//------------------------------// // 25. Confessions // Story: The Symbiote // by SpyroForLife //------------------------------// As Celestia predicted, the following days were not enjoyable. But she and the princesses did what needed to be done. They told Equestria everything. Well, perhaps not quite everything. While Twilight was honest with her subjects about being bonded to Venom, she didn't tell them that they were responsible for the massacre in Fillydelphia. But she was honest about everything she could be. How she met Venom. What the Life Aura Center has been doing to its patients. Who the symbiotes were and how Riot's team planned to move forward and live in Equestria with their new partners. There were countless questions to answer. There were reports to fill out and investigations to supervise. Celestia and Twilight were both often being asked to talk to the families of the victims, and it was emotionally draining on both of them. But they would be kind during such meetings, offer their condolences, and wouldn't argue against any of the accusations or insults thrown their way. It was understandable that so many ponies were hurting after this. They would be there to listen, apologize, and promise that this will never happen again. Celestia ended up taking over the bulk of the administrative and legal work, as she was very experienced in handling these matters. She only asked that Twilight help get Blazing Aura ready for his trial and that she take some time to herself as well. Blazing, however, was in no state to appear before a court. And it seemed that he wouldn't be for a very long time. With only a few hours in Blazing's body, Riot had managed to severely atrophy several of his organs and a good amount of his muscle tissue, consuming as much as he could to keep up the strength to fight back against Twilight and Venom. The battle with Scorn pushed him to the limits. Blazing was absolutely starved and dehydrated by the time Riot was separated from him, and was delirious on top of going into shock. He was stabilized at the Baltimare hospital and would be kept there until he was deemed fit enough to move to one in Canterlot. But though he wasn't at immediate risk for dying, he seemed to have lost the will to live. He didn't eat or drink anything offered to him. He didn't move to clean himself or use the restroom. He ignored everyone who attempted to talk to him. He just laid in his bed, alone in a room with guards posted outside 24/7, and stared up at the ceiling, mumbling to himself. Twilight tried to talk to him, but he was lost in musings, talking about what-ifs and how great the world could have been. Occasionally he would whisper Riot's name and beg him to come back. Venom called it a serious case of host dependency on a symbiote. It often happened when one of his kind forced another creature into subservience to them. The host's broken mind coped by clinging desperately to the idea that their Klyntar partner appreciated and relied on them. Tearing the symbiote away only breaks the host further. Venom wasn't sure Blazing could ever come back from his condition. Even with Twilight hovering right over Blazing's face, touching his shoulder and trying to speak to him, he looked right through her. So she made the decision to have him moved to a mental health hospital as soon as he was able to, and hopefully the doctors there would be able to get him the help he needed. If he recovered, then a trial could be held. Until then, she didn't feel comfortable making him defend himself in court. She wrote a letter to send to Celestia, sitting beside Blazing as she did. When she was done and sent it off, she stood and gave the other a final examination. Since he wouldn't eat, he was being fed and hydrated intravenously. It was already taking its toll on him. He looked thin and pale. “I'm not forgiving you, but I hope you come back from this,” she said, brushing a bit of his mane out of his eyes and adjusting the pillow under his head. Then she walked away. “We aren't alone.” Twilight paused at the sudden clarity of his words. She turned and looked back at him. He had turned his head toward her. His eyes were still wide and troubled, but they were aimed at her. “What do you mean?” she asked. “The others may have betrayed us, turned against their glorious leader, but one. One is loyal. One will always be loyal. And he got away. And he'll come for you.” Blazing broke into frenzied laughter, and Twilight tensed when she saw his heartbeat spike on the monitor. She hurried over to him, making him lay back. “Calm down, you're going to hurt yourself-” “You'll be sorry when our most dedicated soldier comes back for you!” Blazing shouted, grabbing her around the neck. She could have easily broken out of his hold, but she didn't, staring into his manic eyes. “Carnage will make you suffer!” Her blood ran cold as Venom seemed to shiver. Then the guards rushed in and quickly got on either side of Blazing, yanking him away from Twilight and lifting their spears. “I'm okay, he didn't hurt me,” Twilight said hastily, backing away. “Don't hurt him, he's harmless. Just... having an outburst.” She couldn't deny how ruffled her feathers were after that, though. While the guards got Blazing to lay back and calm down, she moved quickly toward the door. As soon as she was through it, she took off running. Carnage won't be a threat, will he? If he does come after us? Riot may have been old and physically powerful, but Carnage was bred to be the perfect soldier. He's taken hosts on many different worlds and used them to become stronger, and throughout all our battles, he always had the highest death count. He's ruthless, savage... and smart on top of that. He's manipulative and cruel. If he were to confront us, it would be a difficult battle. He fights dirty. I dread having to face him. But you know what? Venom slid some tendrils out of their body to wrap affectionately around Twilight's neck and across her withers. He still won't be a match for us. Me and you, we... we can do anything. When the time comes, we'll find him, and we'll destroy him like we did Riot. So I take it he won't be into the friendship thing? Heh. Not at all. He has no capacity for love or sympathy. In a way, he's even more dangerous than Riot. It was only a matter of time until he overthrew Riot anyway, as he found Riot's methods to be poorly planned and slow. No, we likely won't be able to get through to him. We can try, but if we fail, we'll do what we have to do. Twilight nodded in understanding and slowed to a trot, but she still wasted no time getting out of the hospital. Now that she had written to Celestia about Blazing's condition, she supposed she needed to follow the next part of Celestia's instructions. Take some time to herself. She and Venom agreed to fly home, and she opened her wings, taking to the air. Up high, with only the clouds around them and no one to overhear them, Venom showed more of himself, draping his head across Twilight's face and giving a deep sigh. “Finally, some time to ourselves,” he said. “What will we do with it?” “I'm thinking we just go back home... and go to my spa room,” Twilight replied. “So I can just dunk myself into a hot tub and stay there all day.” He chuckled. “Sounds pleasant.” They were quiet for a while, just watching the ground pass far below, content with each other's presence. But Twilight was also lost in thought, and finally she said, “So um, I've been wanting to talk to you about something.” “Yes?” “A few days ago, back when, you know, I had just been stabbed by Riot and you bonded with me again. There was this moment, when you were holding my face and looking at me...” She started blushing, ears laying back in embarrassment. “No need to be shy, say what you need to say.” “It's just... well, I think we both felt it, didn't we?” “Felt what?” “How much we care for each other.” She smiled when she felt the tiniest coils of apprehension from him. But he didn't shirk away, instead moving his face in front of hers and subtly moving their wings in a different direction. She followed, landing on the closest cloud and sitting. He formed more of his body outside hers, cupping her cheeks in his palms. “You mean when I was looking at you like this, thinking about how happy I was that I had gotten to you in time?” “Yeah. And I nuzzled your cheek, like this...” She leaned in, softly brushing her lips along the side of his face. His skin shifted under her touch, pressing ever so slightly back against her. “And I felt a connection with you I've never felt for anyone.” He tilted her head a bit as he gazed at her. “And I felt what you wanted to do, but we had business to finish with Riot, didn't we?” Her blush spread. “We did. So we suited up and got to it. But... I think we had unfinished business too, didn't we?” He wasn't able to blush, but she could feel the heat in his body, how it glowed in his face and hands. He gave her a wide smile. “Did we?” There was no doubt in her mind what she had been hoping for that day. So Twilight set aside her reservations and closed the distance between them, kissing him. She was worried he wouldn't feel the same way, but then he gathered her close, kissing her back. It was electric, tingles going down her spine that echoed through Venom's own body, and they felt each other's pleasure in a feedback loop that intensified it further. The world around them stood still and all they were aware of was each other. But as much as she liked it, Twilight soon moved away, needing to catch her breath. She stared at the other, surprised that she had done that. He stared back, then slowly licked his lips off. “You're delicious,” he teased. She lightly smacked his shoulder. “And you taste like death.” He smirked. “Oh, you don't mean that. You seemed to rather like my taste.” She giggled and looked away. “Heh, well, you certainly taste... unlike anything else in Equestria.” “Alien. You mean I taste alien.” “...Right.” She pulled him in for another kiss, and this one was much slower and more intimate, as they explored each other's lips and just enjoyed the warmth between them. And even when they leaned apart to let Twilight breathe, she would rest her forehead against Venom's and just smile at him. His hands moved down to clasp her hooves, and she felt all his emotions across their bond. He was actually a little nervous, experiencing completely new desires and feelings, but she reassured him that he could feel however he wanted to. She felt his admiration for her, his trust, and finally... Twilight's heart beat faster, both of them realizing at the same time how much they really meant to each other. It may not have been that long since they met, but they both felt it... they were meant for each other. “If you'll have me, I want to be with you for the rest of our lives,” Venom said, more serious than she's ever heard him. “And I want to be with you too,” she replied softly. She leaned forward and he embraced her, running his fingers through her mane. “I love you.” She knew it was the first time someone had ever said that to him. For a brief moment he was confused and anxious, also fearful. Then he felt her sincerity, a wave of relief and happiness sweeping through him. “You sure? I am an alien after all, a creature far different from you, one who has done horrible things... you would really love someone like me?” “Without hesitation,” she replied. “I've seen who you really are, I've seen your kindness and passion... and I want to be with you. I love you. Unconditionally.” He grinned and snuggled against her, nearly coating her with tendrils as he hugged her tight. “I love you too. And I will never let you go. You are mine.” She laughed, raising a hoof to pet the back of his head. “You're such a big sap.” “But I'm your big sap, and you love me,” he said smugly. “Yeah, I do. But as much as I'd like to just sit here and kiss you, I still wanna take that bath.” “Right. I do too. Then come, let's keep going.” Venom opened their wings and picked their body up, hurling them off the cloud. Twilight laughed and shared the control with him, leveling out and soaring toward Ponyville. She may have gone through a lot over the past several days, seen things that would haunt her dreams, but at least she had made a close friend and confidant along the way. And now their relationship has taken a step further, and she had a devoted partner that would always be there to comfort her when she needed it. She still thought of the mare who died, Honey Dew. She thought of the distressed patients in the Life Aura Center and how Rock Break had died under her hooves. It was all painful to look back on, but now she and the other princesses were doing what they could to right those wrongs, and if the memories ever became too overwhelming... Venom would help her get through it. “Things will be better going forward,” Venom assured her. “We saved so many ponies from ever having to suffer what Rock Break and the others did. I too regret that so many died, but we can't change it. We can only move on.” “Right. I know. And I'll try not to dwell too much on what I can't change.” Twilight checked where they were and changed paths ever so slightly, not wanting to get off course. “So, I don't think I want to do that vigilante stuff like we were before.” “Oh, come on!” “Hold on, you didn't let me finish. I don't want us to just run around catching bad guys and eating them... not unless we see somepony actively hurting somepony else, I guess. I mean, if we happen to be walking around, and see like... a serious mugging, we can act however we need to in order to save a life...” Venom snickered at that, and Twilight continued, “But we need to work with the law. I'm sure if we talked to Celestia about it, she'd have no problem setting us up with a police force. We can still get criminals off the streets. But we won't just be some unknown monster running around eating ponies. They'll figure out who we are, and what'll that mean for the other Klyntar? We want you and your friends to be trusted to live peacefully in Equestria, and that won't happen if we're biting heads off all the time!” Venom considered that, and gave a dramatic sigh. “Well when you put it that way, I understand. We of course want to maintain a good relationship with Equestria. But, when we can get away with it, I would still like to do like we did to that gang in Fillydelphia. We'll just be sneakier. No witnesses. No survivors. Come on, I know you liked that.” Twilight rolled her eyes, then said under her breath, “Maybe on rare occasions.” Louder, she said, “But we shouldn't make a habit of it, okay? Seriously, we can deal with crime in a more organized, reasonable fashion.” “You're too kindhearted! All of you creatures are! It's ridiculous!” “And yet, you've taken a liking to us, haven't you?” He purred. “Unfortunately, yes. I have.” Twilight gently bumped her head against his, then said, “Anyway, different subject. When do you think Scorn will have your ship repaired?” While Twilight has been handling legal matters, Scorn and some of the other symbiotes had recovered their ship and moved it to a secure area in the Canterlot Royal Guard base, where it could be hidden while they worked on repairing it. “It mostly sustained structural damage while crashing to the surface. As long as she can recreate the alloys used in the hull, and update our guidance system to handle your weird magical solar system, she should be able to get it fixed soon. Might take a few weeks though.” “And once it's done, will we be contacting your planet?” “I think we should. We need to let them know Riot has been taken down and that our squad is no more. I mean, we're alive, but we've given up our mission. I'm sure the rest of the Klyntar will be happy to know that. And then you or Celestia or whoever can handle all the diplomatic stuff because I suck at it.” “That's fair. Well alright. I can't wait to see how much our people can learn from each other.” “Me neither. I think we have a bright and exciting future ahead of us.” And with that, they continued their flight home, both thinking about what their future together held.