//------------------------------// // 37 A Desperate Fight // Story: The Line Between Fire and Light // by Stolenalicorn //------------------------------// The vines still clung to James as he attempted to stand. Normally they wouldn't hinder him at all, but he was weak and exhausted. He had no idea how long he'd been unconscious but there's no way he was out long enough for the vines to have naturally grown around him, not and be alive still. “Hey!” A small voice shouted from the flower bed. Everyone looked to the grimacing flower snarling at them. “I was enjoying that! How could you just wake him up?” Asriel launched several flames at the Flowey knock off. “Who are you?!” He demanded. “I'm Flowey the Flower, and you cannot be.” Flowey grinned as he began to grow and rise from the ground. Thousands of vines twisted into arms as their thorns joined into wicked claws. James was finally able to stand as the vines released him to join with the creature. The new Flowey appeared to blink out of existence and back as he spoke, as if he were incomplete somehow and the magic he was exerting was showing glimpses of it. “Why, I'm you.” His voice sounded as if it came through a tinny speaker before returning to normal. He blinked over to the other side of the cavern and back as he continued. “I'm the you who nearly succeeded! If you weren't such an idiot you might understand that.” “But how?” Asriel growled. “Don't you remember? Hehe. You saved so much during that fight, trying to even touch this idiot here!” He blinked behind James and swatted at him before returning to where he was as if he had never moved. “Well one save was just a little different. Corrupted, if you will. And without any of you it was able to load, meaning that I'm now free from your whining and your crying. And your caring! I don't have anything holding me back now!” James chuckled as he stretched his stiff muscles. “Well, I've been out of commission for a while. I guess I could use a little warm up. Seriously Flowey, do you honestly expect to stop us when you couldn't even handle me? And he calls us idiots.” James's bravado was entirely false, he could feel just how weak he had become while he was unconscious but hopefully the memory of Flowey's humiliating defeat would be enough of a bluff to end this now. Flowey grimaced before glitching back to a smile. “But I'm not the Flowey you faced before, that one's next to you. I'm free from him, and I know your weaknesses!” Derpy screamed as vines erupted from the ground and held her tight, thorns piercing into her as they pulled her down to the ground. They tore deep into her, tearing her skin disjointing her wings and breaking her legs. The scream was all the cue they needed, Luna blasted the creature with her horn only to have it blocked by pellets and Asriel's flame barely seemed to bother it. Starlight rushed to Derpy's side and teleported her out of the vines. James's face twisted back into a snarl as he held out his hand and with the sound of tearing metal and a flash of pale green light he held his sword in his hand. The effort of summoning his sword was far more than he expected it to be as he nearly collapsed. Yet he held his ground, he couldn't let Flowey know he was vulnerable or he'd continue to attack everyone else to create openings to get to him through. “Yes!” Flowey said as his eyes glowed red. “Your pain and anger make for such a delicious snack!” Asriel had no idea what that could mean. Since when did Flowey care about that? And why would he say it's delicious? “James!” Starlight shouted. “We have to get her out of here! She's bleeding really badly!” Starlight stayed at Derpy's side, using whatever magic she could think of to ease her pain and stem her blood loss. “I'm so sorry Derpy, please stay awake. We'll get you to a hospital in no time, just don't go anywhere.” Starlight desperately pleaded. James wanted to fight, but this was more important. He knew that meant Flowey would know just how to get to him, but he had to help. He rushed to the side of the fallen pegasus his own anger building as he heard her pained crying and watched tears roll down her face to mix with her blood. James would have to be defensive this fight, he needed to keep them safe from the monster that was far more interested in making them suffer than actually beating them. He tried to cast a healing spell, but as it failed he could tell that the strongest he could use in his current state wouldn't be enough. Desperate, he thrust his hand into his bag of holding on his side and grabbed the only Senzu he brought with him. He pressed it against Derpy's lips. “Please eat this.” He whispered. “It will make you feel better. I promise.” She trusted him, he cared about her. She was in so much pain if anything could help she would do it. Derpy opened her mouth and ate the bean and James watched as her wounds closed and her eyes popped open. He was furious now, but too weak to do more than struggle as much as the others were. This had to end quickly, he couldn't heal them of the injuries that Flowey would inflict on them. But there was one attack spell he could pull if necessary thanks to the Demon's Blood Talisman. “That's it!” Starlight shouted, more angry than she had been when she was tearing apart Equestria's time line. “Nopony hurts our friends and gets away with it!” With her proclamation she began casting a spell of her own design. An unrefined blast tore at the vines and gouged the earth beneath the creature, but the damage seemed superficial at best. James didn't know how the spell could be so ineffective, something with that kind of power behind it should have done more than that. Unless there was something far more different about this Flowey than they thought. James held his hands up and quickly chanted an easy spell that would tell him if his suspicions were right. He swung his hands towards the beast and a bolt of light flew forward and struck one of the vine limbs, doing noticeably more damage than Starlight's spell had. This Flowey was no monster. He was a Mazoku! “Light magic's our only shot!” James shouted to them as he stowed his sword in the bag of holding. He really wished he had brought his incomplete replica of the Sword of Light with him as he stood before the creature. His magic had been drained as the demon fed on him, but he could bypass those limitations and expend his stamina for a more chaotic spell. He just had to be sure to hit Flowey with it on his first try as he wouldn't get another. Once again James held his hands up as he began a new chant. “Sword of the cold dark void.” The around him seeped black, with an occasional flash of gold streaking across the surface. Asriel felt a chill run up his spine as he launched more fire at his replacement. Something about that spell was familiar. “Free yourself from heaven's bonds and gather in my hand, and we shall walk the path of destruction together!” Asriel remembered, it was faint but he had heard that spell before. When Chara was first starting to wake up James had cast the same spell and destroyed all but a fragment of their soul. A chill ran down his spine as he heard the incantation even as he began to hope this would end soon. “Power that can smash even the souls of the gods! Ragna Blade!” As James shouted the chaos words the darkness that surrounded him formed into a short sword as he charged the demon, each moment he held the sword was taxing his already exhausted body and magic. His breath came in rasping gasps as he forced his body to hold the spell. He had to make this attack count and strike the demon down. However as he got close Flowey glitched several feet away, appearing back only as James passed. James couldn't hold the blade any longer and it vanished along with his hopes of ending this. Pelting the Demon with Elmekia Lance would keep it busy, but there was no way James could cast it enough to defeat it and the Dragon Slave was well beyond his ability now. He had made Flowey too strong, and he had used his Senzu to save Derpy. He didn't regret the latter, only that it was necessary. “I'm so very sorry. You should leave, I'll hold this demon off long enough for you to escape.” James said as he looked on hopelessly. “No!” Starlight said firmly. “We are not letting you face this alone!” Luna added. James shook his head. “Better that you all escape than none of us. I've got enough magic and strength to hold it off for a few minutes. Take it and run.” “We will fight beside you.” Luna said defiantly. “Don't count us out yet!” Asriel said as his form changed. He appeared to age until he was an adult and took a step forward with a grin. He wore purple robes emblazoned with the delta rune in the front and held out a sword that glowed with magical power. “Howdy Flowey. It's me, the monster you could have been. Asriel Dreemurr!” Derpy did not care about how the demon had hurt her, she was standing up to help a friend. She looked to James's stories for the confidence she needed to face the demon, remembering what he had told her of Team Dai Gurren. She struck her hoof against the ground, steadying her nerves to charge the demon if she had to. She could stand against the universe if she had the willpower to defend her friends! She took to the air with a shout of defiance. Not against the pain the demon caused her, not against the fear he gave her even now, but in defiance of what this creature would do to her friends. She would not let it hurt them any more! “That's all well and good, but there's only one spell in my arsenal now that can end this. And I'm far too weak to control it.” James pleaded, hoping that the desperation in his voice would convince them to abandon him and flee. The knowledge that this demon could utilize SAVE in this world meant that if it weren't destroyed utterly they would be right back where they started, and with no memory of what had happened last time while the demon would only get better. Being consumed by the demon was a horrific prospect, but that spell wasn't an option. “Than we'll help you!” Starlight insisted, she was fresh and ready to go, she could still fight. “That's what friends are for!” “You don't get it, most attack spells use power to cause more damage, this spell uses power to hold it's destruction back. If not cast correctly it will destroy everything! To do this you would have to cast it with me! It will literally take all of your magic!” James was reaching for anything he could say that would convince them to leave, and to not help cast that spell. It was dangerous to cast even under good circumstances. He didn’t need much magic to cast the spell, but controlling it took massive amounts of power. With their magic he could probably control it, but that was still too long a shot to take. “Your friends have made one thing abundantly clear since the moment we met them.” Luna said as she stood beside James. “The odds do not matter. We will do this!” Her horn glowed with power, ready to lend James aid in his spell. She would not have thought to try this before she had met Asriel and heard the stories from Alphys and Undyne. She remembered what Sans had told her about James's time in the Underground as they were looking for him. There was much James was capable of that she had never known before. “Just who the hell do you think we are!” Starlight said as she touched her glowing horn to James's side. She had confidence in her skill to help cast any spell, even if it was taxing on them they could do it together. Asriel flew up to the Demon as Gunmen formed next to him from sheer determination. He was buying James time any way he could. Not for the first time he quietly thanked Alphys for her experimentation that gave him this body between man and monster. James could feel the magic flowing through him as Luna and Starlight offered it and he realized it was hopeless to try to argue sense to this group. He first cast a spell to link their thoughts for a couple minutes, longer than they needed but necessary to control the spell. He then began the first spell to gather the magic necessary to even hope to control the spell. “Lord of Darkness above all others, on thy bonds I do swear grant me all the power that you possess.” As James spoke he heard Luna and Starlight echo his words, each moment he felt power building in the Demon's Blood Talisman. “That I might conquer this mighty for before me!” They got the amplification spell off. Now was the dangerous part, if he lost concentration, ran out of magic, or worse if he died, the spell would go wild and destroy everything in this world. Possibly even beyond. He seemed far more casual about the spell than the one he had stolen it from, but each time he cast it the reality of it's danger weighed heavily on him. He faked his confidence to ensure that those around him wouldn't lose their determination. “Darkness beyond blackest pitch. Deeper than the deepest night.” A hollow chill worked it's way through his body, and he knew that Luna and Starlight could feel it to. But their chanting echoed his perfectly. “More vast than the greatest ocean. Colder than the coldest ice.” It began to feel as if he were falling, darkness crept at the edges of his vision threatening to blind him. “King of Darkness who shines like gold upon the sea of chaos, I call upon thee and swear myself to thee.” The darkness was no longer confined to their vision, the air around them bled darkness and drops of it flew towards the focus of their casting, towards the Demon’s Blood Talisman. “I stand ready to bear the strength you give me!” His chest felt empty, as if his organs simply ceased to exist. “Let the fools who stand before me be destroyed by the power you and I possess!” There remained only the chaos words to say to complete the spell. He took a moment to look around, possibly for the last time. Derpy and Asriel both fought the demon, Asriel striking with his magical constructs, Derpy gained speed and kicked where she could. He needed them to move before unleashing the spell. He couldn't let them get caught in it's blast where not even DETERMINATION could save them. At his left was Starlight, her mane and tail totally white. She had expended all of her magic helping him. As had Luna, her once black starlit mane bleached white by the power she was surrendering. James didn't have to see his own hair to know it was a mirror of theirs. With a breath James shouted in the brief lull that he had while the spell was stable. “Move!” Immediately the path before him cleared and three voices shouted as one. “Giga Slave!” The Chaos words freed the spell from their control, and it flew towards Flowey. The creature held his vine arms out expecting to simply block it. But as it touched him he could feel it tearing him apart in every sense. He tried to resist the cold agony, tried to force it into oblivion but that was hopeless. His vine limbs were destroyed by the spell as it soon began to consume his body. Flowey desperately searched for his SAVE, but his was no longer the dominating will in the world. He had the will power of a universe to contend with. A will that wanted him gone. His body gone and his power disintegrating Flowey tried to run, tried to escape to that corrupted SAVE that had spawned him. But the Lord of Nightmares pursued him. This creature had thought it her superior, she had to teach it that was not the case. In the end there was nothing, no Flowey, no power, no SAVE. This was a fun outing from her Universe, she met interesting creatures, felt the magic of others and got to destroy a petulant upstart. She did not regret granting James a fragment of herself to experience all he had shown her. Silence dominated the crater that had once been a cavern, light poured in and provided much needed warmth to the three spell casters. James basked in the sunlight, feeling it chase away the chill of the Giga Slave. “Princess Luna!” Starlight gasped as she stared at the Princess' limp stark white mane. Somewhere in her mind she felt the desire to bask in the warm sun. Luna smiled back at her. “I suspect you may be as shocked at your own.” She felt exhausted in a way she had never known before. That spell they had cast was indeed something fierce and not to be taken lightly. Starlight attempted to move her mane so she could see it but no matter how she concentrated she couldn't make anything happen. She remembered James's warning about the spell, it seems to have done just as he said and claimed all of their magic. Somewhere in her mind she got the urge to inspect her flank. Turning to see, she couldn't help but feel hollow as it was blank. Even Luna had noticed the change as she looked to hers. Derpy turned to them and smiled as the sun lit her blond mane. “You did it!” She happily said as she hugged Starlight. Asriel was glad to see the pretender gone, and was even more happy to know that James had enough faith in him to give him a chance all those years ago. His body reverted back to the teen he had been earlier as he approached the group. James gave a weak smile as he looked to them. “I'm sorry. I can't say whether or not your magic will return like mine will. I wish I knew more about this so I could offer you something.” Luna shook her head as she looked to James. “It is alright, we knew this was a risk when you said it would take all of our magic.” James couldn't help but feel guilty as he looked at them. “Let's get you back to Equestria. That's where the best hope of your magic recovering is.” James brought out his omnitool and began typing, rescinding it's privacy order and opening it's connections. He was immediately met with message alerts, both professional and personal. He shook his head and dismissed the alerts, they had gone this long without him a few more days wouldn't make that big of a difference. The five of them violently melted into Twilight's castle, almost immediately Derpy's cutie mark began to glow along with Asriel's Delta Rune, and nothing more. “It would seem that our cutie marks are indeed gone.” Luna said, unable to hide her immense disappointment. James knew only a small bit about Equestrian magic (he had only studied it for a few short years,) but he knew the recovery time of the Giga Slave. “It usually takes me about three days to recover my magic from casting that spell. It's possible that your Cutie Marks will return with your magic.” After more than two days the sound of voices brought Twilight running to the map table, eager to learn anything new about the situation. But she was shocked into silence at the sight that met her on the other side of the door. She couldn't tear her eyes away from Luna's blank flank and white hair. Derpy could feel how uncomfortable everyone was at that moment and just sat smiling, hoping things would get better soon. “What happened?” Twilight weakly asked. James stepped forward and bowed his head as he spoke. “It's my fault. They sacrificed their magic to save me. It's possible that it will recover in a few days, but I don't know enough to say anything definite.” Twilight turned and called out the door. “Spike! We need to send a letter to Princess Celestia immediately!” She turned back and ran to them. “I'm so sorry, we'll figure this out.” Spike came running with quill and parchment, ready to write. As he entered the throne room he looked to the group by the table. “Sweet Celestia! What happened?!” Twilight was too panicked to explain. “Spike, the letter.” Spike brought up the quill and parchment. “I'm ready.” Twilight nodded as she spoke. “Dear Princess Celestia,” She dictated, keeping her voice as even as possible despite her panic about the current situation. “Princess Luna, Starlight Glimmer, and … Derpy Hooves have returned from their mission. However it seems that your sister and Starlight have lost their magic and their cutie marks. If there's any insight you can offer I hope to hear it. Sincerely, Princess Twilight Sparkle.” Spike finished the message and burned the rolled parchment. No sooner had the ash flown out of the window than the group heard a crash and thunderous running coming towards them. “Sister!” Celestia shouted as she burst through the door. She was horrified at the sight of Luna's white hair and blank flank. She had no idea what it meant and couldn't be bothered to stay strong in this situation. She ran over and hugged her sister wishing that there was something she could say, something she could do. Celestia looked to James and Starlight, noticing that they showed the same symptoms. “James, do you know anything of this? Is this some otherworldly magic?” Her voice was far more desperate than any had heard it before. Her concern for her sister showing clearly beyond any concern for status. James really hoped that his experience would translate over to them as he thought about the situation. “It usually takes three days for my magic to recover.” He said as he looked at his own hair. It was a pretty clear symbol that all of his magic had been drained, but he wasn't a creature who's life was intrinsically tied to magic as theirs was. Celestia smiled as she heard the news. “So they could just recover on their own.” Relieved as she thought about it she started to wonder about their mission. “So how did this all happen?” James looked to Derpy, sitting by them and forcing an awkward smile as she hoped this would be over soon. James placed his hand on her head as he smiled. “I think this story is one I can't really tell. Would you care to start, Derpy?”