Chapter 1

Castle of Friendship, Ponyville

Spike usually awoke to the rays of the early morning sun with a desire to do nothing more than curl up into a ball and continue sleeping. Unfortunately, this morning was markedly different from the norm. Mere moments before, he was experiencing a bizarre and wonderful dream. Some of the details were still a bit hazy, but he clearly remembered being a king. What kind of king you ask? Well, interestingly enough he was a king of the forest.

When one thinks of a king of forest, a lion or a bear usually comes to mind. However, this was not the case in Spike’s dream. He was still very much the teenage Wyvertii that he was in the realm of reality, if perhaps a bit exaggerated.

In this case, he was a king clad in little more than a loin cloth, sitting on a throne made of darkened wood. Kneeling before him were Fluttershy, Applejack, and Rarity wearing nothing more than pleasant smiles. All three seemed more than eager to serve their king.

Just as things were starting to heat up was when Spike woke up. It wasn’t the first time he had such an erotically charged dream, but the results were nothing short of a soiled pair of boxers. With a groan of annoyance, Spike cursed himself for not remembering to relieve his sexual tension for nearly a whole week.

He hadn’t really had the presence of mind to do so, considering that nearly all of his energy had been spent helping Twilight draft a set of zoning ordinances for a major overhaul to Ponyville’s schoolhouse.

Spike chucked his sticky boxers into the hamper. “Ugh. I guess a shower is really out of the question at this point…”

There was at least a silver lining in this unfortunate situation. The throbbing erection he currently sported had been released from its cloth prison and was free to stand proudly to the world. Spike looked down at his troublesome organ and sighed. This is just getting ridiculous. Even after a wet dream, I’m still harder than Braeburn pecks! Errr…wait. Why am I even thinking about him? Stop it dick! I like women and you know it! I guess this is all just part of being a hormonally charged teenager. At least that’s what Twi would say…still sucks though.

Spike had to admit that the Castle of Friendship was far more spacious than Golden Oaks Library. It meant that he had a larger room than before, which was fine by him. Unfortunately, it also meant that the nearest bathroom was the whole way down the hall. Why the crystalline castle couldn’t have put bathrooms in every bedroom was beyond his understanding. Magic was stupid like that sometimes.

He was so occupied with his own thoughts that he barely even registered his short journey to the bathroom down the hall. It was only when he rammed straight into Twilight did he even notice that he’d been walking…and butt naked with a hard-on to boot.

Twilight scrambled to her feet with a fierce blush. “SPIKE?! Why are you naked? And—you’ve got an…e-erection. O-ok. Just breathe like Cadence taught you, Twilight. It’s only a penis. It’s—SPIKE PUT A TOWEL ON FOR CELESTIA’S SAKE!”

You’d think that Spike and Twilight would have been used to seeing each other naked considering how many years they’d been living together. However, that was not the case. Both of them were rather modest when it came to their bodies and took great pains to keep their nudity private whenever possible.

For Princess Twilight Sparkle, it was an extremely awkward and embarrassing reminder that Spike was no longer the child he once was. He had just turned eighteen a little more than a week ago. He was now, both legally and physically, a man.

For Spike, not only was it beyond humiliating for his big sister to catch him in the nude, but he had been waving around a raging boner the whole time! He felt his entire face heat up as his hands shot down to cover himself. It didn’t cover nearly as much as he would have liked and he managed to smack his balls in the process, but at least he was attempting to ease his sister’s distress.

“Ehehe sorry. I didn’t realize you were there, Twi.”

Twilight put her hands on her hips. “For the love of the sun, please try not to make a habit of walking around with your morning erection from now on, ok? Wait a minute…is that? Sweet Celestia it is! Why do you need to do…that so early in the morning?”

“It’s not what you think! I wasn’t mast—”

“I don’t care! Just take your shower already. I’ll have breakfast ready when you’re done.”

With a bit more pep in her step than usual, Twilight sped towards the kitchen to make breakfast. In her wake, a thoroughly mortified Spike padded into the bathroom to take his long-awaited shower. He might not have brought a change of clothing with him, but at least he would have a towel to cover himself with once get got out of the shower.

The hot spray of water that trickled down his body did much to clear his mind and relax him somewhat. It didn’t take him long to wash his hair, so he moved on to lather the rest of his body. With bath pouf in hand, he stared down at his now flaccid member and let out a harsh chuckle. Oh Great! Now it decides to go soft. Figures. I have just about the same amount of luck as Trouble Shoes.

Spike’s teenage mind was no stranger to thoughts of sex and intimacy. He had, in all likelihood, read more smutty romance novels than half of the middle-aged female populace in Canterlot. It came with being the number one assistant to Ponyville’s affectionately dubbed “Monarch of Manuscripts”.

He understood the medical and technical aspects of it as well. Back when he had turned thirteen, his sister had been too embarrassed to have “The Talk” with him directly, so she gave him a book about it instead. Some might consider such an approach to be negligent or thoughtless, but it was typical behavior for the bookworm. She was just trying to help him out in her own way.

The young man’s problems truly began when he started to see women as more than just friends to hang out with or declare his affection for. Sure, he had a huge crush on Rarity for years…but that’s all it was. As he got older, his obsession over the beautiful fashionista became less about finding his way into in her heart and more about finding his way into her pants.

By the time he was sixteen, Spike decided it was high time to make Rarity his girlfriend. The whole idea of the two being an actual couple was a disaster from the very beginning. Rarity was eight years his senior, a gap far too large for a relationship to work between a gangly teenager and a burgeoning businesswoman. Their lives were simply in very different stages.

Her affection for him, she said, was more akin to a doting aunt than a lover. She made a point to say that she indeed loved him, but it was not romantic love. Much to Rarity’s credit, she treated Spike like an adult when she finally broke the news and apologized profusely for not making things clear beforehand.

In retrospect, Spike realized that he had been blinded by his lustful and often obsessive feelings and hadn’t really considered all the implications that went with a relationship. He had been saddened by her rejection, but it also gave him the perspective he so desperately needed to move on.

The universe wasn’t done with Spike yet. It merely gave him a different problem. Whereas before he had been the one attracted to an older woman, now a younger woman was attracted to him. To make matters worse, this younger woman was none other than Rarity’s little sister! Life can be so ironic indeed.

Sweetie Belle was a beautiful, bubbly, and adorably clumsy girl. If she had just been a few years older, Spike would have pounced at the chance to go out with her. But that was crux of the problem. She was too young. While their age gap wasn’t quite so large, a mere fourteen year old girl dating a newly legal adult was disconcerting to say the least.

Spike made sure to let her down as gently as he could. She still sobbed despondently over her own rejection and retreated to her room for two whole days before she was able to pull herself together. She reminded Spike so much of Rarity that he had to bite his cheek to suppress a laugh when she finally came out of her room, looking like she had wrestled Tirek in Tartarus.

Spike slowly rubbed the pouf across his arm. Yep. No luck at all.The rest of the young man’s shower proceeded without incident and he wasted no time getting dressed as quickly as he could despite Twilight’s absence. About five minutes later, he made his way to the dining room where a large stack of chocolate chip pancakes and bacon sat waiting for him. Twilight sat across from him absently munching on a bowl of corn flakes.

The silence between them was deafening. Never had he seen his big sister so quiet at this hour. She was very much a morning person and loved to chat while they ate their breakfast…at least under normal circumstances, anyway. While the pancakes were buttery, soft, and delicious every bite felt like concrete sliding down his throat.

Spike coughed. “Twi…I’m really sorry about before. I wasn’t quite awake yet when that happened.”

“There was one part of you that seemed plenty awake to me.”

“That’s because—I had a wet dream. The only thing I was focusing on was getting out of my errr…sticky boxers and cleaning up. I wasn’t trying to be a pervert, I swear!”

Twilight blushed. “Well, I guess it couldn’t be helped. But…aren’t wet dreams indicative of a lack of semen release? A-at least that’s what all the books say…”

“It is. Look, don’t take this the wrong way but I completely forgot to do that this week because I was so busy helping you with the ordinances.”

Twilight frowned. “Spike, you should have told me you were tired! I would have gladly given you a break, especially for something like that. You’re my little brother, not my indentured servant. I want you to be as happy and healthy as you can be.”

“I know, but you looked like you were in the zone with all of that ordinance stuff. I didn’t want to stop ‘cause we were making so much progress. But…I guess I strained myself too much. I promise I’ll let you know when I start to feel tired from now on.”

Twilight nodded. “I’m sorry too. I keep forgetting how much stamina I have now that I’m a princess. Thank you, Spike. I mean it. You did an excellent job with those ordinances. It would have been much harder to get them to Mayor Mare in time if you hadn’t helped me.”

Despite their modesty, both Twilight and Spike were completely comfortable showing affection to one another. It had been that way for as long as the two had known one another. Without a moment’s hesitation, Spike got out of his chair and gave his big sister a hug. As he rested his head atop hers, he noted the familiar sent of the lilac shampoo she liked to use. It dispelled any remaining tension that was left in him.

Suddenly, he felt something odd. It was a peculiar itching sensation on the back of his hand. As time went on it became more and more intense, until it started to feel like it was burning. Twilight’s eyes lit up with concern as she witnessed her brother clutch his hand as if it had been dipped in molten lava. When he finally got a good look at his hand, a glowing green flame tattoo had appeared.

Spike began to hyperventilate. “T-Twi what is this?!”

“I don’t know! I’ve never seen anything like this before. Do you think we should go to the hospital?”

Spike grit his teeth. “I…don’t…think this is your run of the mill injury. It feels like magic, but it’s…really weird and strong. I need to get this to stop or I’ll pass out.”

“Ok, just calm down a second. I’ll teleport us to Princess Celestia. She’ll know what to do.”

“I guess so. Just don’t be too surprised if I’m not conscious when we arrive. Gods! It feels like my hand is being sawed off the—”

That was all Spike was able to utter before he slumped to the floor. When Twilight looked at his hand, the tattoo was still glowing but the skin around it was starting to become seriously inflamed. She had no doubt it was painful. With all of her might, she wrapped her arms around Spike and prepared to perform a long distance teleportation spell. She prayed that she was powerful enough to do so with two people. But you never know until you try, right?

Princess Celestia’s Chambers, Canterlot

It had taken a long time for Celestia to finally become a morning person. While she enjoyed it now, centuries ago she was barely able to peel herself out of bed at this hour. Her sister, however, was still as much of a creature of the night as she had been a millennium ago. That is why she wasn’t the least bit surprised when Luna, wearing nothing more than a weary expression, clambered into the room.

The smell of coffee must have been what roused her sister from sleep’s embrace. Since discovering the caffeinated beverage four hundred years ago, she adopted it as the official drink of the royal house. It was not a decision she came to regret in the least. However, she was glad to have already partaken in some unlike her groggy sister. She would have been mortified to have been seen as Luna was now. It was very “un-princess” like but so very Luna.

Celestia sipped from her cup. “Come to greet the day, dear sister?”

“We—err—I still am getting used to rising with the sun. The coffee smells of the sweetest ambrosia, sister mine. It shall certainly fill my veins with vigor this day!”

Celestia tried not to cringe when Luna plopped on the plush sofa across the room and began stuffing her face with fresh doughnuts and coffee. The solar princess was very good at concealing her expressions a majority of the time. Anyone would be if they had as many centuries of practice as Celestia did. Luna was never fooled though. All Celestia got back was an exaggerated eye roll.

“Worry not, Tia. I shall clean off these crumbs when I bathe.”

“That is the least of my concerns, Lulu. You really need to start wearing clothes in the morning. It’s unbefitting of a princess to lounge about in the nu—”

Luna scoffed. “I am not the least bit concerned. If our subjects are bothered by the bare royal form, then they may go fornicate with themselves! Why, two millennia ago we had our nude likeness carved from the finest marble. Actually…where are those statues? They are no longer in the garden.”

“I had them put in storage. Times have changed, Lulu. We can’t do that anymore. I fear…that there is already an abundance of bawdry materials produced in our likeness. It would do little good to show our subjects what we actually look like.”

Luna stood up for a moment and struck a sexy pose. It would have been very seductive, save for the fact that her face and chest were covered in chocolate icing, crumbs, and sprinkles. In a rare moment of embarrassment, Celestia felt a blush form on her cheeks.

“You have become quite prudish, Tia. I am the princess of the night; sex and intimacy are well within my domain. Let them think I am promiscuous, for I care not! As I seem to recall, the Wyvertii never concerned themselves with clo—”

Celestia sighed. “Yes, I am aware of their particular customs. You can do as you please while we are in the castle, but try to be more modest while we are in public. That is all I ask.”

“I am still not going to clothe myself until my bath is complete. So, you shall simply have to deal with my bare form until then. By the way sister, the coffee is delicious. The chef who produced it has my compliments.”

Celestia smiled. “Ah. I thought you might like it. I had it imported from Zebrica. As for the brewing, I like to do that myself. The chefs can never seem to get it just right.”

“Thank you for the delightful breakfast, Tia. I shall sojourn to the royal baths should you require my presence or care to join me.”

“You’re welcome. But I don’t believe I shall be joining you. I already bathed earlier this morning. While you’re at it, try the new hair conditioner that came in yesterday. It supposedly smells like blueberries. I imagine such a scent would suit you quite well.”

Luna stuck her fist in the air. “Verily! I find that I enjoy the smell of fruit. And…the men don’t seem to mind it either.”

Celestia shook her head as she watched her bare-bottomed sister saunter towards the royal baths. Luna could be rather crass at times, but it was something that Celestia adored about her. It made their conversations more interesting and their sisterly bonding all the sweeter. Truly, it was great to have Luna back after all those years ruling on her own.

Just as Celestia was about to pour herself another cup of coffee, a loud popping noise nearly made her drop the carafe onto the floor. It took her a few moments to realize what was going on, but she immediately recognized the magenta colored aura that followed the teleportation spell. It could only be Twilight Sparkle. A sense of dread began to creep into her chest when she realized just how unusual it was for the bookish princess to drop in her chambers unannounced.

In her arms, Twilight held Spike and he looked as if he had seen better days. His skin was pale and a thin sheen of sweat covered his entire body. But what stood out the most to Celestia’s ancient eyes was the glowing green tattoo on his hand. It was a symbol she had not seen in over three thousand years, yet she never forgot how distinct it was.

Celestia rushed over to her former student. “Twilight, what happened? Is Spike…alright?”

“I don’t know! This weird tattoo just showed up on his hand and he said how much it hurt a-a-and then he passed out. Oh please help him! I’ve never seen anything like this before.”

“Calm down, Twilight. I know what this is and how we can fix it.”

Twilight wiped her eyes. “Thank goodness. I thought he was seriously hurt.”

“He will be in grave danger if we don’t do anything about the tattoo. I’m afraid it’s an incredibly powerful and ancient compulsion spell, crafted by the Dragon Lord himself. There is only one way I know of to get it to dissipate.”

“But Wyvertii magic is practically unknown to us. And from what I know about compulsion spells, if the conditions that bind the victim aren’t satisfied within a certain time limit…they could potentially die.”

Celestia gently stroked Spike’s hand. “I’m afraid that is exactly what will happen. As for the compulsion, we are fortunate enough that I happen to know the cause of it. Such a thing only happens every few centuries, but it is a call sent to all Wyvertii males who have come of age. They all must journey back to their homeland to compete in the Gauntlet of Fire. You see, the competition determines the Dragon Lord’s heir.”

“Why would the Wyvertii invent such dangerous magic? It makes no sense.”

“Perhaps to you and I, Twilight. But they think differently than we do. Their society is quite a bit more draconian than ours because they are a warrior culture deeply entwined to nature. Competition and death are just a part of their daily lives.”

Twilight bit her lip. “Does that mean he has to compete? I just don’t want him to get hurt or killed! He isn’t some big, burly warrior. He’s a scholar like I am. They’d eat him alive…”

“I believe that Spike could take care of himself, if given the opportunity. He’s an intelligent young man. Have faith, Twilight. You just have to give him a chance to prove himself.”

“So what now? He obviously can’t travel anywhere while he’s unconscious.”

Celestia smiled. “That is my sister’s specialty. She will be able to reach him with her magic while he rests. Once he declares his name and intentions, the compulsion will lessen but not completely go away until he arrives in his homeland.”