BIZARRO POV
The chilling wind that blew through the decrepit castle stood deathly still as I looked at the ghostly visage of Darth Vader in both complete fear and utter horror. The ghostly apparition stood up to about my height, if not taller by an inch or two, and was dressed in an intimidating moon themed version of the original Darth Vader’s armor.
His black armor glistened in the moonlight and had highlights of silver and purple that danced across his body like an intricate maze. His clunky control chest piece was completely gone, replaced by the image of a red crescent moon that matched the silver crescent moons on his belt buckle. An etherial cloak of glistening stars swayed majestically in an unfelt wind behind him, hiding his arms and most of his upper body as he looked at me. His final and most intimidating feature were the two bright red bulbous eyes of his mask that pierced my soul like a knife, making the already frigid interior of the castle feel immensely colder.
“Y-you am real?” I stammered as I looked at the pale-blue transparent spirit of Darth Vader standing in the moonlight.
“Yes Bizarro, I am real. I am as real as you and the people that inhabit this world.“ He told me as he took a step forward.
“N-no! You am no real! You am imaginary!” I screamed out in defiance. In a moment of weakness and fear, I attempted to fly away from Darth Vader's ghost. My escape attempt completely failed however when I felt an invisible force slam me into the floor of the castle, I struggled against my invisible chains as Darth Vader’s spirit slowly approached.
“You have nothing to fear, Bizarro. Yes, I am Darth Vader, but I am not the one you know from Star Wars.” He told me calmly. I stopped struggling as I realized that he was talking about the franchise, meaning that he wasn't the original Darth Vader. Which meant...
“Then… You am like Bizarro?” I asked him as I felt what I could only assume was Darth Vader’s force powers slowly fade away. After I was freed from his grip I slowly stood back up and looked at him.
“Correct. I am a human, like you, who was cast into Equestria many years ago.” He explained.
“B-But, Bizarro am ask about Darth Vader, and nopony know you.” I stammered.
“That is because I hail from a different Equestria than you. Where your Equestria is on Equis mine was located on a planet called Terra that had two moons.” He explained as he sat down cross legged and gestured for me to follow suit. I decided to to sit down and listen to him, hoping he could answer at lest a few of my questions.
“How am that possible?”
“Multiverse theory. You see, Bizarro, you already know most of my story because it is similar to yours. I was an average man going to a costume party when I met the Trader."
"Trader?" I accidentally interrupted. Thankfully, the Sith Lord didn’t seem upset by my sudden question.
"Yes, a woman similar to the Merchant. While the Merchant sells items to people, the Trader will give their target an offer to exchange something worthless for something valuable. For example, she offered me a better Lightsaber in exchange for a bag of chips. Once I accepted her odd deal, I was whisked away to human version of Equestria a month before the beginning of Season one.
“I used my knowledge of the show to make the world a better place. I saved Luna and Nightmare Moon, and eventually married the latter after she caught Cadence's bouquet at her wedding. Hmphmhm. Much to the chagrin of a certain fabulous fashionista, I might add. Thankfully, Rarity did forgive her once she was chosen to be a bridesmaid for our wedding." Darth Vader recalled fondly.
"I also took on two personal apprentices and trained the other Elements of Harmony in the ways of the Harmonic side of the force, freed the Crystal Empire of Sombra and became their Sith Lord, which was not fun at all. Personally, I hated the snow, it just gets everywhere and is so cold and damp.
"Anyway, after that, I led a revolution in Griffonstone against a corrupt Jedi order, killed the Changeling Queen who dared to ruin my technical niece's wedding, and… was betrayed... In the end, I battled Starlight Glimmer across the multiverse before I was deleted." He said with a heavy tone of melancholy in his voice before his mask morphed and burned with an unyielding rage.
"I had just jumped through the dimensional tear when it happened. A greater power than I deemed me unworthy of life and deleted me... and... and my home." Darth Vader's fists clenched in both anger and grief as he continued speaking.
"I attempted to fight back, and even worked with Starlight in the end. But, we were no match for them..."
"Who am they?" I asked.
"I... I am not sure... Some universes have these... 'Gods' who possess the ability to manipulate reality on a whim. Mine called himself an Author and stated that he grew bored of my life. I do not know if every dimension has these demons, but I have seen a few that shared my fate. Worlds destroyed by their supposed creators with no remorse.
“My Author, Oak Frost, put me through terrible pains, killed my friends, created massive wars that wiped out the dragons, and forced me to watch a once good friend turn truly evil.” He said, as a gust of wind began to swirl around him. “She and Starlight wiped out the dragons, the only nonhuman race on the planet, stole Luna's Cutie mark, and used a mystical artifact to rip a hole in time for Starlight. And when all was said and done, the Author didn’t even have the decency to give me a happily ever after.
"They Deleted me… my world… my friends…. They wiped the slate clean because they were bored with us, or perhaps even ashamed of us. We did not live up to their expectations, and... And they decided to get rid of us!” He yelled, releasing a massive blast of wind in every direction as he went into an almost blind rage at the nearby area. I left him alone as I gave him time to calm down and collect himself before I asked any more questions. Once he seemed to calm down a little, I asked him one of most prominent questions on my mind.
“What am you mean when you say ‘Deleted’?” I asked. Darth Vader remained silent for a few minutes before he answered.
“There are six technical states of a Displaced with two being benign states of being.” He explained. “The other states are far worse, they are the ones who are turned into the Hiatus, Hidden, Cancelled, or the Deleted. Hiatus Displaced are frozen in time until their story continues. There are some Displaced I remember fondly who are unfortunately still stuck in time’s frozen grasp because time has refused to move. Hidden Displaced's are people whose worlds have been cut off from the multiverse, locked away in a dimensional barrier that can only be accessed with a special key phrase. As for Deleted or Cancelled Displaced…. It’s much worse than a Hiatus Displaced…
"When a Displaced is Deleted or Cancelled they are usually sent back to Earth either as themselves, someone else, or as a slightly different version of their old self at some point in time near their initial purchase or trade. Some will have memories of their lives in the multiverse, while others forget and wake up in a hospital, blaming their sudden black out on exhaustion. Some will then live the rest of their normal lives in peace while others will run into the Merchant or some other Displacer a second or even third time."
"So... If Bizarro die, me go home?" I asked with both trepidation and hope prominent in my voice. If I could go home then would I be able to kill myself to do it?
I didn't have to wonder about that however, as my slight hope was quickly dashed away when Darth Vader shook his head and explained the problem with my theory.
"It is not that easy, Bizarro. Even if you die that will not be the end of your story. In fact, very few Displaced I know of actually ‘die’ and when they do they are usually brought back sometime between a day to one thousand years, almost like comic book characters. You can only receive the possible opportunity return to Earth if you die heroically in battle or sacrifice yourself for others. And that is a big if, I only know of two Displaced that were given such an offer, and both stayed in Equestria, much to my disdain. Besides, dying is not the same as being Cancelled or Deleted. And, as you can see, not every Deleted Displaced returns home.” He said as he gestured to his ghostly body.
"I knew I wouldn’t be fortunate enough to return home, and I refused to submit to the whims of my author, so I chose a different option and I cheated the system. I decided to live and stay Deleted. You see, when a Displaced is Deleted or Cancelled their Tokens cease to function. However, I was able to pour the rest of my Force essence and magic into my Token, allowing me to connect a fraction of my spirit to every version of my Lightsaber across the multiverse, creating an infinite amount of my selves who could continue on my work. It was a painful procedure to essentially turn myself into a series of cloned ghosts. Some versions of myself are more knowledgeable, emotional, or stable than others, and some will have no memory of my past life, or may have contradicting memories, even so they can still complete the task I assigned ourselves. I knew that I was not long for my world, so I decided the best thing to do would be to spread my knowledge so that I may save other Equestrias.”
"What am you mean?" I asked.
"It is our purpose in life, Bizarro; to protect these worlds and save them. I failed to protect mine, and I refuse to let another fall when I can help. You are the first I have made contact with, and I hope my scattered soul can spread my wisdom to all others as well. And now, I must impart my wisdom to you.” He said as he stood up and looked down at me.
“There are many worlds out there Bizarro, worlds like yours, like mine, peaceful worlds and worlds of suffering and pain. Worlds that need heroes like you and I, Bizarro. With your permission, I am going to make you a hero of those worlds, a hero of this world. I will teach you how to be summoned to those realities when called upon for aid, but only if you agree to it. Be warned Bizarro, not every world is as peaceful as this one.” He informed me.
I thought about what he was offering. I’d basically be sending myself out there to fight someone else’s wars, fight for people I didn’t even know, and most likely have to fight a few familiar faces that terrified me. I did not want the chance of running into a Predator or a Xenomorph out there. But, my fears were quickly quelled when I thought about Earth. How many people suffered, how many fought to save themselves and others, how many of them hoped for a Superman to come and save the day?
Trixie needed a Superman too... She needed me and I wasn't there...
Doubt slowly crept into my mind as I thought about Trixie, about how she needed me. About how much everyone else would need help. It was no longer a question of should I, but a question of Could I? I was already struggling with the memories of killing that changeling in the Everfree Forest, and I was able to justify that as killing a monster. What about people, ponies, beings that weren't inherently monsters. Would I be able to... To kill them? Could I handle that, the responsibility of choosing who could live and die?
Yes, you can. You have the power, use it. My mind finally reasoned, though it felt wrong, it felt like I was telling myself a lie I wanted to believe. I didn't think I could do it. But if I didn't then who would?
I might not have been Superman, hell, I wasn’t even really Bizarro. But, if I had the power to help others and be there in their time of desperate need then who was I to refuse the call to action? I was given power beyond my wildest dreams and abilities that made me one of the most powerful beings on this strange new planet. And with great power, comes an even greater responsibility to use it wisely.
“Bizarro do it.” I told him confidently as I stood up a bit straighter. My expression hardened as I tried to push out any doubt in my mind. There wasn't any time for doubt or second guesses, I needed to step up and accept my new responsibility.
“Excellent. Select an item you hold dear to yourself and can possibly help others if needed.” He told me. I thought about what I should use as a Token before I decided on just using my Kryptonian ring and lead ring box. It could at least be more useful than a stone slab with my new name on it.
“Very good. With luck, other Dimensions can use it against their enemies. I can only imagine the horrors that an evil Superman or Supergirl Displaced could unleash upon unsuspecting ponies and Displaced. Now, hold your Token close to you and recite a creed to let all others know where your loyalties lie and what your intentions are. Once you’ve done that, throw your Token anywhere, and a portal will open up to swallow it.” He explained. I nodded and held my ring box next to my heart.
I took a moment to think of the most inspirational thing I could say, something that would let people know I wasn’t just a dumb bad guy like Bizarro; I also needed everyone out there to know that I wasn’t just some wall of muscle that could be pointed at an enemy, I needed them to see me as an ally and not as a weapon or a tool.
Not only that, but I needed them to know that I was serious about being a hero. They could interpret my words in Bizarro speak and think I’m a bad guy when I’d claim to want to be a hero. And if I did use Bizarro speak, a lot of them could take my claims to being a bad guy literally and refuse my help, or maybe even summon me so they could attack me on the spot. Doubts about my decision started to creep back to the forefront of my mind as Darth Vader silently waited for me. More worries and fears began to fight their way to my brain, convincing me that this wasn't what i wanted, until they suddenly melted away and I was struck with a newfound sense of courage and inspiration.
I thought of the perfect thing to prove to everyone out there that I’d honor my word and be a hero. An unbroken law that bonds all of the dimensions, and something that I was certain existed in every Equestria. And, if my hunch was right, everyone out there would know the severity of my words and how seriously I would uphold my oath. Taking a deep breath, I prepared to say my mantra, my claims, and most importantly, my promise.
“Bizarro am here to help! Bizarro am punch baddies in face and save trees from kittens. If you am need help to save innocent, me am be there to do it! Me Pinkie Promise. Cross me heart, hope to fly, stick a cupcake in Bizarro eye.” I said before I chucked the ring box forward into a portal that suddenly materialized. As soon as the ring box hit the portal it multiplied into dozens of ring boxes that were scattered across time and space. When the portal finally closed, another smaller portal opened and dropped my original lead ring box in to my hand.
“A Pinkie Promise… I must say, I have not heard of other Displaced using that in their mantra… You’ve impressed me Bizarro.” Darth Vader told me as he nodded approvingly.
“Thank you, Vader.” I told the ghostly apparition.
“No, thank you Bizarro. I feel relieved knowing the multiverse has people like you in it. For now, I must go, I’m afraid my time is not long as I am losing both magic and Force energy."
"Wait! Will me see you again?" I asked him. To my relief, Darth Vader nodded his head as he walked into the rays of moonlight leaking through the ceiling.
"Yes. Now that my Token is in this world I am bound to this reality, the only thing that shall remove me is the destruction of my Token. I must tell you though, you must find my Token as soon as possible, I sense a disturbing force near it. I will return to you when I'm strong enough to speak with you again, Bizarro, and together we shall make this world perfect. Until next time, may Harmony be with you…” He said as he slowly faded out of existence.
I stood there silently as the minutes threatened to turn into an hour before I turned around and made my way back to Ponyville with a newfound determination burning inside of me. If I had these powers then I'd use them to protect and help anyone I could, starting with my new friends in this crazy world.
Look out world, here comes Bizarro.