//------------------------------// // Amoros // Story: Windigo Whisperer // by Misty Shadow //------------------------------// Cloud Shroud was flying all across Cloudsdale, desperately searching for a spot where he felt comfortable talking to the Windigos, but to no avail. Every time he came to a cloud that seemed secluded enough from the rest of society, he found himself unable to relax thanks to the looming threat of being watched. The Windigos watched his frustration with interest as invisible apparitions...while another invisible apparition began to speak to them in their minds… “You feel sorry for him, don’t you?” the apparition said to them in a soothing, soft voice. “Hardened as you are, even you find this creature pitiable. For his spirit is so willing, yet he lacks any kind of selfish ambition or greater hope, allowing others to influence him so easily. Do you not wish to show him the way?”  “Hmm hmm hmm.” the Windigos snickered, knowing the apparition was testing them. “Nice try, but we haven’t forgotten what you taught us. The good kind of hate called “discipline”. The same way we allowed Cloud to try and ignore what he was called here to do, we are not going to tell him what he needs to do to discover inner peace.”  “Excellent work, my disciples.” the apparition complimented them for seeing through his ruse. “If this creature can’t learn to appreciate the good kind of hate he’s been blessed with, he was never worth our time in the first place. But I believe in him. So much so, that I believe he will eventually surpass you three and become the perfect vessel...ha ha ha…”  Back in the human world, where Ken’s body was lying, the lizard from before crawled on top of his forehead. An eye on the lizard’s forehead was open and glowing ominously…  Meanwhile, an exhausted Cloud was feeling tempted to give up on his endeavor to find a private spot that felt safe to him.   “It’s hopeless, I’ve looked everywhere…” he said in disgruntlement. “It doesn’t matter what cloud I try to rest on, I just don’t feel comfortable talking to the Windigos again since Rainbow Dash recorded me…”  Cloud’s despair soon turned to anger.  “Flying fudge, Rainbow!” he exclaimed in frustration in his mind. “Why did you have to do that?! What was it all for in the grand scheme?! If you had just been honest with me…”  Cloud paused, his anger beginning to subside as he realized his hypocrisy.  “Who am I kidding…” he rebuked himself. “I brought this on myself. I didn’t trust Rainbow even after she tried to help me, and she didn’t trust me in turn. I just didn’t know what else to do. I just...do what I’ve always been used to doing. Doing my own thing…”  Cloud continued to ponder where he went wrong until he made another realization… “Maybe...there really was a purpose for me being brought here.” he told himself, finally trying to view everything from a broader scope. “Maybe that’s the trap I’ve fallen into. Being complacent in living every day redundantly, even with all the crazy stuff that’s happened, making me wonder if there’s more to life than just tuning everything out. After all, insanity is doing the same thing over and over expecting a different result.”  He wondered if it was finally time… “Maybe I really do need to finally accept myself…” he said calmly as he finally settled on a cloud that made him feel at ease. “Accept my mistakes...and accept that I know nothing…”  He was recalling the words Luna spoke to him back at the royal palace. Now that he was finally willing to heed these words, appreciate what Luna was trying to tell him, he found himself feeling soothed rather than flustered. Now that his body was relaxed, he began to sink into the cloud, but the fact did not bother him, even as all he could see now was darkness. It felt just like the realm of his soul... “I am part cloud now…” he told himself. “This is the body I was given and I accept it…”  With his body fully relaxed, Cloud was then able to start thinking more deeply in his mind about what actually happened that day when Rainbow Dash recorded him.  “It was my fault.” he thought as he came to a new conclusion. “I didn’t want to accept the idea back at the palace because I was afraid of responsibility. But now, I see that even if those Windigos did trick me, I allowed them to deceive me...because I didn’t really care. Subconsciously, I wanted the truth to come out because I’m tired of lying. I want to tell others the truth. I want to talk to them like I talk to-”  Cloud abruptly gasped as he realized that everything he just said...he said out loud.  “Myself…” he finished in shock. “That’s what happened. The Windigos weren’t talking to me inside the realm of my soul…they were talking to me as a cloud! They wanted our conversation to be recorded!” “Well done!” the invisible apparition who was speaking to the Windigos earlier exclaimed in his mind. “We all knew you had it in you!”  “That voice…” Cloud said in bewilderment. “That’s not one of the Windigos...who are you?!”  “I am what I am.” the apparition answered ominously as it became visible to Cloud. It revealed itself to be akin in appearance to a Windigo, but not identical. Unlike the other three, this Windigo was pink and twice the size. The apparition also revealed its name… “They call me Amoros. They call me a god of love.”  Cloud felt a shiver course through him as he immediately recalled what King Sombra had told him about how the Windigos were directed by a master from the darkness who tricked Celestia and Luna into thinking he was a god of love… “You fear me, don’t you, child?” Amoros cheerily prodded him. “You fear that I tricked you. You fear that I’ve tricked others. But these things, I would only ever do for your sake. I know what Luna told you that inspired you to get to this point...because she was simply repeating my wisdom to you…”  Cloud was taken aback at this revelation. How could Luna have been deceived if she had told him something that helped him feel at peace with himself? This wasn’t making any sense…  “I can tell you’re bemused, and I don’t blame you.” Amoros spoke softly. “That agent of theirs has no doubt convinced you that I am the enemy. And they would be correct in telling you the rulers of Equestria have been deceived. They believe the three Windigos who guided you here are the enemy and that working with me is the only way to redeem them, even as they have already been redeemed.”  “How so?” Cloud asked curiously. “If you’re a god of love, how can you call them “redeemed” if they’re still beings of hate?”  “Their idea of “hate” is very different from yours and mine.” Amoros explained. “They are not trying to destroy Equestria with their “hate”, they are trying to save it. Both my disciples and I believe in a good kind of hate called discipline, a thing that begets love. In its contemporary state, Equestria lacks such a thing, thus it is in danger of falling prey to the darkness...” “...So...the Windigos…” Cloud replied sheepishly, beginning to ponder a dark possibility he didn’t want to accept.   “Through me, they lied to the princesses.” Amoros told him. “And they lied to you by omission, for neither you nor the princesses are ready to comprehend the truth yet. Especially you. You are just like my disciples, not even believing in evil...”  Cloud felt a feeling of palpable discomfort as he recalled how Luna told him something very similar, and how he once described Sombra as only “evil” to himself.   “If Sombra was her agent…” he thought worriedly. “...and Luna was trying to give me hints on what I needed to do...could it be...” And for the first time, Cloud formulated a theory about King Sombra that he did not want to be true… “Sombra is still actually evil and she wants me to reform him?!”  Cloud’s face then contorted into a look of terror once he realized what that possibility would mean… “But if that’s true, that means he really is trying to take over Equestria...and that it’s my duty to protect Equestria from harm by reforming him! That’s why I was brought here...that’s my purpose!”  *FWOOM* Cloud Shroud, nervous as he was, felt a newfound burst of energy inside of him as his fire was enhanced even further.  “I don’t know how much of what Sombra told me was true…” he mused solemnly. “I also don’t know how much of what the Windigos and this god of theirs has told me is true...but one thing’s for sure, I’m done with just sitting on the sidelines and doing nothing with my life! From now on, I’m going to do what I love to do with a fire in my heart!”  The Windigos could sense how much Cloud’s fire was growing and were very impressed...as well as unnerved.  “I always knew the guy had it in him…” Aero said with mixed emotion. “...but reforming Sombra? I thought he’d end up like us, realizing there’s no such thing as good and evil…” “This isn’t good for our plan…” Aera remarked worriedly. “I just didn’t think Cloud would come along so quickly with his fire…”  “Surely, we underestimated his abilities.” Aeros admitted. “Obviously, it’s incredible that he’s making such progress, but we don’t need him utilizing his fire in a way that is...inconvenient for us…”  The Windigos didn’t know that Sombra was the agent Celestia and Luna had hired...however, they did know that Sombra was part of the shadow that transformed Ken into Cloud. Both the information about an agent and the information about Sombra...these things they were told by Amoros...the one who had worked through them to give Ken his “immortal, immaterial” body… “Hmm hmm hmm.” Amoros snickered ominously. “I would be cautious, young one, if you dare to try reforming Sombra.”  “Cautious of what?” Cloud replied, irritated. “You’re not stopping me from saving Equestria by helping someone I love.”  “As a truly loving god, I would do no such thing.” Amoros denied the assertion. “I must allow my children to choose their own path. But the same way I can not stop you...I can not stop them…”  Aero, Aera, and Aeros appeared in front of Cloud, giving him looks of admonishment.  “We need to talk.” they told him sternly.  “I could say the same thing to you!” Cloud retorted in frustration. “Why did you never tell me about Amoros?” “We are under no obligation to tell you anything.” they argued in their defense. “We are the ones who gave you your body here, you will do as we say.”  “You mean you’re the ones who almost killed me back in my world!” Cloud exclaimed angrily. “Give me one good reason why I should be obligated to do what you say when all you give me is vague descriptions of your plan?”  “Because we are the ones keeping your human body alive…” they replied in a threatening tone. “Do you wish to die?”  “Guh…” an aggravated Cloud grunted nervously.  “They don’t sound like they’re bluffing…” he thought to himself. “...but is this really what I want? Being treated like a slave by ghost horses? For what? So that Sombra can continue to walk a dark road? If Rainbow Dash saw me allow myself to be pushed around like this, what would she say? No, I won’t stand for this anymore. I have a will to live now...I have a fire for my friends!” “Try me!” Cloud cried, calling their bluff.  “...Sorry, what?” the Windigos replied in bemusement, surprised that their threat had failed to coerce him.  “You heard me!” Cloud exclaimed, continuing to stand his ground. “I don’t care whether or not your threat is empty, I’m not going to let you control me! Letting you run my life is not living at all! Even if I have to die to do what I want to do, so be it! It’s worth it to save my friend’s soul!”  “.....” the Windigos were still and silent in awe.  “I finally understand why Amoros guided us to this kid…” Aero thought. “He’s just like Dandy…hey, that reminds me...”  “This kid is so innocent, bearing so much integrity…” Aera admired him in thought. “Reminds me of what attracted me to Aero back when he was...hold on…”  “I truly underestimated this one from his egotistical stance and idiosyncratic personality…” Aeros mused in his mind. “He just might be able to handle...oh...ah…”  The Windigos all smiled to each other confidently as they devised a new way to keep Cloud’s fire burning in a way that was optimal for them.  “What are you grinning about?” Cloud demanded to know. “Did I say something funny?”  “Oh no,” answered the Windigos, “we know the way your fire is coming along is no joke. We are genuinely very pleased. You’re one out of a million, truly worthy of our time.”  “Thanks…” Cloud replied suspiciously. “However, I’d rather you spare me the compliments if you don’t mean them. I only care about being worthy of knowing the truth. Are you going to tell me the whole truth now or not? Because I mean it, this time I want you to tell me everything.”  “...Everything?” the Windigos retorted cheekily. “Are you sure?”  “As sure as I’ll ever be.” Cloud answered, unamused.  “Does that mean you also want to know the story of how we died?” the Windigos goaded him.  “...Yes.” Cloud replied blankly, not wanting to admit he was already feeling less certain.  “Alright then…” the Windigos said forebodingly. “Just warning you, knowing everything about us...also means knowing our pain…”  “GULK!” Cloud cried in agony once he experienced that pain for himself. “UWAAAGGGHHH!”  Cloud’s suffering gave both Rainbow Dash and King Sombra a premonition that something was not right.  “Hmm?” Twilight asked Sombra after a look of unsettlement came on his face in the middle of a conversation they were having. “Is something the matter?”  “It’s nothing to do with you.” Sombra replied. “I just sense...a disturbance.”  “Me too…” Rainbow interjected, concerned. “I’m sorry Twilight, but I got to go check on Cloud. I’ll come back for you later, just know that for right now, you got this!”  “Rainbow!” Fluttershy cried out, wanting to plea for her to stay. However, just like with the pegasi trio, it was futile, as Rainbow had already flown off at lightning-fast speed.  “Forget it, Fluttershy.” Twilight said to console her. “Rainbow Dash cares about us, she just wants to be there for her other friend too. This is a hard time for us all, since we all have friends we care about…”  She then smiled smugly as she slyly winked at Sombra while telling him… “...don’t we?”  Sombra was taken aback, sincerely ingesting the thought of him actually having a friend… “Do I...really care about that frail fool?” Sombra pondered. “Could someone like him...actually possess the power to coax me into changing?”  Sombra would have to hold that thought, however, as Rainbow was having difficulty even finding Cloud at that moment.  “Where the heck did he go?!” she exclaimed in frustration, searching all across the sky frantically at high speed. “Did he finish whatever he was trying to do and go back to the house?”  That’s what Rainbow had hoped, but if only she knew that Cloud had been transported to an ethereal realm, where he had begun reliving an untold part of Equestria’s history…  “This is the truth they must become prepared to accept…” Amoros said ominously.  Cloud gasped as he found himself in the form of a spirit, watching an earth pony from above in a snowy terrain. The earth pony had a yellow mane and tail, a white coat, a book and paintbrush for a cutie mark, and was painting a picture on a canvas with a stand with a pet lizard on his shoulder. Cloud was astonished once he saw that the picture depicted… ...an earth pony, a unicorn, and a pegasus joining together to defeat a demon. A three-eyed demon that appeared to be a hybrid of a pony and a lizard and was surrounded by flies. The ponies were based off of three real ponies the painter knew, while the demon was his own character that he simply called the Lord of the Flies, also known as… ...Beelzebub.