.”

Ember raised an eyebrow. “What have you discovered, Master?”

The elderly dragon crossed his arms. “It looks like what the defense said is true. The victim’s name isn’t Front Page after all.”

“Does that mean you’re willing to accept the defense’s claim about Garble being involved?”

Ash scoffed and smirked. “Of course not. Whoever did this most likely had an agenda against you, Lord Ember.”

“Do you have proof?” wondered Spike.

“I could ask the same for you,” Ash shot back. “You claim Garble has some connection to what happened to Printer Press, and you have nothing.”

Spike clenched his fist. He’s right. There’s nothing I can do to prove it.

“Now, when we left off, the defense wanted to question Garble more about where he was in Equestria before the Haytona incident. I’ve made sure though that Garble will tell us the whole truth.” He looked over. “Isn’t that right, boy?”

Spike looked over and saw a rather nervous Garble tugging his collar.

“His confidence has faltered a bit,” said Twilight. “He’s probably realizing his story is starting to fall apart.”

“R–right,” muttered Garble. He looked over and glared. “Spike, you think you’re so smart that you tripped me up a few times. This time, you won’t find any flaws in my testimony.”

Spike narrowed his eyes. “We’ll see about that.”

Ash slammed his hand on the table. “Enough from the two of you! Now, Mr. the Dragon, what is it you want Garble to testify about?”

Spike took a deep breath. “That’s easy. We want to know what he was doing when he first came to Ponyville.”

Ash nodded. “Very well.” He looked at his grandson. “Garble, testify about what you did in Ponyville when you arrived. Remember what I told you though during the recess.”

Garble gulped. “Alright already! You don’t need to say it again!”

Ember banged the scepter. “Now, Garble, testify about your arrival in Ponyville.”

The red drake nodded and cleared his throat. “I followed Lord Ember and Matches secretly after they left.”

“I kept myself out of distance for them to see me because Lord Ember wouldn’t have believed me about wanting to watch out for her.”

“I kept an eye on her in the shadows as she went from that pony princess’ castle to that fashion shop.”

“Then there was this party they had to welcome Lord Ember, but I stayed outside to make sure I didn’t reveal myself.”

“Later, I decided to go back to where I was staying and continue my mission from there.”

Ember closed her eyes. “Hmm...you seem to have perfectly described everything I did on my first day in Equestria.”

Garble smirked. “See? Even Lord Ember can back up my claim. What do you say we start wrapping things up now?”

Spike shook his head. “Not so fast, Garble. I still want to do my cross examination.”

Garble scoffed. “Sheesh! You never give up, do you? Go ahead and see if you can find anything if you can.”

“Proceed with your cross examination, Mr. the Dragon,” ordered Ember.

Spike looked over at Garble and nodded at him.

“I followed Lord Ember and Matches secretly after they left.”

“I kept myself out of distance for them to see me because Lord Ember wouldn’t have believed me about wanting to watch out for her.”

“I kept an eye on her in the shadows as she went from that pony princess’ castle to that fashion shop.”

“Then there was this party they had to welcome Lord Ember, but I stayed outside to make sure I didn’t reveal myself.”

“Hold it!” yelled Spike. “How did you know it was a welcome party if you were outside the castle?”

Garble smirked. “I heard it being talked about from a nearby window. They said it was to welcome Ember to Ponyville.”

“Did you see anything suspicious at the party?”

Garble rubbed his chin. “I tried to keep an eye on Ember, but there were times I couldn’t see her because of the big crowds.”

“Did you see a red pegasus talk to her?”

Garble narrowed his eyes slightly. “A what now?”

“A red pegasus,” repeated Spike. “Did you see one talk to Lord Ember?”

Garble scoffed. “There were so many colorful ponies, it was hard to keep track. You really think I should be paying attention to all of them?”

“If you’re intention was to protect Ember, then you must’ve wanted to know the ponies that talked to her, right?”

“Objection!” bellowed Master Ash. He slammed his fist on the table. “Mr. the Dragon, is there a point to all of this? If there was a pony who presented a threat to Lord Ember, Garble would’ve told us this already, wouldn’t he?”

Spike shrunk back a bit. “Well...when you put it that way.”

Ash shook his head and scowled. “Honestly, is this all your questioning going to be; a waste of this court’s precious time? The only thing you’re so far gaining from this is testing my patience.”

Twilight nudged Spike. “Better drop this line of questioning,” she suggested. “Looks like Garble isn’t going to make it that easy for us.”

“I should’ve known,” he muttered. He looked back at the red drake. “Alright, Garble, go on with your testimony.”

“Later, I decided to go back to where I was staying and continue my mission from there.”

“Hold it!” Spike yelled. “Where exactly were you staying at?”

Garble rolled his eyes. “What does that have to do with anything? Isn’t the party more important than where I was resting?”

“Just answer the question, Garble,” ordered Spike. “We need to know everything about where you were during your time in Equestria.”

The drake growled softly. “Fine. I was staying in some forest near Ponyville. I think it was called the Everfree Forest or something.”

Ash raised an eyebrow. “You were staying there, boy?”

“Yeah and what’s it to you?”

Ash narrowed his eyes. “I’ve read and heard a lot of the dangers there. To the citizens of Equestria, it’s considered a dangerous place full of traps, vicious creatures, and even some plants capable of turning others into trees. It would be foolish of you to stay in such a dangerous place.”

Garble waved a hand lazily. “Whatever. I can handle myself. Besides, I don’t think the citizens there would exactly want some strange dragon crashing in their house, right?”

He’s got a point, thought Spike.

“I think we’ve heard enough,” said Ash. “There’s clearly no signs of any contradictions in Garble’s story. He arrived secretly and watched Lord Ember during her welcoming to Ponyville. There’s nothing more to it.”

“Objection!” Spike stood there with a smirk on his face. “Not exactly, Master Ash. There’s something really wrong with Garble’s story.”

The elder dragon furrowed his brow. “I take it you have proof to back up that bold claim of yours?”

Spike nodded. “I have evidence alright.”

Garble looked down and snorted. “Yeah right,” he muttered.

Spike held up a paper and put it on the table. “This is my evidence!” he stated.

Ember raised an eyebrow. “Is that another newspaper?” she wondered.

The drake nodded. “Yes, Lord Ember. This is about another incident very similar to the one at Haytona Beach.”

Ash looked alarmed. “You can’t be serious.”

Spike shook his head. “Oh, I’m serious alright. If you read the paper, you’ll find out the incident took place in none other than the Everfree Forest!”

“What!?” Ash barked.

The courtroom filled with muttering for a couple of seconds. Ember brought her scepter down three times.

“Order in the court!” she barked. Ember looked at Spike. “Mr. the Dragon, explain what happened there.”

“Gladly, your lordship.” Spike held up the paper. “A few days after Ember’s welcome party, there was an incident in the Everfree Forest. A pony named Feather Flight was attacked and was robbed.”

Ash raised an eyebrow. “Wait a minute. You said he was robbed? What was taken from him?”

Spike smiled triumphantly. “I’m glad you asked, Master. It’s something you and the Dragon Council should be aware of. Isn’t that right, Garble?”

Garble looked down as smoke slowly billowed out of his nostrils. He muttered something under his breath.

Ash slammed his gauntlet on the table. “Enough waiting! Show us what this evidence is now!”

Spike held up the paper again. “Let’s go back to the article again. Master, why don’t you read it for yourself?”

Twilight used her magic to levitate the paper over to the elder dragon. He snatched the paper and read over it. His eyes widened in surprise and he looked back shocked and furious.

Ash slammed the paper down. “What kind of trickery are you trying to pull here, Mr. the Dragon!?” he bellowed. “If this is your idea of a joke, I’m not laughing!”

Spike shook his head. “I think Master Ash sees exactly what the problem is.” He pointed a finger. “The item that was stolen from Feather Flight was his camera!”

“Argh!” Ash yelled as his armor was hit again.

“No!” Garble shouted. He rose his head up and flames shot out of his mouth.

The room filled with muttering again, but Ember quickly silenced them with one slam from the scepter.

“Order! I will have order!” she boomed. “Mr. the Dragon, what’s going on here?”

“Lord Ember, I was there the day Rarity was arrested,” explained Spike. “I remember hearing you talk to Garble about something he had; a camera.”

Ash closed his eyes. “Come to think of it, I remember Lord Ember questioning Garble about that camera. I believe she said something about how unusual it was for him to have one. Isn’t that right, Lord Ember?”

The dragoness nodded. “That’s right. Garble never did tell us where he got that camera.” She glared at the red drake. “Where did you get that camera, Garble?”

He said nothing as he stared at the ground.

“I think it’s starting to come together now,” said Spike. “A camera being stolen and then Garble shows up with a camera a few days later? There’s no way this isn’t connected.”

“Objection!” yelled Ash. “There’s no direct evidence stating that though. For all we know, this could just be a coincidence and the camera Garble had is different.”

“Objection!” Spike shot back. “The possibility can’t be ignored though! It’s too convenient for Garble to suddenly have a camera shortly after one was stolen. He was even staying in the same place where the attack happened.”

“Objection!” barked Ash. “I’ve heard about the dangers in the Everfree Forest. For all we know, a creature could’ve easily attacked the victim and the camera somehow got lost in the struggle. Besides, you have no direct proof that Garble took the camera anyway.”

Spike groaned in frustration. He looked at Twilight. “We’re so close. Master Ash won’t listen to reason though.”

Twilight smirked. “I got this, Spike.” She turned towards the elder dragon. “Master, we do believe the camera was stolen and Garble used it.”

Ash scoffed. “Tell me, are you as daft as your friend there? You don’t have direct proof Garble stole it. It’s all mere speculation on the defense’s part.”

Twilight crossed her arms. “I wouldn’t say that, Master. The only way to break this gridlock is by looking at the camera itself.”

“What good would that do?” inquired Ash. “There’s nothing suspicious about the camera itself.”

Twilight smiled confidently. “Ah, but there’s one place you haven’t checked yet.” She pointed a finger. “We need to examine the camera film itself!”

Ash looked stunned. “T–the film itself? But the photos Garble gave us came from that camera. Nothing else mattered.”

“Are you sure about that, Master?” wondered Twilight. “Have you checked on what else the camera’s film had?”

Ash said nothing.

Twilight slammed her hands on the table. “The defense requests that the camera film be developed! It could tell us who’s camera it really is!”

“Hold it right there, pony!” objected a furious looking Garble. “I’m not going to let that happen! That camera is mine and mine alone! Who cares about the rest of the camera film anyway? What matters is the photos I got of Rarity attacking Lord Ember!”

Ember brought the Bloodstone Scepter down with a loud boom. “That’s enough, Garble! The defense’s request is granted! Does the prosecution have any objections?”

Ash looked down to hide his expression, but said nothing.

Garble banged the stand in frustration. “Hey, old man! What’re you doing!? Stop this right–”

Ember banged the scepter again. “Guards, take the camera and get that film developed and bring back all the photos immediately!”

The two dragons saluted and ran out of the room.

Ember let out a sigh. “While we wait for the film to develop, perhaps it’s time to ask Garble more about this camera. Master Ash, what’re your thoughts?”

The black dragon said nothing.

Spike raised an eyebrow. “What’s with him?” he asked Twilight. “He’s been silent for a little while.”

“Maybe he’s trying to think about what to do now,” suggested Twilight. “This revelation must be a shock to him after what Garble told him.”

“Master Ash?” Ember asked again.

The elder dragon reached to his side. “AARRGGHH!” He roared furiously. Suddenly, he pulled out a longsword and slammed it against the table with a thunderous boom.

Spike stepped back in fear. Uh, oh.

Twilight yelped in terror. “H–his sword!”

Ash raised his head up with a sadistic smile on his face. “You’re quite the persistent lawyer there, Mr. the Dragon. When I heard you and Princess Twilight were going to take the case, I thought it’d be easy with how green you two are. It appears though I severely underestimated you two.”

He held out his sword and took a deep breath. He blew out a blast of black fire at the sword and slowly moved it up to the top of the blade. The sword itself was soon engulfed in black flame and Ash held it out to Spike and Twilight.

“Behold the flames of fury! The fires of Tartarus are upon you!” he bellowed. “It’s been a long time since I’ve been forced to fight back!”

Spike gulped and shook violently. I–I’m too young to die!

Ash raised his sword and slammed it against the table, causing the flames from the torches to shoot up and intensify for a brief moment. Everyone gasped from the sudden ignition of flames.

Twilight wiped her forehead and tugged her collar. “Is it me, or did it get hotter in here?”

Ash laughed. “Well, Mr. the Dragon and Princess Twilight. Let’s see if you two can survive the fires of Tartarus and see if you can both be forged into true lawyers, or be burnt to a crisp!”

Ember slammed the scepter against the ground. “Master, that’s enough! I won’t have you use your sword like that against the defense!”

Ash placed the blade of the sword in his hand and brought it up and down lazilly. “Relax, my Lord. I was merely letting these two know that playtime is over. If they can’t handle the heat, then they should leave the courtroom now!”

Spike slammed his hands on the table. “N–no!” he shouted nervously. “You will be the one getting burned in the end!”

Master Ash smirked. “Still as defiant as ever I see. We’ll see if you have what it takes though to keep your promise to save Miss Rarity.”

Twilight wiped her forehead. “Be careful, Spike. There’s no telling what Master Ash will do to us now.”

Ember slammed the scepter once more. “Let’s get back to the matter at hand.” She gazed at Garble. “I’ve been very curious about something, Garble. Where exactly did you get that camera?”

He looked down at the floor, but said nothing.

Ember banged the scepter again. “Garble, answer me!”

“It’s just a camera I had!” he argued. “Who cares how I got it!?”

Spike banged the desk. “I think all of us care, Garble. Now where did it come from?”

Garble gulped a little. “Um...I got it somewhere outside of Ponyville. Some travelling merchant or something.”

Spike raised an eyebrow. “We’ve never seen travelling merchants on the outskirts of Ponyville.”

“Maybe you aren’t looking hard enough!” Garble snapped.

The large double doors burst open. “Lord Ember!”

The dragoness looked up. “What is it, guard?”

The soldier held up two large envelopes. “We have the film developed and the photos ready. We got copies for both sides”

Ember nodded. “That was fast of them. Let’s see these photos.”

The guard walked down and placed the envelopes on both Ash and Twilight and Spike’s desks. Immediately, both sides opened them and glanced at the photos. They all raised eyebrows as they saw various photos of birds flying in the sky, perched on tree branches, or on the ground.

Ash looked baffled. “What in Tartarus am I looking at?” He glanced at Garble. “Since when did you become a bird watcher? I know in the past you’ve enjoyed hunting them down, not taking photos of them.”

Garble tugged on his collar. “H–hey! I can have a hobby! What’s wrong with me taking on birdwatching?”

Ash just narrowed his eyes suspiciously.

As Spike flipped through another photo, his eyes widened as he gazed at the next picture. He nudged Twilight. “Look at this.”

The alicorn leaned over and her mouth nearly dropped. She slammed her hands on the desk. “Your Lordship, the defense has a problem with this photo!”

Ember nodded. “Let the court see this final photo you have a problem with.”

Twilight held the picture up and narrowed her eyes. “Does this look like a photo of a bird?”

Ash glared and quickly flipped to the last photo. “What the? What is this?”

The last photo showed a blurry red face that was hastily taken.

Ember’s eyes widen. “This must be the attacker who did this. But why does the picture look messed up?”

Spike smirked confidentiality. “Maybe it’s because our thief accidentally took a photo of himself while stealing the camera.”

Garble panted heavily as smoke billowed from his nostrils. “Ergh...you!”

“Objection!” barked Ash. He brought his sword down on the table. “How do we even know if that is this so called thief? For all we know, this could’ve been some bird that flew too close to the camera as it went off!”

“Objection!” yelled Twilight. She shook her head. “That’s not possible, Master Ash. I want you to take a look behind the red blur.”

Ash raised an eyebrow. “The blur itself? What about it?”

“Take a closer look behind it and you’ll see what I mean.”

Ash scoffed at her, but looked at the picture again. For nearly a minute, his eyes narrowed and squinted slightly as he looked over the picture. Finally, they shot wide open in surprise.

“Argh! What is this? This can’t be!”

Twilight smirked. “I think the prosecution understands now?”

“Understand what, Princess Twilight?” wondered Ember. “Show the court what’s wrong with this picture.”

Twilight pointed to a place on the picture. “I want you to take a look behind this red blur and you’ll see where Master Ash’s theory falls apart.”

Ember glanced at the photo. Her eyes slowly went over the picture for nearly a minute, but then looked up in shock. “W–what is that!?”

Ember pointed to what was a skinny brown stick behind the blur. “It looks almost like a leg or something.”

Twilight nodded. “That’s because it is a leg. It confirms a piece of evidence I’ve got.”

Ash gritted his teeth. “A piece of evidence? What is the meaning of this!?”

Twilight pulled out a sheet of paper. “Starlight and I went to talk to the victim in the attack, Feather Flight. There were two key facts he told us in his statement. The first being he saw a large creature stand over him before falling unconscious. He saw the flash come from his camera, meaning the thief accidentally took a photo of themselves.”

“And the second thing?” inquired Ash.

“It was the creature himself. He remembered it was large, had jagged wings, and was red.” Twilight pointed a finger. “And who really fits that description the victim gave?”

Garble panted faster and was starting to shake. “Hey! You can’t...I mean…”

“Objection!” barked Ash. “You’re making quite the claim here, Princess Twilight. I still believe though it was a creature that attacked the victim, not Garble.”

“Objection!” Twilight shot back. “Sorry, but that’s not possible. Not when another witness who can tell us more about the incident.”

Ash glared at the alicorn. “Another witness? What evidence do you have of such a claim?”

Twilight pulled out another paper. “This is a statement from Zecora, a zebra who lives in the forest. She says she heard something like laughter, and then a large red blur flew over the sky. No creature in the forest is able to laugh or take photos, but one red dragon here sure fits the description.”

“Objection!” yelled Ash. “This still doesn’t prove Garble was at the scene! For all we know, he could’ve been flying in that area and that zebra just happened to see him!”

“Objection!” yelled Twilight. “That’s not possible, Master. There’s one key piece of evidence that ties him into the scene.”

Ash’s sword was burning with more intensity, but said nothing.

Twilight took out a photo and put it on the desk. “The police did a thorough look over the crime scene and found something interesting; footprints.”

“Footprints?” asked Ash.

Garble tensed up in fear.

Twilight nodded. “They found several footprints around the victim.” She looked down at Garble’s feet. “And I think those shoes are big enough to match the description of the shoe size the police gave. All we have to do is measure Garble’s shoes and see if it’s a perfect fit.”

“Argh!” Ash’s armor was hit again by some force. He leaned over and used his sword to keep himself up. “Garble, you didn’t!”

The drake leaned over the witness stand and gripped it tight enough that it cracked a little.

“Well, Garble?” inquired Twilight. “I’m sure if I ask Feather Flight, he could easily identify you as the one who did this to him?” She pointed a finger at him. “What have you got to say now!?”

Garble raised his head and let out a small column of fire. “NOOO!” he boomed.

The crowd muttered to themselves for a little bit. Ember slammed the scepter against the ground.

“Order! I will have order” Ember looked down. “Garble, explain yourself right now!”

The drake’s panting only got faster and pitch black smoke was billowing from his nose.

“Admit it, Garble!” ordered Twilight. “You’re not getting out of this!”

Garble slammed his fist against the witness stand. “Fine! I admit it!”

Spike looked shocked. “That was easy,” he whispered to Twilight.

“I took the camera off that stupid pony!” explained Garble. “But I did it because I thought he was already dead!”

Twilight leaned over. “Already dead?”

Garble nodded. “I remember hearing some laughter, but by the time I got to where it was, I saw the pony lying on the ground and that camera of his. I thought he was dead, so I just took the camera to use for myself.”

Spike slammed his hands on the desk. “Why didn’t you check to see if he was alive?”

Garble banged his hand against the stand again. “Damn it, Spike! I’m a dragon, not a doctor!” he snarled.

Spike glared at him. “It doesn’t change anything. The fact remains Garble stole the camera. As for his claim about thinking Feather was dead, all we have to do is ask Feather again and he can easily identify Garble as the culprit.”

“Garble,” Ash said in an icy tone. “You’ve lied multiple times in court, stolen a camera, and now a suspect in the attack on Feather Flight. Remember that talk we had during the recess?”

Garble nervously looked away. “T–take it easy, old man! Who cares if I was around at the scene? It still doesn’t change what happened at Haytona Beach. ”

“I wouldn’t be so sure of that, Garble,” warned Spike. “If anything, those footprints you left behind have placed you at another place we visited.”

Ash raised an eyebrow. “What?” He brought his sword down and the flames around the room intensified. “Explain yourself, Mr. the Dragon. How do those footprints put him somewhere he was already at?”

“With this!” Spike pulled out another photo. “During Lord Ember’s trip to Equestria, one of the places we went to was the Wonderbolts’ Academy. This picture of footprints is from that same place. Now if were to compare Garble’s shoe with the two sets of footprints there, it’ll prove he was there.”

Ash gripped his sword tightly. “What’s going on here?”

“Stop me if you’ve heard this one, Master,” said Spike. “A pony is attacked and–”

“Wait!” interrupted Ash. “Something was stolen from them?”

Spike nodded. “That’s right. This time, it was clothing again.”

Ash flinched. “Just like the reporter.”

Spike slammed his hands on the desk. “The victim in that case was Sergeant McCloud. He was beaten up, stripped of his clothing, and put in some crate. The only thing he can remember about his attacker was that it was a red figure. Doesn’t that sound familiar?”

Garble looked down and said nothing.

Spike held up a bag. “McCloud was able to fight back briefly and tore off a piece of clothing. It appears to have come from a leather jacket. Now who here is wearing a leather jacket?”

Garble growled and gripped the witness stand.

“Let’s see that leather jacket of yours, Garble. I’m sure it’ll match this piece of your jacket.”

“Not so fast!” objected Garble. He stood up and smirked confidentiality. “I have a new jacket on!” He grabbed it and showed it off. “No tears, no holes, no nothing! I burned that old one to ashes and got this!”

Damn it! Spike cursed to himself. He probably knew about what McCloud did and got rid of the evidence!

Garble snickered coldly. “Better luck next time, Spike.”

Ash crossed his arms. “You’ve put on quite a show, Mr. the Dragon, but I’m afraid this is as far as this goes.”

“But his footprints are there!” argued the drake. “That puts him at the crime scene!”

Ash brought his sword down with a thunderous boom. “For all we know he could’ve left them before the attack on McCloud happened! You have no direct evidence linking Garble to the crime!”

Spike growled in frustration.

“Sorry, Spike, but it looks like it’s game over for you!” Garble said with laughter. “YIKES!” A small column of fire whizzed past his face.

Ash brought his sword down on the table. “Don’t get so carried away, boy!” he barked. “You’re still in a lot of trouble, and now you’ve been found trespassing on a military base! I’m going to see to it personally that you’re punished for your actions!”

Garble grumbled and looked away.

Spike sulked and groaned. “We were so close!” He pounded his fist on the table. “If only there was a way to prove Garble was the one who did it!”

Twilight just smiled. “Not exactly, Spike.” She handed him a picture. “Take another look the footprints and compare them.”

“But–”

“Do it.”

Spike frowned, but looked back at the photo. For nearly a minute, his eyes looked around until something caught his eye. He held back a gasp as his eyes widen.

Ash shook his head. “Heh! What’s wrong, Mr. the Dragon? Finally realizing how hopeless this is?”

The drake shook his head. “Not even close, Master. If anything, Garble’s made a serious mistake.”

Ash raised an eyebrow. “Explain yourself.”

Spike held up a second photo. “This is another picture of the crime scene. There’s something very interesting about the footprints here.”

Ash was given both pictures. He looked back at them and gritted his teeth. “What’s the meaning of this?”

Spike slammed his hands on the desk. “As you can see, Master, there’s a big problem with your theory.” He pointed a finger. “Those second set of footprints are walking away from the crime scene!”

“Argh!” yelled Ash. He used his sword to keep himself straight up. “But that’s impossible! What’re a second set of footprints doing here?”

Spike smirked. “That’s because after McCloud was knocked out, his attacker took his clothes and walked off in this direction.”

“Objection!” barked Ash. “That’s damn impossible and you know it! Look at these footprints! There’s clearly a size difference between the two! This doesn’t even prove anything! Garble could’ve easily been at another place while McCloud was attacked!”

“Objection!” Spike shot back. “Don’t you find it a little convenient though, Master? Garble not only snuck into the academy, but was at the same spot McCloud was attacked. The connection can’t be just a coincidence.

Ash banged his fist on the table. “You have no hard evidence! Unless you’ve got something, your theory holds no water!”

Spike rubbed his chin. “Well, what if we did something different to show Garble was involved?”

Ash raised an eyebrow. “Something different? What’re you getting at?”

Spike smiled. “Why don’t we take a look at the footprints walking away from the crime scene?”

Ash glared. “Hmmph! So first you make a big deal out of Garble’s footprints, and now you’re going after those other footprints? You’re getting desperate!”

“We’ll see about that,” vowed Spike. “The defense requests to know the footprints of the figure that walked away.”

Ember nodded. “Any objections, Master Ash?”

The elder dragon scoffed. “If the defense is this damn persistent over something like this, I’ll humor them and allow it only to show how pointless this is.”

Garble looked down as smoke vented from his nose.

Ember brought the scepter down. “Very well. Let’s see if we can get those other set of footprints identified.”

“I’m already on it, Lord Ember.”

Everyone turned up to see Princess Celestia and Princess Luna at a balcony.

The solar princess was writing something on a parchment. “Just allow me to finish filling out the order for the Wonderbolts to identify those footprints and send it off.” She rolled up the parchment and in a puff of smoke, the scroll was gone. “Now all we do is wait.”

The room fell silent for a couple minutes as they awaited a response. Ash lazily rose his sword up and down in his hand. Garble just looked down and hid his face. Spike and Twilight both looked at one another with worried expressions on them.

A sudden puff of magic then went off near Celestia. “Ah, that was fast.” She took the scroll and opened it. She levitated the scroll down with her magic. “Let’s see how funny you think this is, Master Ash.”

The scroll appeared in front on him and he snatched it. He looked over it and did a double take. “This has to be a joke! This can’t be happening!”

Ember looked shocked by the reaction Ash had. “What is it, Master?”

The elder drake rose his head and slammed a metal gauntlet on the table. “The footprints. They’re...they’re identical to that of Sergeant McCloud!”

The courtroom muttered among themselves for a minute. Ember brought the scepter down three times.

“Order in the court!” she barked.

Spike slammed his hands on the desk. “This changes everything now, Master! We all know that McCloud was knocked out in the struggle, so these footprints mean that this belonged to the one who attacked and stole his clothing!”

“Objection!” yelled Ash. He brought his sword down on the table and glared at Spike. “You logic makes no sense though! You keep on insisting that Garble was the one who did it, but the fake McCloud was a pegasus! A pegasus! Unless all of Equestria either forgot the difference between dragons and pegasi are or went blind, there’s no way this is true!”

Spike smirked. “Master, there’s something I think you need to realize. I want you to think back to the other crimes we’ve discussed earlier.”

The elder drake tilted his head in confusion. “The other crimes? Why?”

“Think about what the most common thing has been about those crimes,” suggested Spike.

Ash closed his eyes in concentration. “They’ve all involved a red pegasus,” he replied. “The attack on Feather Flight. The assault on Sergeant McCloud. Printer Press being knocked out. All of them involved a red pegasus.” He opened his eyes. “But the assault on Feather wasn’t confirmed if it was a pegasus or not! Where are you going with this?”

Spike slammed his hands on the desk. “All of the attacks have had a red pegasus and Garble was near each of those crime scenes! He’s been involved with each crime!”

“Objection!” yelled Ash. He brought his sword down on the table again. “Wait a minute, Mr. the Dragon! Are you trying to suggest that Garble was not only involved with the attacks on those ponies, but also had an accomplice helping him?”

Spike shook his head. “You know full well how Garble feels about ponies, Master. It’s not possible Garble had anypony helping him.”

“Your logic is flawed then!” the elder dragon argued. “How can you explain the pegasus then?”

Spike cross his arms. “I think we should ask this red pegasus ourselves.”

Ash flinched in surprised. “What did you say?”

“Twilight and I have done some investigating,” explained the drake. “We’ve been able to figure out who exactly this red pegasus is and why he did it.”

Ash narrowed his eyes suspiciously. “Where is he?”

“Very close by,” answered Spike.

The courtroom gasped and whispered to themselves.

“The attacker here? Where’s he hiding?”

“Call the guards! He could try to do something against Lord Ember!”

Twilight leaned over into Spike. “Are you sure about this, Spike? You know we don’t have the evidence.”

Spike nodded. “It’s only been a matter of time before we got to this, Twilight. We’ve been able to connect Garble to all the crimes so far. Although we don’t have the crystal itself, I think we got something that could help us connect Garble to it.”

Twilight looked unsure of herself, but nodded anyway. “I hope you know what you’re doing, Spike.”

“Me too, Twilight.”

Ash slammed a gauntlet onto the table. “Enough of this! You’re so confident about who this pegasus is aren’t you? Well I say we match that confidence with the punishment you’ll get if you’re wrong!” He held his sword out towards Spike. “One chance is all this hot shot lawyer gets! If you end up wasting our time, this trial is over!”

Spike gulped nervously.

Ember banged the scepter against the ground. “Mr. the Dragon, for your sake and Miss Rarity’s sake, you better be prepared. Now tell us who this pegasus is.”

Spike narrowed his eyes. I don’t know what’s going to happen next, but things are about to get a lot more interesting. I’ve just got to hope that with what I’ve got, it’ll bring Garble down!

Spike stood up. “When you consider everything about Garble’s whereabouts, him admitting to stealing the camera, and all the same methods used by the criminal, it becomes very clear who our attacker really is.” He pointed a finger. “It’s none other than Garble!”

Garble’s eyes narrowed. “What?” he wondered in an icy tone.

“Objection!” barked Ash. He held his sword up and looked beside himself. “It appears I overestimated you, Mr. the Dragon!” he bellowed. “Here I was thinking I could take you seriously and instead you make a mockery of the courtroom! I should strike you down for this!”

Spike held his hands up in fear. “Whoa! Whoa! Wait a minute! Let me explain!”

“Explain what!?” he roared. “How none of your reasoning makes absolutely no sense!? Do you have some other crackpot theory!?”

Spike slammed his hands on his desk. “Let’s go over this again, Master. The purpose of Lord Ember’s visit was to strengthen ties between the Dragon Lands and Equestria. Ember herself was passing on what I taught her about friendship and vowed to spread it across the Dragon Lands.”

He glanced at Garble, who was looking down and shaking violently. “Then we have Garble, who was not only against this alliance, but hates ponies with a deep passion. Why would him of all dragons, who despises everything about ponies and was against what Ember was trying to do, go and try to protect her?”

Ash raised an eyebrow. “What’re you trying to say?”

“I’ll tell you what it means!” He pointed a finger. “The purpose of Garble following Lord Ember in secret wasn’t to protect her! He wanted to sabotage the visit!”

The crowd muttered amongst themselves again. Ember banged the scepter three times against the ground.

“Order! I will have order!” The dragoness narrowed her eyes. “Master Ash, what do you have to say about this?”

The elder dragon scoffed in defiance. “Nothing. This theory is just a desperate attempt by the defense to try and pin the blame on someone else. Garble may have had his fair share of getting in trouble in the past, but this is impossible!”

“But you know how much Garble despises ponies and this alliance,” said Spike.

“So do a lot of other dragons. Are you going to accuse each and every one of them then of sabotaging the visit? It’s a very weak motive to propose Garble intentionally sabotaged the visit!”

“Put the pieces of this puzzle together, Master,” urged Spike. “All the attacks that happened on those ponies had the same M.O.; they’re attacked and robbed of something.” He pointed at a furious looking Garble. “Garble did the same thing to Feather Flight! He even admitted he took the camera! Do you really think with all the same locations he was at and all the contradictions in his testimonies that he wasn’t involved?”

“ARGH!” Ash flinched as his armor was dented. He looked up and gritted his teeth. “You can’t just say though that his hatred for the alliance between Equestria and the Dragon Lands is enough motive! As I said before, many dragons are against it too!”

“Objection!” yelled Spike. He shook his head. “Have you forgotten something Garble said earlier, Master? Remember when he walked into this room and you asked for his name and occupation? What did he say?”

“What did he say?” the elder dragon wondered. He said nothing for a moment, but then his eyes widen in realization. “Wait! He said ‘your future Dragon Lord’.”

Spike nodded. “When Ember became Dragon Lord, it meant Garble had lost his chance. Since some dragons don’t trust ponies still, Garble used that to his advantage when he decided to ruin the visit.”

“But that only raises more questions!” argued Ash. “How exactly would this help him?”

Spike smirked. “Master, I’m surprised at you. I’m sure even you must know it by now with those photos Garble gave you.”

The elder dragon grunted in frustration.

“If a dragon was able to show that a pony attacked the Dragon Lord, it would destroy the alliance,” reasoned Spike. “Not only that, but the dragon who made others think ponies hated dragons and attack their leader would receive praise from the other dragons. They believe that someone who was willing to look out for their fellow dragons was more worthy of a leader than one who tried to become friends with ponies.”

Spike pointed his finger and waved it around the room. “You heard every dragon in here, right? How they chanted for Garble, cheered him, and praised him like he was a hero.” He glanced at Ash. “Tell me, Master. Do you think that’s not a good enough motive?”

The drake’s eyebrows narrowed. “Are you meaning to tell me this was all a plan for him to just take power and become Dragon Lord?”

Spike nodded again. “His purpose all along on his so called ‘mission’ was never to protect Lord Ember, but to instead make other dragons not trust her leadership as Dragon Lord!”

Ash slammed a gauntlet on the table. “Only the Dragon Council though can decide whether a fellow dragon is unfit to be the Dragon Lord! Even if your so called theory holds up, Garble wouldn’t become Dragon Lord unless we decide that Lord Ember wasn’t fit to lead!”

Spike crossed his arms. “And what would you’ve done, Master?”

The elder dragon raised an eyebrow.

“Would you’ve done it?” inquired Spike. “Were you and the rest of the council prepared to force Ember to step down after what happened?”

Ash scowled. “We weren’t even going to discuss such a thing until after the trial was over. Even if there wasn’t one, it’s hard to say what would’ve happened.”

“But it’s a possibility,” said Spike. “If you did force Ember to step down, the other dragons would’ve let Garble become the new Dragon Lord. Then, Garble would’ve finally been in a position to do what he wanted. His so called ‘heroism’ would’ve been enough reason for the other dragons to follow him.”

“Objection!” barked Ash. He took several deep breaths. “This is all baseless though! You have no evidence pointing to him stealing the crystal, or anything to prove he sabotaged the visit!”

“Hold it!” yelled Spike. “I wouldn’t say that yet, Master. We can prove Garble had a way to ruin the trip.”

Ash raised an eyebrow. “You...can?”

Garble looked down and growled.

“All you need to do is ask Rarity,” suggested Spike. “She can tell you about how he listened in on a conversation between her and Lord Ember.”

“W–WHAT!?” Ash exploded.

The audience muttered amongst themselves.

Ash looked at Ember. “This is insanity! Why didn’t you tell me you met with the accused, Lord Ember!?”

“I wanted to finally make amends with Rarity,” replied the dragoness. “I was going to tell you all eventually, but not until the time was right. If you want proof I did so, you can ask the guards down in the detention center to confirm my story.”

“What happened in that meeting!?” demanded Ash.

“Rarity and Ember finally made up in that meeting,” answered Spike. “However, Garble ended up listening in on the meeting and ‘confessed’ about what he did.”

Ash looked shocked. “Confessed!?”

Spike nodded. “He bragged about everything he did from the crystal theft and even admitted he knew about the love triangle between me, Rarity, and Ember.”

Ash grunted in frustration.

“Now let’s look over the case again,” said the drake. “Garble somewhere during his trip in Equestria learned of the feud between Rarity and Ember and used that to his advantage. He steals a camera from another pony. He then uses it to take photos to show every dragon here that ponies and dragons couldn’t get along and to make Ember looks bad for wanting to be friends with ponies.”

“Objection!” yelled Ash. “This...this is impossible! I’ve heard some really insane claims, but yours takes the cake, Mr. the Dragon!”

“Objection!” Twilight shot back. “Why don’t you ask Lord Ember herself then about what happened? She can tell you the same thing that Spike just said.”

“You can also ask Rarity,” suggested Spike. “Both of them can confirm what Garble did.”

Ash tried to say something, but couldn’t find the words.

Spike pointed a finger. “Garble, it’s over now! Why don’t you give up now and admit that you did this all! Your testimonies are unreliable, you’ve been to every crime scene in Equestria, and you’ve even admitted to stealing the camera!” He slammed his hands on the table. “Well, Garble? You’ve got nowhere to go now! It’s time–”

“OBJECTION!” bellowed a contorted, furious voice.

Everyone shook as the voice echoed throughout the room. They all looked down at the witness stand and saw Garble looking down and shaking violently.

“Spike,” he said in a low, icy tone. “You think you’ve figured it out. You think you’re so smart with what you’ve done. It would actually be hilarious to think you’ve won, but there’s one problem.”

Garble’s head shot up and had a demonic look on him and a fire in his eyes. “You haven’t won by a longshot, pony lover!”

He took a deep breath and looked up. Suddenly, he let out a large spew of fire that rained down around him. Some in the audience cried in surprise. Ember looked on in shock and awe. Twilight and Spike stood there paralyzed; unsure about what to do. The fire continued going down around Garble until it hid him completely under a small dome.

A minute later, the fire dome slowly started to die out and Garble emerged from it. Everyone gasped as they looked upon him. The drake had a fiery aura around him, with his jacket covered in flames. His eyes were completely yellow, with no pupils at all. His panted heavily and flames shot out of his nostrils. His facial expression was demonic and his sharp teeth glistened.

Twilight gulped and stepped back. “H–he’s completely changed!”

The crowd around the room chattered as fear and panic started to descend into the courtroom. Ember banged the scepter constantly.

“Order!” she cried out. “I will have order! If there’s no order, Master Ash won’t be happy!”

The elder drake just looked on in shock.

Spike shook his head. “Even Master Ash can’t believe what just happened.”

“Spike!” barked Garble.

The drake flinched in fear. “W–what?”

“You think you can just accuse me, of all dragons, of doing all of this!?” he boomed. “You think it’s funny to try to make me look like the bad guy here!? This isn’t funny anymore, you damn pony loving bastard!”

Spike slammed his hands on the table. “I don’t find it funny either with what you did, Garble. You’ve hurt a lot of ponies and dragons just to get what you want.”

“You think you can do this, huh?” asked Garble in an icy tone. “You’re making a fool out of me, Spike. I’ve had more than enough of you constantly making me out like I’m some sort of big criminal! Since you’re so determined to make me out as the bad guy, let me ask you a few things about your half assed theory!”

“W–what?”

“First of all, what proof do you have that I was ever in that meeting with Lord Ember and Rarity?” he wondered. “They may say the same story, but how do we know they didn’t come up with this plan to try to frame me!?”

Spike didn’t say anything.

“Secondly,” continued Garble, “can you even prove I was there? Did a guard see me at the Detention Center?” He brought his hand down with a thunderous boom on the stand. “Bring me the guard that saw me there! Have him testify!”

Spike groaned in frustration. “Well, what about how you came into the courtroom earlier? You said you were the ‘future Dragon Lord’!”

“Objection!” barked Garble. “Ha! You really think I did this all to ruin Lord Ember? The reason I said I was the next Dragon Lord was because after what happened to her in Equestria and this stupid trial ends up being a waste of time, she’ll be so disgraced by what she did, she’ll have no choice but to step down!”

Spike banged his hand on the table. “But we’ve proven you’ve been at all the crime scenes! You’re connected to all of them!”

“Objection!” Garble shouted again. He laughed coldly. “I admit I took the camera, but you already know why I did it. As for what happened to that reporter and that stupid pegasus, I don’t know who did that. You’ve got no evidence to show I did it anyway!”

Spike felt his heart nearly stop.

Garble smiled sinisterly. “Oh, but here’s my final question to you, Spike. One I really want to hear an answer from you about.”

Spike gulped a little. “What is it?”

“Where’s the crystal?”

The drake didn’t say anything.

Garble chuckled. “You know exactly what I’m talking about, don’t you? You claim I have that crystal, but like I told you yesterday, I don’t have it on me. So do you mean to tell me you found it?”

Spike said nothing again.

Garble banged his hand on the stand again. “I’ll ask again, you pony loving bastard!” he bellowed. “WHERE. IS. THE. CRYSTAL!?”

The words rung out around the room and made everyone shiver. Spike tried to think of something to say, but his thoughts were scrambled. He just stared at the intimidating glare Garble was giving him and shrunk back a little.

He looked at Twilight with a remorse on him. “Twilight, I’m sorry. I thought maybe if we could just use logic and try to connect some evidence about the crystal, it would bring Garble down.”

Twilight forced a small smile. “Spike, I knew this was going to be difficult without the crystal. To be honest, I’m not even sure how we could’ve done it.”

“Enough!”

Twilight and Spike looked over to see Master Ash had regained his senses and looked furious.

“It’s obvious from the lack of an answer from the defense they don’t have, or know, where the crystal is. This whole line of logic has been nothing more than a farce by the defense to throw the blame on someone else for two crimes!”

“Objection!” yelled Spike in desperation. “Master, look at Garble!” He pointed at the fuming drake. “You can’t tell me from that reaction that he’s innocent!”

Ash looked at Garble for a moment and then said, “Guards! Take Garble out of here to the lobby to calm himself down!”

Two dragons flew down and grabbed Garble by the arms.

“Let me go damn it!” protested Garble. “I want to see Spike beaten and have no choice but to accept that he was wrong!”

“Enough, boy!” barked Ash. “Your actions here will be answered later on, but you’re obviously unfit to stand here at the moment! Now go or you’ll be held in contempt of court!”

Garble growled as the flames around him died a little. The two guards started to drag him away.

“Spike!”

The drake looked up to see Garble smiling sinsterly at him.

“I knew you had no chance of winning,” he said, smugly. “When I become Dragon Lord, I won’t forget what you tried to do to me. That much I promise.”

Spike looked down at the ground.

The guards dragged Garble out and the doors slammed shut.

Ash brought his sword down on the table. “I think this has gone on long enough,” he declared. “The defense has failed to prove their client innocent, and on top of that, they try to pin the blame on my own grandson! It’s time for a verdict!”

“Mr. the Dragon,” said Ember, nervously. “Do you have any last objections or evidence?”

Spike slowly shook his head in defeat.

Ember closed her eyes in frustration. Damn you, Garble.

Ash banged his sword against the table again. “No objections from the defense!” He pointed his sword at Rarity. “The defendant will surrender herself to the court at once!”

Rarity looked on in horror and tried to hide herself. Both Twilight and Spike looked down in shame and defeat as they heard their friend cry out in terror.

Rarity...Ember, I’m sorry, Spike thought to himself.

“HOLD IT!”

Everyone gasped again as they looked at the stand. Twilight and Spike looked over and were both shocked to see who was at the witness stand.

It was Matches.

“You can’t end this trial here!” he objected. “Not while I know something about the case!”

The audience muttered to themselves for a few moments. Ember brought the scepter down three times.

“Order!” she shouted.

“Objection!” Ash brought his sword down on the table. “This trial is all but over! Get off the stand this instance before I have you arrested for contempt of court and obstruction of justice!”

Matches’ eyes narrowed. “No.”

“What!?”

“I can’t, Master. Not while I know something vital to this case.”

“What are you talking about?”

Matches looked up. “I know what happened to the magic crystal that went missing! Garble destroyed it!”

“ARGH!” Ash’s suit was bashed in.

The audience muttered and gasped as the accusation rang out around the room.

“Listen to me, Matches!” ordered Ash. “I won’t allow you to make the same baseless accusations the defense has been throwing out! Leave the stand at once and I’ll go easy on you.”

Matches scoffed. “Do your worst, Master.”

The elder drake looked shocked.

“I’ve got nothing to lose anymore, Master,” he said. “My career in the guard is ruined by this whole incident, I’m seen as a disgrace to others, and I’ve suffered at the hands of the interrogators at the Detention Center. There’s nothing more you can do to me now. I won’t leave this stand until I finally tell you what I saw Garble do with that crystal.”

Ash scowled. “Matches, I admit that maybe I shouldn’t have lost my composure like that. What if I were to offer you a chance back in the guard if you step down and retract your ridiculous statements?”

Matches looked at Ash with disgust. “Never.” He pointed at the elder dragon. “You know, Master, I watched you as a kid in this very same courtroom. I remember you always valued the truth above all whenever you prosecuted a case. You never left any stone unturned.”

The elder drake stared at Matches.

“I know Garble is your grandson, and despite how he is, you still care for him,” he went on. “I know you probably don’t want to accept the truth that he did it, but you know deep down that whatever story he told you isn’t true. There’s far too many inconsistencies and questions to his story.”

“The defense has no–”

“Forget the evidence for a moment, Master,” interrupted Matches. “Think logically. After what you’ve seen and heard, do you still believe that Garble is innocent? All the inconsistencies, him admitting he took the camera, and as Spike pointed out, look how he reacted. When Spike put pressure on Garble about all the events, he exploded and lashed out. Do you really think Garble is still innocent, or are you trying to deny something that you don’t want to believe?”

Ash leaned forward. “Even if what you’re saying is true, why did you follow him?”

“I told him to, Master,” answered Ember.

The courtroom filled with gasps and muttering.

Ash looked like he was about to explode. “Lord Ember, what’s the meaning of this!? How can you send a former member of the Dragon Guard to do something like this!?”

“I’ll explain everything, Master,” said Ember, calmly. “What I will say is that I’ve long since had my suspicions about Garble’s true intentions. Suspicions you ignored the day you arrested Rarity and refused to listen to me.”

Ash jerked back and shook a little.

“Master,” said Matches, “Lord Ember’s telling the truth. She did ask me to help her out. All I ask for is one chance to testify about what I saw.”

The elder dragon looked down and said nothing.

“Master,” stated Matches in a stern tone, “you have a choice. You can either believe a comfortable lie, or you can face the harsh truth. You told Lord Ember to put aside her personal feelings for the trial, and now you should too!”

The room fell silent and tension filled the air. Spike and Twilight looked on nervously as they stared at Master Ash. Ember closed her eyes and hoped for the best. Matches continued staring at Ash as he waited.

Finally, the silence broke as Ember said said, “Since Master Ash seems unwilling to answer, my opinion is this. It’s important that we hear from every witness to prevent a wrongful conviction. I think before we ask the jury, we should hear from Matches.”

Ash rose his head up, looking somewhat defeated. “Very well, Lord Ember. The prosecution will hear from him.”

Spike couldn’t help but let out breath of relief. Twilight soon followed after him.

“However,” warned the elder dragon, “I should warn the defense this. If there’s no way to connect Garble to the crystal incident through this testimony, I will bring this trial to an end.”

Spike nodded. “We understand, Master.”

Ember banged the scepter against the ground. “We’ll take a thirty minute recess.” She looked down. “Master Ash, Matches, I’ll want to see the both of you in my chamber. Master, I’ll tell you everything about why I sent Matches to spy on Garble.”

Ash bowed. “Yes, my Lord.”

Matches bowed too. “Yes, Lord Ember.”

“Guards,” continued the dragoness, “check on Garble and make sure he’s cooled off. We may need to speak to him again depending on where this goes.”

The two dragons near the door saluted.

Ember brought the scepter down. “This court is adjourned!”

Spike had his hand over his racing heart and leaned back against the couch. “Whew...that was too close.”

Twilight shook her head. “I feel like several years of my life were taken from me from what happened. I’m just glad Matches decided to step in. This could be the big break we’ve been waiting for.”

“Looks like Matches was able to appeal to Master Ash’s desire for justice. Matches does have a point. I think he already knows something’s wrong with what Garble told him. It’ll be hard for Ash, but he’ll have to see what Garble really did.”

Twilight nodded. “It’s just a matter of showing Master Ash proof that Garble destroyed the crystal. I don’t know how, but we’ve got to prove Garble destroyed the crystal.”

“Spike,” a sorrowful voice whispered.

The drake felt a wave of regret wash over him. He looked over and saw a distraught Rarity.

“Why didn’t you tell me the truth about the crystal?” she wondered.

Spike frowned. “Rarity, Twilight and I thought if we told you, it would only make you feel worse. To be honest, I knew that we’d have to say something about it eventually, but we just didn’t want to make you more worried than you already are. I’m sorry we lied to you, Rarity, but we didn’t know what else to tell you.”

Rarity nodded slowly. “I understand, darling, but you don’t have to hide such things from me. What I want to know though if it’s true Garble did destroy the crystal.”

“Yes,” Twilight answered. “Matches told us about how he did it to prevent anyone from connecting him to the crimes.”

Spike grimaced. “Maybe I shouldn’t have confronted Garble about the crystal. I probably made him go over the edge and destroy it.”

“Don’t blame yourself, Spike,” said Rarity. “Ember and I saw the crystal when Garble dropped it. Even if you didn’t say anything, Garble probably thought Ember would be onto him and would destroy it either way.”

The drake shrugged. “Maybe you’re right. I’m just more worried now what he’ll try to do. After that outburst, he’s getting desperate to try to end this trial as fast as possible.”

“The only question is how far will he go?”

“I have no idea,” said Spike. This trial is about to come to an end soon, and there’s no telling what’ll happen now. There’s no telling what Garble will do now. If we don’t do something soon, or find some way to connect Garble to the crystal being destroyed, it’s all over. Matches, we’re counting on you to help us.

Author's Notes:

I'm sorry this one took out longer to get out than it should've been. A combination of laziness, work, and other stuff going on with me just prevented me from making much on this chapter. I know that's not much of an excuse, but I'm sorry again it took so long. I've also been thinking about how to make this chapter progress and see where to take it. I assure you the next part is the last part of this trial. Hope you all enjoy regardless!