He had several reasons for wanting to accept Princess Twilight’s request in the first place back in Skymount, not the least of which of course was all the political concerns—the High King’s little chat had done quite a bit to motivate him in that matter. Despite that, he did have something to get out of all of this. For starters, Spike himself. He had no illusions of suborning his loyalties, and he had absolutely no intention of gaining the lizard’s genuine friendship. The drake was just a pawn, a tool, but as it turned out, a useful one. Perhaps a profitable one if he pulled all this off.