//------------------------------// // Sick // Story: The Survivor // by Chemtest //------------------------------// Twilight focuses on Discord, trying to see any dishonesty in his voice or form. She focuses so much, that she doesn’t see the rat jumping at her. The Element of Magic is ripped from Twilight’s neck, and a rat runs further away with it. More rats come out of the nearby alleyways, congregating within a writhing mass of fur and flesh. A green glow comes from the rats, and they form a type of blob. Two holes in the mass glow brighter, looking like eyes. One rat rushes to the top of the mass, and holds the Element of Magic up high. A voice comes from the rats, laughing sickeningly, “Thou hast not vanquished thine true enemy. Thou shalt nary get close to mine defeat again. For I hath claimed the Element of Magic for mine. Thou hast no chance of winning, Lady Sparkle, Survivor.” Survivor looks over at him, “What the hell are you?” The mass looks over to him, “Plague, Lord of Sickness, Spirit of Death!” The Element of Magic glows in his grasp, “Fall!” Twilight is overtaken with a green glow first, and then the other five. They all begin to cough roughly, and collapse onto the ground. They spasm and seize as buboes break out across their body. Even Discord is overtaken by the green glow, and begins to spasm himself. Plague then looks at Survivor, “Of course thou would adopt the form of my greatest foe. Thine mask won’t protect thou. Sickness take you!” A green glow surrounds Survivor, trying to make him collapse as well. Only, the glow catch fire. A blue fire burns away the green, until it begins it’s calm burn on the surface of his coat. Yet, with a single wave, the fire disappears. Plague moves forward, “Thou art immune. Feh, thou still cannot defeat me. Sickness is unstoppable.” Survivor doesn’t even look at his weapons. He keeps his eye on Plague, and draws his revolver, “What makes you so confident? What makes you believe I’ll have compassion to you? Didn’t you kill one third of Europe?” Plague laughs, “Wonderful, thou know of my exploits. Yes, the Black Death was me. I am not looking for thine compassion, I am looking for thine surrender before I kill thou. I am Sickness, Rats are Sickness... I am Rats. If thou cannot kill every rat, thou cannot kill me.” Survivor glares at him, “You don’t think I could?” He shakes his head, and smiles. He offers a hand, “There’s no need for us to be enemies.” Plague looks at the hand, and growls in his raspy voice, “Thou art a fool if thou think thine hand will change me. I am Plague, and I shall not stop until every creature is dead!” Survivor loses his smile, “Than I shall stop you.” Plague moves closer, “Thou cannot defeat me! My form is too strong!” Suddenly, the mark of an extended hand on Survivor’s mask lights up. The rest of the mask begins to shine bright blue, lighting up the area in front of him with it’s brightness. His form soon is surrounded by this blue glow, with the extended hand glowing the brightest. Soon, the glow is bright enough to make Plague back away a bit. Survivor smiles, raising his hand into the sky. He nods, and snaps. Plague is instantly consumed with pain, and the writhing mass begins to writhe even more. Raspy screams come from within, and the screech of rats fills the air. A blue form appears next to the mass, holding out it’s hand. Green begins to flow from the rats into the form. It moves like a bolt of lightning, arcing between the two points. The blue form begins to fill with the green energy, until the last bit of green absorbs inside. The rats all begin to scatter, returned to their natural forms. The blue form steps back, and clutches at it’s head. It collapses to it’s knees, screaming loudly as it’s face begins to warp. It’s skin begins to rip away from it’s body, until the bottom of it billows out. It’s face bends and warps until it looks like the shape of a bird. Then, the magic begins to change everything. Turning skin into coat, face into mask, using all magic available for it. In the end, what is there is someone that looks like Survivor. Except his mask glows a slight green, and he lacks any face behind the mask. It is a sentient version of Survivor’s clothes, basically. Plague looks at his form, made up completely of magic. He snaps his head to Survivor, and raises a hand. He screams out as green energy travels to the gloves, but the mask glows blue, and cuts off the magic before it can be used. Plague falls onto his back, looking at his hands in horror. He screams out, his voice now absolutely clear and without the rasp he once had. He begins to wail in a odd mix of indignation, sadness, and horror. He screams in between his wails, his childlike and now high pitched voice breaking in, “What have you done to me!?” Survivor looks at his form, slight pity in his gaze, “I made you mortal. You have stolen the lives of so many, perhaps it’s time you feel like them. Pain, you can feel that now. You can become sick. You have no body, because you are just a husk of a true person. If you wish to escape, the only way is through Compassion.” The child-like voice yells once again, “I’ll kill you!” Plague jumps at Survivor, hands outstretched, planning on grabbing and wringing his neck. But, before he can wrap his hands around Survivor’s neck, he is blasted back with a purple beam. Discord points a finger gun at him, twirling the Element of Magic absentmindedly in his other hand, “You won’t lay a hand on him.” Survivor smiles, “Thank you, Discord.” He smiles back, and tosses the Element back to the recovering Twilight, “I’m not going to let this murderer kill the one nice creature in a millennia.” Plague rolls over onto his knees, panting from the sudden lance of pain, “I shall not be defeated!” Survivor cocks an eyebrow, “You already are.” Plague looks into the sky, and screams with all his breath, “I am willing to serve!” Black fire breaks out across his form, slowly burning him away. He laughs out loud, glaring at Survivor as he disappears into the black flames.