//------------------------------// // Ch:14 The Fires of Caerreyn (Crimson Flag) // Story: My Little Pony Dimensions // by PhantomSage21098 //------------------------------// The Doctor and The Mistress were looking through the scrolls Teresa kept in her library within Vorton. Seeing if the truth was there. The truth is that Jacob’s form from their world was really the son of The Doctor. Meanwhile, everyone found X-po’s parts and Jacob was reassembling him in the correct order while telling them stories of what happened in Equestria. “After all the things that happened in The Everfree Forest, we've told Mr. Rich what happened. Diamond Tiara felt a little guilty about that.” He was almost finished with the robot. “I’ve told Nyx we would be there for her. Some job we did. They're doing something to her.” “They’re or they have made her one of them,” Frost said, making Jacob's face sour. “That's terrible.” Cecilia said, “She sounded like a nice girl.” The human boy added the final piece and X-po sprung to life. “Oh, thanks. Your good at this.” X-po said. “I used to play with Lego in my past,” Jacob replied. “Ok.” X-po then turned and floated to the collection of items. “I see that you’ve gotten a few of the elements. Great. Really great. Now let’s focus on getting the rest before that Vorteck wannabe does.” “But what about Twilight?” Rainbow said. “Yeah, she is in the next world. Pick your teammates.” “I would pick The Doctor, but he’s busy at the moment,” Jacob said. “Was busy.” The Doctor said as he walked in. “We couldn’t find anything.” “Sorry about that. The library wasn’t organized.” X-po said. “That’s alright. So, we’re going where the TARDIS has never gone before?” “Sure, let's take the Tardis.” Jacob spoke in an excited tone, “I like the TARDIS, it’s cool.” “Bringing anyone else?” Damian said, nudging his shoulder against him. Jacob looked at everyone and thought of something. “I’ll take a fifth.” Damian lit up in excitement. “Damian, you’re coming.” “YES!!” Damian shouted, doing an arm thrust. They were about to disembark until they realized something. “We didn’t get the World Token from The Master.” The Gateway then sprung to life as The Mistress inserted the Token they’ve mentioned. “Oh, thanks. Come on, Blaze.” The Fire Mystic exhaled as he stood up. The team of five then boarded the TARDIS in an orderly fashion. Cecilia came along and shut the door behind them. The TARDIS took off and flew into the gateway. The Day After Everfree Memory The school bell rang, to dismiss class for today. The students ran out the door, like a stampede. All except for the last three who were accompanied by a sad, little, black unicorn wearing glasses. Jacob, while in his unicorn form, waited at the far end of the walkway and noticed that Nyx was a bit down. “Something wrong?” He asked. “She’s been like this all day.” Scootaloo explained, “Diamond Tiara and Silver Spoon gave her really mean looks.” “Must be because of yesterday.” “What happened?” Sweetie Belle asked. “A bit of trouble involving those two.” The human turned pony walked the filly back to Twilight’s castle. They didn’t speak on the way there, but when they trotted up the stairs, the colt spoke up. “Hey.” Nyx looked at him. “You know what ponies do when they’ve had an incredibly bad day?” She slowly shook her head. “Let go of the past and keep moving forward. Quote from a young inventor.” “Why would I keep moving forward?” “The past is beyond our control, but the future on the other hand. But first.” When they entered the castle, the unicorn began to tickle the little alicorn. He chased the filly through the halls until he shifted to his human form and snatched her up and hugged her. He looked at her face and saw her smile. “There we go. That’s what we like to see.” “Why could you watch out for me?” “Well, I think Twilight should. I read about it in the book about you.” A hoof tapped him on the back, he turned to see the purple alicorn. “Well, if it was written in a book or not,” She started, “We make our own story.” Jacob smiled and hugged them both. Twilight’s eyes snapped open as she heard the sound of a cell door slamming shut. Slowly getting, she looked around seeing that she was imprisoned in a cell, though she didn’t recognize anything. When she looked at herself, she noted that she was an anthropomorphic grey fox. She got up on two legs, looked past the bars, and noticed the guards at the end of the hall. They were too, Anthro foxes only red. They also wore uniforms that meant they were guards. One of them saw her and walked over. “Hey,” he called to the other guard, “She’s awake.” They stood in front of her. “Could you tell us how a grey, like you, got into this city?” The second guard said with a scowl “What?” Twilight said, “I don’t understand.” “Don’t play dumb with us!” The first guard raised his voice, scaring the princess, “You were the one responsible for bringing in those creatures we’ve found. Now tell us how did you and those things get in here?” Twilight was afraid for a second. The last thing she remembered was being taken away from her friends and blacking out. Then it came to her and spoke. “Were they wearing white masks?” The guards looked at each other, confused as to what she was talking about. They both looked back at her. “Muriden don’t wear masks.” The Second guard stated. Twilight only tilted her head. “What’s a Muriden?” “You should know. You snuck them in the city.” “I did no such thing.” “Then explain how we found you near the scene.” “I don’t know. All I remember was being taken away from my friends, the next thing I know I was in here.” The guards then changed their tone when they heard that sentence. “You were taken? By who.” “Po- people in porcelain masks. They took me and my friends and scattered them across… the world.” “Why would a group like that do that?” “That’s going to be hard to explain. But I can tell you that these guys aren’t very friendly. They’ll hurt anyone who stands in their way and the people they work for are worse.” The guards then left her. “You believe anything she said?” “Nah.” Said the second guard, “Greys will say anything to get out.” She couldn’t believe what she heard. This world is divided by race differences. She needed to get back to her friends, but first, she had to get out of her cell. Thinking for a second, she then tried to use her magic to levitate the keys to her. It took a few tries, but she managed to get them. She tried out each key until she finally found it. When she opened the door, the place shook from an impact tremor. “What was that?” she asked as the guards nearby were scrambling to get to their posts. She snuck through the corridors, to find the exit. She was then greeted by a red fox crashing down from above. “Ow.” The fox groaned, sounding familiar. He got up as the dust cleared. She saw that he was wearing a trench coat that was familiar as well. “That thing is controlling Emiline, I gotta help her.” “Jacob?” The fox swiveled his ear in her direction and turned to face her. “Twilight. You’re ok.” He walks up and hugs her. “What’s going on out there? Is it the sins?” “Well, yes and no.” A few minutes earlier The TARDIS zoomed through the vortex; everyone was hanging on due to the ship rattling about the place. Then with a large bump, they fell to the floor. Jacob, Damian, and Cecilia were laughing while the others gave a chuckle or didn’t. “Crimson Flag. Only did brief research about it on the way. This world is inhabited by Anthro foxes. The guy that made this world is named Virmir. I checked out his work and he’s really, times 1000, great.” “You must like him to know that.” Burt said. “Well, I only saw a few pics, but still.” The group then left the time machine/space ship and entered a medieval city inhabited by red foxes. “Welcome to Caerreyn. This is the major city that’s ruled by the reds. There is a neighboring kingdom in the forest. They’re grey foxes, and these two are the worst of neighbors. Neither of them can get along.” “For what reason?” The Doctor asked, “They shouldn’t be divided by their colors.” “That’s what I was thinking, Doctor.” “If they hate each other, then why isn’t there a war?” Damian asked. “One of the races has to do something to get each other’s nerves.” Damian was confused by what he said. “He means that one of these fox species has to do something to declare it.” Burt clarified. “Like assassinations of the leader for example.” Damian understood and nodded. “And that’s what the leader of the grey species, Julien, did just that.” Jacob said, “He kidnapped the queen of this city so he could show an example of these guys. Many years ago, he found an ancient staff in an underground tomb, it has this power to change the foxes into feral foxes.” “That’s powerful.” Cecilia comments, “It’s like my powers.” “Yeah, and I think we’re around the time where his son, Lucian, is away. At this moment, he’s coming back with news about this power. It can be reversed. Meanwhile, there’s a bit of a problem.” “Is the leader of the greys back and is turning these guys feral?” Blazleo asked Jacob who was quiet for a moment until he pulled out a pair of headphones and put them on. “Hit the nail on the head there.” Jacob pushed play on a music app playing World in My Eyes (Cicada Mix), by Depeche Mode. Activating the compass app, the arrow pointed towards the castle in the center of the city. The group then walked down the street, but before The Doctor and Damian joined them, he put on a perception filter on him and the demon. So, no one would be suspicious. Jacob and Cecilia walked in front of a window, their reflections showed that she was a snow fox and he was a red fox. They see that everyone is going about their day as they stroll through the street. Looking ahead, they noticed a few guards going down an alleyway. “This must be where Muriden has gotten in.” “What are Muriden?” Cecilia asked. “They’re like giant rats. About the size of beavers.” They follow the guards, only to be stopped by some that were at the entrance. “Sorry sir,” Said the right guard, “this area is off-limits. We can’t allow civilians through.” The Doctor then snuck his psychic paper to Jacob and he showed it to them. “Sorry, young man. I didn’t know you were from the academy.” The guards then stood aside. The group then walked into the area, seeing that it was littered with broken weapons and dead, rat-like creatures. “I guess these are the Muriden.” Damian said. “Yeah, even that thing,” Jacob said as he took off his headphones and pointed at a giant, three-headed one, dead under a bridge. “Oh my.” Cecilia said, “Something tells me they don’t come in that big.” “You’re right.” A grey fox with glasses and a staff said as he walks up to them. “But how did a few civilians in here.” “I’ll explain that later. My name is Jacob and these are my friends.” “Mage Kesnar. Now please leave the premises.” “Why, you found the culprit?” “Maybe. We took her to the castle for questioning. Though the guards won’t be too friendly.” “Why?” Cecilia asked. “She is a grey fox.” “Like you?” Burt said. “I’m a red fox with grey fur.” “That is easily confusing.” Jacob said, “No offense.” “None taken. Now, please lea-“ His sentence was cut off when a few muriden scurried out from the nearby tunnels. The team that was there tried to catch them. “Uh. We’ll leave you to your work.” The group then left and hiked to the castle. “Because she’s gray fox?” Damian said, “What do these guys have against gray foxes? That seems kinda racist.” “They only hate them because they’re different than them and have nothing in common. They hate each other more due to these guys cutting down their forests. No matter what they say, the red foxes will continue to deforest their home.” “That seems a little unfair.” The Doctor said aloud, “This is just like the rainforests. Humans are cutting them down to make homes when they’re unaware there are homes being destroyed.” They took a short cut through an alleyway. “After they chop down the trees, what’s next? Slavery?” There was a sudden flash of light, blinding them temporarily. But when it dimmed down, they found that their red fox friend had become feral. He stood in his clothes, which were now bigger than him, on all fours. They heard laughing coming from the exit ahead of them, they saw a figure standing there. “Is there something funny?” “Oh, I’m afraid there is.” The figure said, “Seemed that your friend was smart like everyone else now he’s just a dumb animal.” “Well, Julien,” Jacob said, surprising the group. “This dumb animal is gonna teach you something when he is back to his normal self.” “Well, he can still talk. That’s unexpected.” Cecilia puts her hand on the little fox’s head, and he poofs back to normal. “What the heck are you doing here? The staff or Emiline?” “I’m here for my daughter, you fool. She’s family after all.” “Yeah, but not the thing inside her. Right?” “Yes, tha- Wait. How did you-“ Julien was surprised to hear what he said and was cut off by The Doctor. “What’s inside her?” He spoke. “Some kind of being that’s using her as a vessel,” Jacob replied. “How did you know that?” Julien spoke up, “Who are you?” “My name is Jacob, these are my friends, and I met your daughter in the dream realm. I encountered this being while I was there.” Julien didn’t know what to say, but he walked up to them. Sweat was dripping down their foreheads, though they weren’t nervous. “Don’t play mind games with me. You don’t know anything!” “You’re right, I don’t. But I do know there are greater forces at work in this world. You should’ve thought of something other than kidnapping the queen. Hey, is it getting hot around here, or is it just me?” “Odd, it wasn’t like this before.” Without warning, a rope snagged the group and flung out with incredible force. Julien wasn’t ensnared by the rope so he left without saying anything. Meanwhile, the group was being hung upside down, above the street. People were staring and were confused as to the scene that was displayed. “Well, well, well.” Said a voice from the crowd. Stepping into the open was The Sin of Wrath. “Look who came for the BBQ.” They saw that he was a foxlike the populace, but he was hiding his missing hand. They noticed his fur pattern had a fiery design around the limbs. “A Bar-b-que?” Damian perked up, “Oh boy!” “Damian, we’re on the menu.” Blazleo clarified, making the little demon lower his ears. “Now hush. I’m getting hangry.” Wrath said. “Hangry?” “Hungry and angry.” Wrath then snaps his fingers and a large bonfire ignited beneath them. “A perfect ending for you heroes.” “Uh, can I be counted as an anti-hero?” Damian asked. “DON’T COUNT!!” A guard then points a spear at the sin’s face. “Stop.” He said, “In her majesty’s name.” The sin just rested his fingers on the blade and melted in an instant. “You sure you want to fight me?” More guards then arrived and aimed their weapons at him. “You’re all fools.” The guards then attacked the fox, but their weapons disintegrated after a few moments. They stood there, shocked. “Boo.” Everyone in the area then ran for their lives. Wrath was too caught up in the moment to notice that Jacob dropped a magic grenade into the fire below the group. “Yeah, this is gonna hurt,” Jacob muttered before the grenade exploded, sending them flying towards the castle. Wrath slowly turned around, seeing the heroes weren’t there. His face slowly turned into a scowl, balling his hands into fists, and his fur moving like fire. He then screamed in rage and stomped the ground so hard, that he made a tremor. Present “So, that’s what’s going on.” “Don’t you know why they’re doing this?” Twilight asked. “They’re looking for an item called a power element. Items of great importance.” “Don’t you know what it is?” “Yeah, it’s a golden staff. It’s somewhere in this castle.” A crash came from down the stairs. “Meanwhile Wrath is now a walking torch, ready to toast us. Let get going.” He then grabbed her hand and ran up the stairs. The group rejoined after getting blown through to the structure. “This way.” The Doctor leads the group through corridors as Wrath storms after them. They went through a door that leads to a dark rotunda with only a pillar of light in the center. They all saw a little grey fox hovering in the air, asleep. Jacob recognized her right away. “Emiline?” Jacob said, then her eyes snap open, showing her irises to be glowing red. All three of them. “Ok. Three eyes. That’s new.” The little girl then began to shift and change, growing claws and horns and in size. “EVERYBODY OUT!!” The group rushed out of the room as Emiline broke free. As the group ran from the girl, she kept changing to look more draconic. They ran past Wrath but he didn’t know about the dragon fox. “Trying to escape, are we?” He spoke. “Not from you, from her,” Damian said as he points at the dragon. She then whacks Wrath out the window, sending him flying towards where Julien and Kensar are battling. The sin created a small impact crater when he landed, the fighters stopped and they saw Wrath. The sin sat up, looked in the direction of the castle then let out a scream, along with a geyser of fire. The ground beneath him cracked throughout the city, making buildings collapse and catch fire. Meanwhile, the crew of an airship overhead witnessed the chaos within the city. One of them was a white who spoke to a grey one next to him. “You want us to go down there?” He said to him. The grey fox looked at the other white one who appeared to be the captain. “Can you do it, Captain?” He asked. “Arrrrr, better give the wheel to me, laddie.” The captain said as one of the crewmen stepped away from the wheel, allowing the captain to take control. The ship flew into the city limits, not knowing what troubles lie within. Back at the castle, Emiline became occupied with the guards that were fending her off. The group has used this opportunity to escape the pursuit. Damian and Jacob looked out the window to see the city ablaze. “Dang, it’s a warzone out there,” Jacob said. “Sweet,” Damian commented, receiving a bonk to the head from the red fox. “All that from Wrath?” Twilight asked, “He must be really mad.” “He’s easily mad,” Cecilia added. Jacob pulls out his tablet as he upgrades the damage of his revolver at the pack-a-punch. “Ok, we got the staff. Now we just need to get out of here.” “What do you know about it, Jacob?” Blazleo asked. “Not much is known about it, but it does contain a power that you guys seen some time ago. Back at the alleyway.” “What kind of power do you call that?” The Doctor Said, “All he did was de-evolve you.” “There are also other things it can do, but like I said, nothing much is known about it.” Jacob looks at his tablet, the compass showing the location of the element. “Thanks to all that running, we’re close.” “Finally.” Damian groaned, “My feet are killing me.” “You’ve been floating the whole way,” Cecilia said. The group walked down a corridor that leads to a door. The compass arrow pointed at the door, indicating that the staff was there. They would go through them, but an odd looked fox wearing a hood was blocking their path. “Excuse me, sir. Could you please let us in?” The fox then began to tower over them, black tentacles reveal themselves from under his cloak, and his eyes glowed red. Everyone with weapons readied themselves. The monster lunged a tentacle at the Doctor, but he used a sonic frequency to break the window, sending shards at the creature. That proved to not be effective. Jacob shoots at the enemy with his assault rifle, it was doing a little bit of damage to it, I think. Without warning, it grabbed them all. They seemed helpless at that time, but the Mystic wasn’t. Smoke sizzled from the tentacles that held them, making the creature drop them. It held up its tentacles, seeing they began to solidify and fall to pieces. “Cecilia, what happened?” “It can’t touch us. If it does, we’ll hurt him.” “Let's help the others.” They quickly touched the other tentacles, releasing their friends. The beast then grew back its tentacles. “We got to touch his head, the rest of you distract it.” Damian uses his tendrils to attack and Burt uses his berserk strength. They fended off the enemy so that they could get to its head. While that was happening, the Doctor used his sonic screwdriver to open the door, it got the monster’s attention. Both the Mystics touched the thing’s head, the monster then calcifies and falls to pieces. “That was intense.” The group entered the room and found the staff. It was solid gold, with a winged serpent wrapped around it. At the top, it extended its wing with ruby eyes staring at them. The Doctor walked up and took it. “That thing does put evil in evil staff.” Blazleo said. “Looks awesome.” Damian commented, “Can we leave now?” Jacob saw a fox symbol on the wall. Emiline, get away!! Theta Vraigus, come to me!! Jacob blinked in amazement, he witnessed the past of this world and met the true villain. “We can’t leave.” “Wait, what?” “Jacob’s right.” Cecilia said, “The sin is still here. He’ll do all sorts of bad things.” “Yeah, we don’t walk away.” The Doctor spoke, handing the staff to Jacob. Back outside, Wrath was fighting the foxes that were defending the city, even Julien. They were holding out alright. During the fight, Wrath gained some 4th-degree burns on certain parts of his body, the cracks gave a fiery glow. The fight was going all out. Fireballs blasting here and lightning striking there. It was really a war and it seemed that the sin was winning due to his opponents getting exhausted. “Give up, you are outmatched.” The sin gloated, “I’ll let you live if you tell me where the element is.” “What are you going to do with the staff?” Lesnar asked. “You’re not going to know about thy plans.” Wrath then raised his arm and created a ball of molten lava. “If you won’t tell me, then you’re no use to me.” “Oi!!” Jacob shouted a few feet away from behind Wrath. He turned around to see the group, but mostly the boy holding the staff. “Looking for this?” He twirled the relic for a moment before stopping. “The element! GIVE IT TO M-“ The sin was then blasted from behind by Julien, leaving only the lower half his body, falling to the ground. “Well done, young man.” Julien said, walking to them, “What did he want with it?” “He needs it to merge other dimensions. That may sound crazy, but it’s true.” “It does sound crazy. But how can I trust you?” “I don’t know. But I do know that Wrath isn’t down just yet.” Julien turns around to see the sin was standing back up, his upper body completely regrew. Though his eye was not in the sockets, just a burning glow. “Hey, how come you didn’t regrow your hand!?” “SHUT UP!!! SHUTUPSHUTUPSHUTUP!!! SHUT UP AND DIE!!!!!” Wrath shouted as he bursts into flames and charges at them. Without warning, Emiline swooped up the sin and dropped him into a barrel of water which quickly evaporated. “Hmm. That could be his weakness.” Jacob then felt something missing, he looked to see that the staff was gone. “Uh oh. He swiped it.” As Emiline landed, Wrath bursts out of the barrel and aims the staff at her. Jacob's eyes widen from this. "Emiline, get away!!" “Theta Vraigus, come to me!!” Emiline collapsed to the ground, writhing in pain. Kesnar quickly acted, casting a spell to restrain her. Julien assisted with this action. They all bore witness as the dragon began to split into two. One side was black while the other was white as snow. After a few moments of painful roars and screams, they became separated. Emiline, the white dragon, recovered from the recent dilemma and looks to the grey fox that was staring right at her. “Lucian.” She said, hugging him. But the dark half stood up and was about to attack the fox-gon. But received buckshot to the face. It staggered back and landed on Wrath. “Boy, this is not his day,” Damian said. The dragon struggled to get up, but Wrath had an impossible grip on it. His fingers were driven deep into it, which should have been impossible. Legends say that the dragon’s scales were impenetrable. But that didn’t stop him. He lifted up the dragon and melted it into magma which then rolled over his body, reforming him into something bigger. The lava then solidifies, making the Sin 15ft tall. “This is the end for you!!” Wrath became a mix of his fox form and the dragon he melted. Become a fiery monster. “Ok, I think the elemental keystone will come in handy,” Jacob said as he and Twilight began shooting with magic blasts. The shots only seem to fizzle out as they hit the sin. “That won’t do us any good.” “I know a few spells that may slow him down,” Twilight said. “Get to casting them! Everyone, aim for the jewel on his chest!” They then charge at Wrath as Twilight cast a spell to propel geyser of water at him, temporarily extinguishing the creature. It made stiff movements as it tried to attack. Damian uses his tendrils to whip at the jewel and Kesnar shot blasts, making only a few cracks. As that happened, a few chunks of obsidian fell off the sin and a few of the fires in the city went out. Wrath then ignited, sending the fighters flying away. He waved his hand and summoned a new species of corrupted, it was big, obese, carried two maces that made a rattling sound and wore a loincloth. Its mask was chipped and cracked. Around its neck was a baby bib. In a deep groggy voice, the creature spoke its name. “Great Child.” A few regular Corrupted appeared and charged in as the big baby waddles behind them. Jacob rode on Cecilia, who has shifted into a giant, four-legged, wolf. He uses his rifle to shoot the enemies, while Lucien does the same with Emiline, providing air support. He shot fireballs at the Great Child. Once the lesser enemies were gone, Wrath stomped at them, spitting lava from his maw. He kept missing them and didn’t see the oncoming water barrel that was thrown by Blazleo. Wrath then lost his heart again and Julien took the shot at him and the same results from before happened again. Wrath then regained his fire, but only it was way hotter. It sent a shockwave throughout the city, sending Twilight into a wall, knocking her out cold. “Twi!” Jacob shouted as Emiline picked her up before the flames got to the unicorn. “This world shall burn with you!!” Wrath stomped again, and an elemental keystone rolled onto the battlefield. The Doctor activated it, giving Lucian, Jacob, and Damian the water element. Then together, they unleashed the flood onto Wrath. They all saw that he began to shrink, the fires in the city all went out as he was reduced to a crisped victim, shivering in the cold. He grasped on to the staff as the group all gathered to see what had become of the enemy. He then solidifies into obsidian and crumbles to pieces. “Anger sure is a dangerous emotion.” Kesnar said, adjusting his glasses and picking up the staff, “We have to control it or it’ll control us.” Emiline gently pushes Jacob with her head to get his attention. Once he turned around, she nuzzled him. “You came.” She spoke. “What else was I going to do?” Jacob said, petting the dragon/fox. Julien and Lucian looked confused at the two. “How do you know him, Emiline?” Julien asked. “I think that’s something I can explain.” World: Dark Dimension Starlight Glimmer had some difficulties with the element she was sent to retrieve, so she came back to the temple to do some research about the universe she was assigned to. Then, without warning, an earthquake shook the whole place. Some debris of the temple fell and large cracks appeared on the ground outside. Starlight held onto everything with her magic for a moment until the quake finally stopped. “What was that?” she asked as Lust came in, though he changed his outfit. Now he’s wearing his regular robes. “A sin has fallen. This happened before.” “When?” “Before we met, he defeated Sloth in the catacombs of an abandoned castle.” “So, when one of us is defeated, this place becomes unstable.” “And the more disfigured the Corrupted look.” He stood aside to reveal that a corrupted, though its clothes were starting to look tattered, its skin looked a bit paler, its mask is starting to chip, and big, black blisters grew around the arms and hands, along with discoloration of the veins. “This is why the prince needs to be stopped. Get back to finding the elements. Kronus will be in one of his moods.” Back with the group, the city was recovering from the blaze they had. All the foxes that have been feralized are now returned to normal. The Queen, Avelina, rewarded the heroes after saving the city. “We thank you, heroes, for protecting our city.” She said, wearing her armor. “Very welcome, Avelina, but why the heck did you lock up Julien?” Jacob asked. “Yes. The perpetrator was fighting him as well.” Lucien added. “Your father was the cause of all this, grey!” A fox said with a raised voice. “Bryce,” The Doctor said, “quit pointing fingers at the guy who only came for his daughter. You think family is a crime?” “He declared war by kidnapping the queen.” “Yeah, he may have done that,” Jacob said. “But he wasn’t in cahoots with the Sin or his master. The reason is quite obvious.” “He must be punished.” “There are bigger things than racism. So, PUT ASIDE YOUR DIFFERENCES AND WORK TOGETHER TO HELP STOP THESE PSYCHOS!!” “Enough!!” The queen shouted, “Sir Bryce, he is right. Though our quarrels with the Greys may have been on terrible terms, they won’t listen to us after what has happened at their home.” “But they’ll listen to him, won’t they?” Cecilia asked. “Yeah, isn’t he king there?” Blazleo added. “I am,” Julien said as he walked in. Bryce was surprised when he walked into the room. He reached for his sword, only to find it gone from its scabbard. Then he sees that Jacob was holding it with a ticked off look on his face. “Don’t even think about it.” He said, as Damian floats next to him and gives him a high-five. “What? You didn’t notice that Damian snuck out and let the Julien out of his cell.” “Clever boy.” The Doctor muttered. “Now,” Julien began, “they will listen, but will have some negative thoughts about it.” “They’ll need to listen.” Avelina said, “We’ve all witnessed it today. This foe wielded powerful magic that none of us have ever seen.” “Vraigus and another were planning on resurrecting some kind of colossus that came when the dragons were around,” Jacob explained. “How do you know that?” Julien asked. “Whenever I see a symbol of a sword or something, I get a vision of the past or future. But let's not get into that.” “Of course.” Avelina said, “Sierra and Lucien, go with these heroes. We will remain here and prepare for what’s to come.” As Lucien and Sierra pack for the journey, Jacob wanted to explore the castle. Thinking to himself about the encounters from before. The woman from the Doctor Who world before he got knocked out. “If these guys are named after the black zodiac. She must be The Withered Lover.” His foot then stepped on something sharp, making him scream in pain and fall back onto the floor, grasping his foot. Twilight rushed in to see the grey kid on the floor and help him up. “Thanks, Twi.” He applied bandages to his foot. He looked around the corridor to see rose vines overtaking the place, the roses were white and wilted. “What’s going on down here?” Twilight asked, “And how are these flowers still alive?” “I don’t know. And I’m fine too by the way.” They walked down the hall, towards a door. The two forced it open, breaking some vines that were holding it shut. A wall in the room the door leads to broke down and a giant rose serpent peaked in to look around. The creature was like a giant rose, the body was the stem and the petals were its head along with a giant skull on them. It looked around to see who entered, but the duo was hiding where it couldn’t see them. “That thing must be working for The Withered Lover,” Twilight said quietly. “Thinking the same thing.” He said in the same tone. The creature looked away and the two snuck through a door leading out. They kept walking but a vine grabbed Twilight’s leg and pulled her back, making her fall to the floor. The rose serpent crashed in, roared, and pulled Twilight into its gaping mouth. The duo began shooting magic beams and shots until it finally withered away. Twilight got up and stood next to her friend. “Ok, why did that feel familiar?” A token roll towards the two. Jacob picks it up and sees that both sides were different. Like a quarter. Each shows symbols of different cities. “Heh, I know these worlds.” He then pockets the token. “We’ll go there next, but right now. I need a nap.”