The Glue of Harmony

by Twidashlover123

The Journey and the Cave

The Everfree Forest was eerily quiet as Spike and Shooting Star followed the glowing red arrows deeper into its depths. The thick canopy above blocked out most of the moonlight, casting shadows that seemed to dance and twist among the trees. Despite the darkness, Spike felt a strange sense of determination coursing through him. He had to confront the dark alternate version of himself and put an end to whatever sinister plans it had in store.

"Do you think your alternate self is really a bad creature Spike?" Shooting Star asked.

"If all of these attacks from the past few days are anything to go by, then we might be facing a villain more evil than most. Those attacks actually hurt ponies and put them in the hospital."

"But what about Queen Chrysalis? She and the rest of those parasites trapped ponies of all ages in some icky green goo and left them unconsious during the Canterlot invasion." She pointed out.

"That's why I say more evil than 'most' villains." Spike emphasized 'most'. Shooting Star nodded in understanding, and continued on.

As they ventured deeper, the air grew colder, and a thick fog began to roll in, obscuring their path. But Spike and Shooting Star pressed on, their resolve unshaken. Suddenly, they heard a low growl emanating from the darkness ahead.

Spike's heart raced as he gripped Shooting Star's hoof tightly. "Did you hear that?" he whispered.

Shooting Star nodded, her eyes wide with apprehension. "I think we're not alone in here."

Just then, an awful stench filled the air around them. It smelled like a mixture of rotten eggs, dead fish and smelly basal roots. Spike knew this smell an awful too well. Before he could react, a pair of glowing yellow eyes appeared in the fog, followed by the menacing silhouette of a creature lurking in the shadows. It was a timberwolf, its jagged teeth bared in a snarl as it advanced towards them.

Spike and Shooting Star felt a surge of fear grip them, but they both knew that they couldn't let that fear overcome them. With a determined expression, he stepped forward, shielding Shooting Star behind him. "Stay back, Shooting Star. I'll handle this."

Summoning his courage, Spike let out a fierce roar, surprising both himself and the timberwolf. The creature hesitated for a moment before lunging forward, but Spike was ready. With a swift motion, he unleashed a burst of fire from his mouth, engulfing the timberwolf in flames.

The creature howled in pain before retreating back into the darkness, leaving Spike and Shooting Star unharmed but shaken. They exchanged a glance, silently acknowledging the danger that lurked in the forest.

"That was only one timberwolf, there could be a whole lot more coming. We need to move, double time." Spike said

"I agree. We both need to be more careful if more of those wooden creatures are lurking just nearby. And with this fog, there could be any threat just behind that tree over there." She pointed to a random tree with her hoof.

"This fog is either just nature to the Everfree forest or an illusion by my alternate self, and right now, I don't know which one it is." Spike told her.

"That's not important right now though. We need to continue onward. We can't let anything stop us from reaching that cave. Especially not a creature made out of firewood." With a nod of agreement and renewed determination, Spike and Shooting Star looked at the arrows on the ground that were still glowing and illuminating their path. They followed the arrows in hopes of finding the cave as soon as possible.

---

After a half hour, the 2 creatures came across the ruins of the castle of the 2 sisters. Although it was far away and even with this fog, Spike and Shooting Star could still get a good look at the castle ruins from a distance. Spike just looked at it like it was nothing unusual for him, which it was usual for him. Shooting Star on the other hand, just looked at it with a look of awe on her face.

"THERE'S OLD CASTLE RUINS HERE!?!? HOW COME I NEVER SEEN THESE RUINS BEFORE!?!?" She yelled out.

Spike wasn't fazed by the outburst and casually told her, "That used to be the castle of the 2 princesses before Princess Luna was banished to the moon and Princess Celestia moved to the mountain which is now known as the city of Canterlot. I used to come here with Twilight and her friends before she became a princess. That place is actually more complicated than you think. Maybe after this whole fiasco, I can take you here whenever Twilight and her friends are having fun without me."

"You would actually do that with me Spike?" she asked.

"Of course. You definitely seem interested in those castle ruins, so why not take you one of these days."

"I-I would love that. Thanks." Shooting Star told him.

"No problem." And with that, they stopped looking at the castle of the 2 sisters and continued on their way.

---

As they ventured deeper into the forest, the terrain grew increasingly treacherous. Even though the path got harder and harder to follow, Spike and Shooting Star didn't stop and continued trudging on. They had to do something about alternate Spike before something terrible was going to happen.

After about 2 hours of walking and talking, thorny vines snaked across their path, and twisted roots threatened to trip them with every step. Spike decided to get a closer look at these vines and when he did, his eyes widened in shock.

"How are these vines still here? I thought they were completely eradicated by the tree of harmony over a year ago." Spike said as shooting star looked at the vines too.

"You saw these vines before Spike?" She asked him.

"Yes I did. Over a year ago, these vines grew out of the Everfree forest and into Ponyville. They were as invasive as can be and they seemed to have a mind of their own. They made the Everfree forest completely unlivable and they took over the town of Ponyville and not even the princesses could do anything to stop it.

"Hm, now that I think about it, I think I have heard of these vines before. I was in ponyville when this happened but I couldn't see any of the vines for some reason. All I saw was the sun and the moon in the sky at the same time which halved the sky into day and night." Shooting Star told Spike in a tone that said 'as a matter of fact.'

"These are the same vines as before, but they're not moving. I don't know why, but this has to mean something. They may be dead or something else going on. I'm hoping for the first option.

As Spike and Shooting Star pondered the presence of the seemingly dormant vines, a sense of unease settled over them like a heavy fog. The eerie stillness of the forest amplified their apprehension, and they exchanged worried glances. It was then that they heard what sounded like a war song in the distance.

On the horizon
I can see the storm coming
The enemy is in the forest
Evil like a hurricane

The song chilled Spike and Shooting Star to the core, as if there was another blizzard going on. The war song echoed through the dense foliage, sending shivers down Spike and Shooting Star's spines. It wasn't just the haunting melody that unsettled them; it was the realization that the Everfree forest might soon become a place where something terrible was going to happen. Despite being afraid, they decided to follow where the song was coming from and if they were lucky, the song might be coming from the cave they were looking for.

They silently followed the sounds of the song for over a few minutes. And then they saw it, they saw a giant wall of rock with a gaping hole on the side of it, which looked like it lead to an endless void of darkness The arrows seemed to travel into that void like an army of ants. They did it. They faced the dangers of the Everfree and they found the cave they have been looking for for the past 3 hours

"I think that's the cave we've been looking for Spike." Shooting Star told him. "All the arrows are going into the cave which must mean you alternate self in in there waiting for us."

"Then we shouldn't wait any longer. If he has something terrible planned, then we can't let it happen. Let's go." Spike said

"Onwards and Upwards." Spike and Shooting Star looked at each other, then back at the cave and ventures forth, ready to endure any trial that the alternate Spike may have set up for them.

As they approached the gaping maw of the cave, Spike and Shooting Star couldn't shake off the feeling of impending danger. The air grew thick with tension, and every step felt like a weight pressing down on their chests. Yet, they pressed on, their determination outweighing their fear.

The cave entrance loomed before them, its darkness swallowing the feeble light of the shining moon. Spike took a deep breath, steadying himself for whatever lay ahead, while Shooting Star composed herself to continue trekking into the bowels of the cave. The song growing louder and louder with each trek they trekked. As they continued, the air grew colder, and the darkness enveloped them like a suffocating blanket.

Yet they continued, even when it felt like they were about to suffocate. After a while, everything in the cave around them was so dark that only the glowing red arrows were still able to be seen and it was so silent that only the steps of Spike and Shooting Star could be heard. They followed the arrows until they reached a fork in the road. The arrows split up and went into both of the paths which made Spike and Shooting Star worried. The one on the left led to more darkness while the other one of the right seemed to slope upward if the arrows were anything to go by.

Spike furrowed his brow, contemplating their next move. "Which way do you think we should go?" he asked, turning to Shooting Star.

Shooting Star scanned the two paths, her eyes narrowed in concentration. "I'm not sure," she admitted, her voice barely above a whisper. "But something tells me that the one on the left might lead us closer to our goal. If I know villains, then they like darker spaces, especially at night."

Spike nodded in agreement, trusting Shooting Star's intuition. With a shared glance, they veered towards the left path, their steps echoing off the cavern walls. As they ventured deeper into the darkness of the left path, the air grew colder, and the atmosphere more oppressive. Each step they made seemed to echo louder along with the song, amplifying the feeling of isolation in the cavern. Spike and Shooting Star stayed close together for both of their senses were on high alert for any sign of imminent danger.

As they continued down the path, they heard sounds of life in these caves. They both knew that they couldn't be bats because they didn't even sound close to what they were hearing. They followed the arrows again and in the distance, they could see some light. They followed the light for a minute and a half and saw where it lead. When they got there, they looked around and saw arrows turning into one arrow, meaning that both paths led to the same place. They ignored the absurdity of that and turned around. The first thing they saw was a herd of the same wild beasts made out of black crystal and ice Spike fought yesterday.

They looked at Spike and Shooting Star, ready to attack. They were about to attack, but then a familiar tune played which lulled them to sleep. They heard one line and it was all it took to put the beasts to sleep.

Don't cry little one

Spike recognized the song, but didn't pay any attention to it this time as he continued onward along with Shooting Star.

After a while, they also saw something terrifying. The same thorny vines from before they were entering the cave but this time, they were alive and holding another mare still while her soul got sucked away from her using the black ooze from earlier today. She was a pink unicorn, lilac eyes who had a purple mane and tail with a light turquoise streak on them. She was being covered by the mound of ooze except for her head which showed her eyes darkening before going completely black and she slumped over.

Spike shivered at the sight of seeing that mare being tortured like that but they continued onward. They reached the end of the room where he saw something majestic and horrifying at the same time. It looked like a throne of sorts, and it was made out of the same black crystals that the beasts were made out of with the wall behind it being made out of the same stuff.

Just then, the light in the room seemed to turn into an empty and dark void with nothing in it while the sounds of the beasts, torture and music seemed to turn off as well. Now Spike and Shooting Star couldn't see or hear anything. It worried them, but what worried them the most was the voice of an all too familiar creature to Spike.

"I was wondering when you'd show up."

Comments

[TrainDude90S]

Come next time, the two SPIKE'S will finally meet FACE-TO-FACE.