Spike tried once to put forth a stream of flame. He felt himself choking, that the presence of the All-Father would crush him for his unworthiness. Spike closed his eyes, preparing to feel it all collapse around him. He was a fool, he thought. Wrapped up in things he could not comprehend, he was a pretender, just as the High Elder judged. His flames sizzled and hissed. Their size soon reduced to little more than sputtered flares. The words of the All-Father reverberated again.