Watching high up from the castle balcony, Spike carried a lot on his mind while watching the vast ruined lands of Equestria. As he was counting the decisions he made back at the Crystal Empire, he heard the door to his room open. When he turned around, he saw Ember right by the doorway.

“Am I intruding?” Ember asked.

“N-No. I’ve- I’ve been doing some thinking.” Spike said before looking outside the balcony.

"What've you been thinking about?" Ember asked, now feeling curious.

"When we have children… heirs… do you think they'll conspire against us?" Spike asked, worried over his reign.

"Why would you think that? The Darkness holds dominion over those within its grasp." Ember said.

"The more and more I think about what Cadance said… the more I feel that somebody will eventually conspire against us. Am I right to hold such thoughts…? Or am I just being delusional…?" Spike asked, now deep in thought.

Hearing this, Ember walked over to Spike's side and held both his hands. She said,

"Nobody will overthrow us. You have grown too powerful to be overtaken. And if it happens… you'll destroy them. I know it within my heart you will destroy them."

"I suppose that is true. After all, I have already learned that I was born with nothing and I had to fight for what I wanted." Spike said before caressing Ember's scales.

"And now you have it. Your kingdom, your loyal subjects… and me. Unlike those loathsome ponies who only used you to drive their various, trivial goals."

"Ember… there was something I always wanted to tell you since the day we first met at the Gauntlet of Fire." Spike said, starting to feel even more nervous.

"Yeah…?" Ember asked, looking straight at Spike with a smile.

"Ever since the day that I met you… I was afraid of you."

"What? Why were you afraid of me? I never harmed you." Ember said, feeling a little annoyed.

"Let me finish. I will get to the important bits, but please just bear with me." Spike said, trying to calm Ember.

Ember did as Spike told and decided to listen further.

"During the time when I was still with Twilight, I was still fixated on Rarity. But the more colts I saw with her and the more I was cheated out of being with her, the more I grew to resent the fact that I was pursuing after some tramp."

"What're you trying to say?" Ember asked once again.

"I thought of you." Spike answered.

Hearing this knocked the breath out of Ember. While she may had a small clue where the conversation was going, she didn't think it would lead to Spike's confession to her. She was knocked for a loop at this moment.

"Spike… I'm not-" Ember stammered.

Spike got on his knees and spoke much further

"Ember… for the longest time… you were all that remained on my mind. Not Rarity, not not some pony, and no other being that could hope to fill this empty void in my heart. Please… will you share this emptiness with me? Spike confessed before pulling out a ruby-embedded golden ring.

Now that she has seen this, she was at a total loss for words. It wasn't that she wanted to refuse, but it all felt so fast that she wanted to hurl. She had no idea what to think of Spike's proposal at first. But the more she thought of it, the more she wanted to be his queen. Having finally thought it over for a few minutes while Spike waited nervously, she got on her knees with him and grabbed his hands.

"Yes." Ember said with a genuine smile on her face.

"What?" Spike asked, now feeling breathless.

“Yes.” Ember said, leaning closer to Ember.

“I-If you wish to think it over a little more, I’ll-” Spike said before being pulled in for a kiss by Ember.

After pulling away from him for a brief second, Ember held onto him and said,

“To be honest… I felt the same way about you ever since you came for the Dragon Lord Contest. I could never stop thinking about your adorable little self. But now that you’re a big and handsome dragon…” Ember said before pulling in Spike for another kiss.

As they were kissing each other, Avian came in and shouted,

‘Sire!”

“Not now, Avian…” Spike growled.

“Sire, we have just received reports of a fire in the forest.” Avian said.

“Is it one of ours?” Spike asked.

“No. It has occured no more than one hour ago and we are now hearing rumors of three alicorns destroying our bases.”

Spike walked over to Avian and pushed him against the wall with his claws near the terrified hippogriff’s face.

“I don’t want rumors. I want ANSWERS!!! Where’s Tirek?” Spike roared.

“He’s near the gate! He has requested your presence, My Liege!” Avian answered, trying to avoid being killed.

Dropping Avian, Spike walked towards Ember and said,

“Ember, our rendezvous will have to wait for the time being.”

“But what about-?” Ember asked as Spike walked towards the door.

“I’m sorry, Ember. But duty calls.” Spike answered before leaving Ember and Avian in his room.

Walking all the way down across the hallway, Spike could not imagine what the big emergency could be now since kingdom has destroyed the Crystal Empire. But as he was pondering, the Creature wrapped itself around his arm and said,

“Surely, the Princesses could not have survived. We already killed the Sun Princess, trapped the Moon Princess, broke the Friendship Princess, and imprisoned Love. All that is left is the baby alicorn and my influence is keeping track of her movements.”

“You could kill her while you still can.” Spike said.

“What fun would it be if you weren’t the one to do it? Besides, you carried that pained expression on your face when you had that red pony and those two fillies killed. You need the strongest will if you wish to remain king.” the Creature taunted.

“I did what needed to be done for my subjects. When we find Starlight and Flurry Heart, I will waste no time in burying my claws into their skin.” Spike assured.

“I will hold you to that promise. But I will keep an eye out on their movements. They are elusive and careful. My favorite sort of prey…” the Creature said before sinking back into Spike.

Arriving at the gate, the soldiers immediately bowed in Spike’s presence along with Tirek and two coroners.

“What seems to be the problem?” Spike asked.

“Poor Jason here was doing his duties until this huge fireball engulfed him and burned him to cinders.” a changeling soldier said.

“Is it one of ours?” Spike asked.

“No. But we looked up in the sky and we saw this monstrous alicorn flying above us. She looked as if she were covered in fire and there was this other alicorn in the sky alongside her. She was dark, blue, and she had this creature that looked like it belonged up in the sky. But when they attacked us and we fought back, they shouted that we would send you a message and that the Royal Sisters would rise again.” a dragon soldier explained.

“Rise again?” Spike asked, remembering his hallucination with the Royal Sisters.

“They said that they’re names were Daybreaker and the other one, as we all know, is Nightmare Moon. But that’s not all.” the dragon soldier answered.

“What do you mean?” Spike asked, leaning towards the dragon soldier.

“We have seen a purple alicorn in the sky. She looked like Twilight Sparkle, but she was not the same as we last saw her.”

Processing all the information that he has received, Spike was surprised to learned that Nightmare Moon had escaped the Mirror Room. But he was shocked to have found out that Celestia had returned from the dead. But she isn’t the same as he remembered. And he never would have imagined that Twilight would surrender herself to the Corruption that easily. Having now pieced the puzzle for himself and regained his composure, Spike turned to Tirek and said,

“Triple patrols and set up a search party for the alicorn princess. Dead or alive, it matters not.”

“Yes, Sire.” Tirek said before returning to the castle.

“If those old charlatans wish to have a war with us… it will be a war they’ll never forget.” Spike said before summoning a ball of ooze from his hand.

Looking up to the moon in the sky, he aims at it and fire the ooze up at the moon in the completely black sky. Covering the entire moon, the ooze malformed and twisted the entire thing to form one big, gigantic eyeball in the sky.

“When I see you three again… I will enjoy feasting on your bones.” Spike growled in a menacing tone as he looked at the black sky above him with his soldiers.