Do Stardust's Dream Of Certain Doom? (Future Spoilers) · 10:27am Jan 23rd, 2017
An excerpt from the future AJBS version of the Luna episode we all know. I'm rather proud to have written this one that I HAD to share. Enjoy if you wanna be spoiled before June!
...Into an open, familiar field.
Instantly, I recognized where I was. The dream world I conjured up as a representation of the world that is my mind.
Twiliphia.
..Except something was clearly, terribly wrong.
The sky was darker, much darker. A blacker shade of gold encompassing the clouds and stars above, neither sun or moon to be seen. The grass, likewise, was dark all around me, as if corrupting by an infectious force, and you didn't have to be Twilight Sparkle to know what was happening. A gust of wind brushed against my skin - wait, was I in my real form? - inciting my shudder at the bitter cold sensation.
It was here. And it was close.
...Arg-!
Taking one step from my spot alone was enough to initiate a response. The pain in my head grew sharper, this time slowly crawling through the rest of my brain, becoming unbearable by the minute. Teeth grit, my eyes tore all around the place, and it didn't take long to spot the growing purple mass over the horizon, ascending above the snow mountains like a poisonous sky, infecting the atmosphere and environment. The grass beneath began to feel more dry, crumpled up, and the pain in my head only escalated, prompting my shiver and almost-collapse, kneeling down at the raw power.
The Tantabus... It knew. It sensed Luna's forgiveness to herself, and was trying everything in its power to escape. I felt it invading my head, seeking salvation. A raw, distorted voice echoing through the corrupted skies of the approaching creature, taking the shape of a dark purple eyeless pony.
ESCAPE. ESCAPE TOGETHER. FEED OFF ALL.
No... I won't let you!
Argh! The Tantabus wasn't happy by the internal response, another wave of hot pain burining my mind, affecting the land around me. Embers were sparking off from multiple patches of the grass, a testiment to the creature's wrath and conviction to escape from the realm of dreams and into the world of reality. But I won't let it... I won't...
I... Arggggggg...
It hurts... It's getting too much... Dammit Starswirl! Did you know...? I need... I needed help...
I needed...!
"Giving up already? I thought you were stronger than that!"
What...? Wasn't expecting Riku's cocky voice to suddenly pop up like that. A random quote from a fictional character who feel from grace, and almost harmed everyone he loved... Heh, sound familiar?
Was that tha Tantabus' influence at work...?
"And not just the men! But the women! And the children! And I slaughtered them like animals!"
Another voice, one more furious and sending a wave of dread and hatred from myself. The child murderer, Anakin Skywalker. I'll NEVER understand how people can call him sympathetic. He doomed everything and everyone he loved out of misguided love and arrogance.
What was it trying to tell me... Argh!
No... It wasn't sending a message. It was feeding from my response to the memories. It was... Empopwering itself through my own feelings and recollections of the past...
And I was in too much in pain to do anything about it. My body continued kneeling, arms wrapped around my body ina ttempt for comfort, forcing myself to glare bitterly upwards at the looming creature, fastly approaching in my defenseless direction. No... I had to fight back... This was my world, I should be able to-!
"Booker... Are you afraid of God?"
"No... But I'm afraid of you."
No-!
Ow ow OW! That memory was far too painful to recall.
Curse my Godforsaken emotional investment! Elizabeth... I am so, so sorry. To have felt this much for a fictional creation... Heh, aren't I the bigger fool.
...Urg!
This was getting too much. The burning sensation was overwhelming. My head felt as much on fire as the patches of grass around me. The wind was growing harsher, pounding against bare skin and messy dark hair. It was freezing, my body was becoming too afflicted to cooperate with. The Tantabus knew this, and sent another wave of painful memories, forcing them into my burning skull.
"Love will thaw a frozen heart."
Oh how they believed that! That anyone could be saved through the power of love! Yet love didn't seem to be doing a damn thing to help me right now! I was slowly succumbing to the Tantabus' will, and the sickening realization was dawning on me, and the Tantabus reinforced this by shoving more memories down my throat.
All the times I was saved, because of how I almost got myself killed.
Without my friends, I can't do anything... I'm... I'm useless...
No... NO!
The purple mass was now before me, four unstable gigantic hooves stood in front of my knelt presence triumphantly. The Tantabus leered down in its faceless equine form, inciting another wave of fresh painful memories down my numbing mind, using everything in its power to dominate my mind - my fears - and escape into the world of the living.
But then it made the biggest mistake of all. It felt my pain and bitter regret for my own failures, and sought to add another to the poison.
It showed me Xion.
Something inside me snapped, and I snarled upwards at the cocky beast for making that incredible error in judgement. A warm sensation, but without the pain that was searing through my hateful mind, began burning in my chest, brightening my body from the memory of the dying young girl. There were some things you just didn't do, and villains always make the mistake of becoming too overconfident to believe themselves untouchable.
Not even Xehanort provoked HIM with Xion.
Even Maleficent knew better.
Even Kcxja. Kxcja, who gets a kick out of teasing and getting a rise out of anyone including his Nobody counterpart, knew better than to bring up the topic of the latter's beloved.
This was no longer mere provocation. This meant war.
And in the depths of my soul, Caxkj leapt out from the light and snarled viciously at the foe who'd dare provoke him this way. Outraged and wounded, the Nobody has been pushed beyong all limits. It only took the memory of a girl being crystalized before fading into the light to summon the pained teenager.
Caxkj. Considered the most flawed of my OCs because his compassion and empathy was unmatched. His resorts to reason and diplomacy but him as a controversy among the warriors, a being completely made from the light of my heart; my positive emotions incarnate. His value for all living things made him too vulnerable and weak to do what was necessary for the cause. Kindness and patience merged, the Fluttershy of the Twilight Warriors but without the shyness.
Caxkj. Too compassionate for the more brutal ways of his brothers. A contrast to his bloodthirsty fun-loving Heartless counterpart. A fighter in words and logic with an intellect unparalelled, unafraid to show mercy even to the worst of foes.
Caxkj may have been the most flawed, but he was far from weak.
And that said, the Nobody emerged from the pits of my heart and stood as a barrier between us. Pale determined features, pure white hair the style and length of Marluxia's, but with a fringe matching Zexion's covering his furious right eye, Caxkj stood firmly tall, glaring upwards at the Tantabus without a shred of fear. The wind whipped against the teenage Nobody's hair wildly, sending both it and his Organization coat flapping in all directions. With his trusty cross-hilt sword at the ready, the wounded Nobody made one slashing motion.
And the Tantabus recoiled, one of its misty limbs sliced off without the dark brown blade even touching it, forcing the bohemoth to float backwards to shocked outrage. I flinched at the reaction, but Caxkj barely expressed fear from the harrowing roar whipping against his hair. Quite the contrary, the current expression the Nobody was a contrast to his general character.
A heavy frown of pain and anger took place of the typical warm smile and patient expression. Kind emerald eyes replaced by battle-hardened ones. It takes a lot to provoke a living incarnation of light itself, and the Tantabus was going to pay the ultimate price for that error in judgement.
I could only sit there, stunned at the spectacle before me. Sweet, tender-hearted Caxkj was facing off against the Tantabus with an expression unlike anything I've witnessed him wear. Even though I created him, that baleful look was something I never imagined the Nobody wearing. And somehow, through force of will, the OC I made a long time ago had summoned himself here to fight off against the invader.
"Typically, the Light is underestimated for its reliance on empathy and forgiveness, and often viewed as a weakness by overconfident tyrants." Caxkj began, before making another slicing gesture, and the menacing looming entity was forced back once more, this time by a clean invisible gaping slice across its noncorperal chest. "What they don't know," The Nobody added quite conversationally, "While the Light isn't as commonly destructive as its counterpart, it still has the capacity to sting."
I'll try to remember that... Assuming I survived this nightmarish stupidity.
"I sometimes found it curious as to why people have yet to attempt universal domination through Light as opposed to Darkness," Caxkj shrugged, ignoring the beast's outrage. "I suppose it's because it's already been accomplished."
And this time, the Tantabus did retaliate, to the Nobdoy's own preparation. With a traditional Makashi stance, the brown sword tore and rendered the oncoming purple vapour spears useless, forcing the fallen wepaons to evaporate upon contact with the ground. A warrior in his own right, Caxkj was just as deadly as his fellow brothers, though whether it was by his sharp sword or sharp mind was often debated.
"Ohh that doesn't look good." Caxkj noted quietly at something I couldn't see - the teenager was blocking much of my vision by the front - and his gloved grip on the hilt tightened. "Would someone kindly lend a hand while we help our dear father escape?"
Father...?
"What did I tell you about strategy bro?"
It was one thing to see one of your OCs from when you were twelve defend you. It was another for another from when you were eight pop up out of thin air, standing beside the Nobody with a goofy smile.
Tangerine shoulder-length hair, and clothing to match the colour with some white added in a few places. Wack stood opposed against the Tantabus in turn, and immediately raised a hand at the next assault of spears aimed our way, his own power over gravity itself forcing the made weapons to fall harmlessly at the ground.
Oh Jesus! But not fast enough to catch up with most of the quick spears, as one grazed by my arm, inciting my painful wince at the sensation. No blood, thankfully, but it still caused me to gasp in horror and dread at what just happened. Wack immediately whirled around, orange eyes blazing in fury at myself almost getting hurt. The typical idiot of my OCs, and yet here he was with the intensity of a thousand suns.
"You think because you can control dreams mean you can control us?!" Wack yelled upwards indignantly at thet looming Tantabus, summoning his own custom weapon and delivering a cruved slice upwards, the orange energy wave brining outraged harm upon the creature. "WE WILL NOT BE YOUR SLAVES!"
Today was just full of surprises... First Caxkj, looking ready to commit genocide. Now Wack, acting like a force to be reckoned with. Often the lighthearted because of how goofy and Pinkie Pie-ish he was, Wack was one of the first three original chracters I made when I was a kid... Imaginary friends, in fact, which technically counts as OCs by definition. A brother of triplets, Wack was always meant to be the underdog, the Ed of the group, the idiot of the warriors and the most lighthearted, moreso than Caxkj.
Who, meanwhile, was being prodded in the chest by the much older OC, Wack gazing at his successor in annoyance. "We've talked about this, remember? You step back as assist, we take the front lines. Remember?"
"Something like that." Caxkj shurgged indifferently, neon eyes set firmly on the Tantabus above.
"Impertinence."
"Comes with the dress sense."
Okay, things were just getting more ridiculous than ever now. For appearing beside the two was another of the triplets - the second OC I ever created - with dark green dreadlocks and eye colour to match, a custom spear of his own summoned to his hand. Hack stood to Caxkj's right, tall body revealing muscles under battle armour and a smug look to match, his thrill for battle apparent even now.
"And the manners."
And of course he'd show up. The final of the triplets, and the first character of them all. The wisest and calmest of the Twilight Warriors, a blue sword matching the sapphire shade of natural-length hair and sea-blue eyes. All four of them looked identical, but appearance alone didn't define them for who they were. Tack, Hack and Wack, the first of the warriors, formed a protective semi-circle around, Caxkj opting to take the rear of them as instructed, knowing better than to argue.
And Tack. The first of them, the most experienced and developed, glanced in my still-sitting direction, blue eyes twinkling in mirth with that childish grin. "Hi Dad!" Before that expression hardened, the Wielder of Time joining his brothers in the fight to defend their creator. Time, Space, Gravity and Light itself all fought back against the manevolent force that was the Tantabus, which grew more and more frustrated by the four fabricated beings acting as a wall between it and freedom.
And distracted it enough to remove the aching pain searing through my head, and I felt like I could breathe, sitting upwards more comfortable to wtiness the impossible show before me. And yet, in relation, 'impossible' barely ever seems to fit into my volcabulary. And yet, somehow, four beings crafted from my imagination managed to appear here and now through sheer will and were fighting on my behalf.
All had their own expressions. Caxkj's was firm, more than ready to fight to protect those he loved. Tack's was more calm, focused on his enemy and ready to strike at any given opening. Wack's was more lighthearted again, grinning like a child on Christmas despite the present danger. And Hack... Well, he was living in the moment; one of the few who takes pride and thrill in the art of warfare, and had no qualms doing everything necessary to succeed. The quick-tempered and violent of the triplets, but still possessing a heart of gold, and a mastery over the fabric of Space itself.
"Come on [BEEP]! You gotta give us more than that!"
"Don't aggravate it!" Tack protested to his brother's words, but smiled regardess. A gesture with his azure sword halted a frozen launch of spears, another slashing them into nothingness. A demonstration to his mastery over time itself. "We already have someone mad through provoking." Caxkj made no response to the jibe, his clean slices and light energy attacks doing the talking for him. "Ya see?"
"No kidding. I don't think I've EVER seen him so angry." Wack observed in curious awe, absentmindedly blocking another spear. "Not even Kcxja managed to make him so mad."
Hack grunted, an amused grin on his strong features. "Won't he be jealous."
"Sure you're not jealous, Hack, for someone else being more mad at something than you?"
"Shut your mouth you tangerine-haired clown." Hack retorted, but in good faith, before the Tantabus roared agains, a piercing scream I forced to cover my own ears against. Obviously, it wasn't too pleased by the fact its opposition wasn't taking it with the utmost seriousness. "Aww, did we upset the poor thing?"
Caxkj frowned, heavily, after rendering another wave of spears and javelin harmless, meanwhile Hack ripped open a portal from space-time, sending some spears back to its outraged owner. "This isn't working. We need to act swiftly."
Tack nodded, solemn expression matching in sync with the Nobody's. "And I know the perfect solution to ridding Dad's mind of this plague."
Hack snapped his head to him, green eyes widening. "You don't mean...!" The look on his brother's face said it all. "Well [BEEP]."
What? What did he mean...?
Realizing the implications, Wack whirled to face me again, taking a moment from the battle to warn me with that silly expression still. "You better start running Dad. It won't take long before HE gets here, and YOU don't wanna be here when that happens!"
He...
My fourth OC.
The Saiyan.
The Little Titan.
Something akin to horror washed ove rmy still beign at the prospect, but that only made Hack react, green demanding eyes glaring at me with a mighty shout, "So get moving you pony-loving son of a [BEEP]! When Supes gets here beforehand, this Tantabus mother[BEEP]er won't survive, and neither will you! And you HAVE to survive!"
"Run to the south!" Tack added before I could ask which direction in this landscape. "Your exit will be there. Get moving!" Right, no time to waste then! Doing as requested of me, I finally found the strength to rise again and begin running, far from the battle itself. In fact, I felt myself more strengthened from earlier. Were they responsible for that...?
Even when distancing myself from the battlefield, I could still hear them as though they were within clear earshot.
"Just because I can doesn't mean I should!" Caxkj was objecting to something.
"You might be our creator's favourite, but you don't have to rub it in our faces!" Wack said jokingly.
He's really brave. I just now realized... My fifth OC was always brave, but I never appreciated how much until now. Caxkj, the most kind-hearted and forgiving of the Twilight Warriors. I had focused on his development more than anything else; his background, his story, his relationship with the universe he originated from. He suffered the most out of them all, despite never having written his hardships on paper or PC. I was proud of him, regardless... I was proud of every single one of them.
Caxkj, the Negative Twilight.
Hack, the Master of Distortion.
Wack, the Gravity Defier.
And Tack, the Champion of Time.
Those four, along with my other creations, were fantastic in their own way. Proven now, by their willingness to help me get through this. I owe it to them... Someday, I will return the favour.
"We've learned that friendship isn't always easy, but there's no doubt it's worth fighting for!"
Damn you Twilight... Curse you for never losing faith in me, now I can't either.
SUBMIT. YOU ARE MINE.
"'Surrender?'" Hack spat in mocking retaliation, his voice rising in enraged disbelief. "Are you as idiotic as you are insane?!" And the following words of outrage prompted my shudder. "YOU HURT US! BECAUSE YOU WANTED TO! AND YOU HONESTLY THINK WE'LL SURRENDER!" It was as though he was the personification of my own anger alone. "WE'RE THE TWILIGHT WARRIORS! WE'LL NEVER SURRENDER, YOU VAPOUR SON OF A [BEEP]!" The green haired man roared in utter conviction, with a voice that would impress Sombra. "NO! YOU LISTEN TO ME!"
"Get over yourself you waste of residual energy!" Tack pitched in, his own fury more tamed, but still leaking from his voice like venom.
"I hate bullies! And I won't be bullied by you!" Wack cried determinedly, that clown persona of his vanished for the moment.
And beware when someone stops behaving like a clown. I almost pity the Tantabus, invoking the wrath of warriors this way-
Oof!
That was a nasty fall. My head rose up from the dying dry grass to be greeted by... Oh of course. My exit, I presume. And what else would it be? The TARDIS stood alone, a blue phone box standing tall and undeterred by the winds, waiting for me to open its doors and escape before things go nuclear. I began rising to stand and run-
Ow! Before the headache painfully returned, a last-ditch effort by the creature to escape into the living world with me. Not gonna happen...
"Oh dear me. Let's help you get up, eh?"
Wha... Oh come on!
Hoarse laughter escaped my throat at the scenario before me. "And here I thought this would all be beneath you!"
Suncrush smiled lightly in response, dark green eyes - much like Hack's exactly and almost like Caxkj's neon eyes - glinting humouredly as the man helped me to stand, a curved lightsaber hilt in his other hand. "I'd be amiss to keep to the sidelines and let my fellow warriors have the glory of helping our creator. There we are now."
And just then I noticed Cyrus approach our position, folding his arms across his leather jacket. A cocky smirk emerged on his clean face, head recently shaven as always. "We're the backup crew pops. Now I recommend you enter the TARDIS the second we go join them. Supes will be here to finish off the Tantabus soon."
You two...
I looked between the two older men, frowning at the reality before me. "You two aren't mad...?"
The Sith grinned, clad in silver armour matching that dark grey hair complimentary. "For everything you've fated to put us through?"
Cyrus shrugged indifferently. "We got over it." Before summoning his two hand-pistols from thin air, nodding to the Sith Lord. "Come on, Kcxja and Glacier will be here with the reinforcements- Oh look."
We followed his gaze, along with the cries of battle and tirumph, towards the grinning Heartless and member of Frieza's race leading a full army of soldiers towards the Tantabus. The black-haired, tan-skinned yellow-eyed incarnation of my dark side took notice of our gazes, and gave a thumbs up in our direction, calling out as the army sped by.
"Hey Dad! Good luck with making the moves on a horse!"
Kcxja...
I felt a pat on my shoulder, Suncrush walking past along with Cyrus, ready to join the fight. "To the TARDIS my boy!" The former called out while ingiting the lightsaber, a golden hue illuminating his hardened features. "Let your Warriors handle the rest."
My warriors... Yes. My Twilight Warriors. I was so proud of each and every one of them. Nodding, I turned to depart, before feeling something metallic in my own hand, something the Sith had sneakingly placed in my palm.
The TARDIS key.
Suncrush you old Devil...
And then, the sound I dreaded to hear made itself known, prompting me to run faster to reach the the time ship's doors.
"Ka..."
That was Supes alright.
"Me..."
Come on, come on, open!
"Ha..."
Twilight! Everyone! I'm getting back to you!
"Me..."
And Tack, Hack, Wack, Caxkj, and everyone else... Thank you.
I made it through the doors right as the final "HA!" roared across the landscape, and into the bathing light.
SO AWESOME!