The building. The Shade. The battle. Stone. Images and memories flashed through my mind at the sound of the city's name. Though Sinis was in control, I saw everything. The blood. His still body. Pan's tears.
I turned pale, falling to my knees in defeat. My fault. It's my fault.
"DEX!"
The scream pierced through the fog; it sounded like Pan, but I couldn't be sure. My fault.
"DEX! Listen to me! It's not your fault!"
I was unaware of mumbling my thoughts as she spoke. It didn't matter. The truth was, it was my fault. If I hadn't been brought to Equestria, if I hadn't been releasing chaotic energy, the Shades would have never existed. Then, Stone would-
Pain erupted on my left cheek, forcing my head to the side. The sudden attack drew me away from Stone. When I looked towards the assailant, I saw Panacea staring at me with tears in her eyes.
"Dex... stop it." She reached towards me and brought me into a hug. The scent of spring rain wafted from her mane, calming me enough to respond.
“He... he’s truly dead?”
“Y-Yes. I’m sorry. I c-couldn’t save h-him.”
Celestia’s voice reached our huddled forms. “None could save Stone at that stage. Do not blame yourselves.”
The sounds of silent mourning filled the hall, none wanting to disturb us. Thoughts of Stone filled my mind. Training, drinking, and relaxing after it all. His life couldn’t have been taken so easily, without meaning. Not wanting to ruin the moment, I spoke quietly to Pan.
“Tell me it was worth it. Tell me what happened to the citizens.” My voice shook, barely hiding my sorrowful anger. Tell me I didn’t sacrifice my best friend for nothing.
“They are safe. You and Stone got to them in time.”
She continued to embrace me in silence. Occasionally, a tear would fall from Panacea’s face, known only because I could feel them on my back. “And you?”
“I-I’m fine.”
“It’s my fault.”
“No, it’s not. You did what you could.”
“If I had-”
“Stop. It will never be your fault. Stone knew the risks.”
“Dex, thine blame is misguided. If ye truly wish fault, giveth to Discord.” Luna’s voice was calm and sympathetic.
I admit, I wasn’t the best at dealing with death. Throughout my life, I would play hopscotch with the stages of grief and dwell on anger, only to jump back to grief and play with blame. At that moment, I was furious.
“Discord.” My anger was unfounded, he had done nothing to cause Stone’s death, but he was an outlet and that was all I needed. “I’ll destroy him.”
“Do you think you can? Dex, I don’t want to lose you too,” Pan said. Her face filled with worry as I broke away from the hug and stood, my own set in a scowl.
“He’s a scourge. There’s no place in this world for his pure Chaos.”
“I can not allow you to go, Dex. You are dealing with a hard time right now. Rest and be with friends.”
“Celes-”
“I will not hear another word. I order you to rest.”
My emotions were a blur of self-hate, anger, and sadness. The very idea of resting irritated me, but I was sworn to her command and I would follow it. With Celestia’s order, I spun around to leave, finding the entryway free of obstacles. Pan followed after me, but there was nothing to say. A small part of me remembered that she had never seen my room and that is exactly where I was headed. It wasn't until I had entered and laid on my bed, when Pan finally spoke up.
"You made all this?" I knew she was trying to take my mind off Stone.
"Yeah." I propped myself up on my elbows to look at her. "Anything you want to know about?"
She looked over my inventions for some time, most likely trying to find something to talk about. It seemed she wanted to avoid the elephant in the room as well. "What is this?" she said, pointing to the Tesla Coil.
"It's a small tower of coiled wire. The energy added at the bottom is increased exponentially as it reaches the top, which then spreads out in the air. It was called a Tesla Coil."
Pan continued to look it over. "Was?"
"I'm not sure if there's an equivalent in this world or not, but a man named Nikola Tesla invented it." As much as I enjoyed explaining something I had fun making, I didn't have the energy in my voice.
"Oh..." She started to scan my room again.
"Pan, neither of us really want to talk about this stuff right now. You don't have to keep trying." I let myself drop back to the bed, mind awash in thoughts and memories. My eyes drooped of their own accord, telling me to sleep after so long. I heard Pan trot over to the bed. "It's big enough for the both of us."
The bed sank as she hopped on. "What will you do now?"
"Celestia told me to rest, and so I will." For today.
"That's good. You need it, Dex."
"You can stay here, if you want."
"Of course."
"Thanks."
---
Stone stood in front of me with an indifferent frown. He looked down and I followed his gaze, finding a window showing another me. I was in another town with Twilight. A Shade appeared and killed her. Then, I was in a bar with Riches. I watched as she was murdered for associating with me. Finally, I saw Panacea and I, being brought to Discord, the look on his face was one of hatred. As he forced Pan into all sorts of torture, I could watch no longer. Stone met my gaze and everything bled to white.
---
"Dex..." My eyes cracked open to see Pan inches away from my face. "Could you let go?" I noticed I had grabbed her in my sleep, forcing her to cuddle.
"Ah. Sorry." My arms were pulled away as I rolled to get out of bed. "Could you imagine what Stone would say?" Oh...
In my half awake state, I didn't remember what I had learned the previous day. My slip up instantly set the morning off on a somber tone.
"Yeah..." She hopped out of bed on the other side. Stretching each leg, she looked over to see my saddened expression. "Think of the good times, Dex. Please."
I joined her in limbering up before responding. "I know, I've dealt with a few deaths before..."
"I'm sorry," she said, then smirked at me. "Did you at least sleep well, cuddling with me?"
"Sorry to disappoint, but I didn't. I think grabbing you was a response to my dream actually." A knock came upon my bedroom door. "Come in."
Between Discord and myself, I was sure the princesses weren't sleeping as much as they used to, so it came as no surprise to see Luna entering. The fact that she was visiting me in my chambers was what bewildered me.
"Sir Dex, Panacea." She sounded like she was hiding or suspicious of being caught.
"Can I help you, Luna?"
A familiar weapon emerged from her mane, surrounded in her magic aura. "I have brought Discord's sword. Take it and go."
"What? Your Highness, Princess Celestia ordered Dex to relax."
"My sister told him to rest. He has rested." Exactly what I was thinking.
"Right. Thanks, Luna." I walked over and pulled the katana from her telekinesis, checking it over for problems.
"Dex! No, you need to rest more."
Turning to look at Pan, my expression grew determined. "I'm fine."
"If you won't listen to reason, I'm going with you."
"No. You have to stay here, Panacea. The last thing I need is getting you in danger."
"If I may?" Luna said. We quieted down and turned to her. "He won't be gone long, Panacea. Sir Dex, I want you to lure Discord here, where we will be waiting."
"Does Celestia know of this?"
"Not as of yet, no. After you leave, I will wait for half a cycle, then tell my sister. At that point, she will have to listen to me and gather the Elements."
"Sounds like a plan."
"I don't like this, Dex."
"I'll be safe, don't worry. I'm stronger than ever." At that, I strolled out of my room with my sword. I will fix this.
Guards positioned in key locations allowed me through without trouble. I assumed that Celestia had not told them I was forbidden from visiting Canterlot. Not wanting to see anyone, I took back hallways as much as possible. As I exited the castle, I avoided the entrance to the training grounds and Celestia’s personal tower.
Canterlot hadn’t woken up for the day, so it was easy to make my way through the streets. At one moment, I met an apple cart opening early and purchased a small pie for breakfast. It wasn’t better than Applejack’s, but the energy was necessary if I wanted to lure Discord. First, I had to call him, so I made sure the city was well away from me before using the sword.
Discord.
"Oh, hello brony! Where have you been, hmm?"
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~A/N~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Super ultra rare author's note, guys.
In case you missed my blog post, N64Fan has created a crossover with Dex and his character, Inventor, from Pistons and Ponies. He said it's a collab so I guess that means I'm kinda like a co-author, even though all I did was clean it up, add Dex's dialogue, and approve of it. Anyway, here's the link!