//------------------------------// // Chapter Thirty Eight: Pitch Black // Story: Cure For a Toxin // by RadBunny //------------------------------// Toxic was floating. A blissful sense of painless slumber slowly dawned on his mind, an obnoxious noise slowly pulling him from the desperately needed sleep. Such an annoying beeping. The realization that he knew that sound all too well is what made Toxic jerk awake. The unicorn’s chest heaved, green eyes darting around the room. Secured to a hospital bed, the stallion was covered horn-to-tail in a light blue gelatin, magic sparking over and through the substance before darting into his body. He was able to breath freely; air seeming to always be just around his mouth and nose. At least he didn’t have a tube shoved down his throat. Healing gel. The only place it exists is… Visible through the gel, the simple yet cozy hospital room of the Last Light’s primary infirmary greeted Toxic. A series of heart, breathing, and toxicity monitors kept him company. The leads were attached to his left forelimb, the alarm a signal that he was waking up most likely. How long have I been out? The last thing I remember… It was all so fuzzy. Toxic could barely remember leaving the cave on the way to the rescue ship. After that it was just a blur. Gells. Where is Gelliana? He forced himself to calm down at that; they would be in separate rooms for monitoring and treatment. It was only a few moments before a doctor and some nurses entered the room, the former scanning over the various readouts. “Welcome back, Director,” the earth pony said cheerfully, “I’m Doctor Dephib; trust me, the name wasn’t my choice.” Toxic managed a chuckle at that. “Please don’t speak; we need to attach your translation necklace. We couldn’t have any magical interference.” Oh. Right. The stallion didn’t realize how much he enjoyed not having the necklace until it was gone. But as the gel was dissolved into a magical nether, the familiar weight settled around Toxic’s shoulders. “Alright, up you go, slowly,” Dephib said, “You have been out for almost two days. The poison in your blood is completely purged. Aside from clearly being extremely stressed and needing some vitamins, you have a clean bill of health. We’ll want to monitor you here for at least a day though.” Toxic huffed at that, finding that, indeed, he didn’t have so much as a single ache or pain as he stood on steady hooves. “You have no idea how nice this feels, Doctor,” Toxic said, “Being able to stand and not have the world spin.” “I can imagine. Now, let’s run a few tests to make sure you’re good to go as a final checklist.” The time it took to check his basic reflexes and such let Toxic slowly acclimate, at least as much as he could. We’re safe. As they concluded, Dephib hung the stethoscope around his neck with a nod of approval. “All seems in order. Now then, there’s a visitor who wants to see you first.” Gells? The doctor and nurses cleared out, and Toxic was left looking at… He wasn’t sure at first. “Hey Bro,” Pick said with an awkward grin, gesturing to his new body, “so, a few things have changed while you were gone.” “Pick?!” Toxic exclaimed, his younger brother trotting over to give him a gentle hug. “What in the world?!” “Good to see you too, Toxic.” They separated, the older of the two looking over Pick’s body in shock. “I don’t-what is all of this?” Toxic asked, gesturing to the younger stallion who simply laughed. “This, is me,” Pick replied with a grin, “long story short, the illness was progressing exponentially. With a certain Emperor’s help and Varti’s know-how, I’ve been a busy stallion. A new golem body for me in other words. Otherwise, I’d have been dead by now.” The stallion then looked to the ground, hoof pawing at the tile floor meekly. “I hope you’ll forgive me, Toxic,” Pick muttered softly, not meeting his brother’s gaze. “I had to help. I couldn’t just let you do it all.” “What are you talking about?” Pick stood up proudly at that, Toxic now seeing the insignias and chevrons on the armor. “What in the world…?” “I was the most qualified individual to command your fleet,” Pick explained, “Don’t blame Varti. I-I had to help. Nocreature else came close to my expertise. What do you think I did all day in that blasted hospital bed?” Toxic sat down in shock, the stallion taking a few breaths. “How?” “I’ve been monitoring everything, Toxic,” Pick said softly, sitting down next to his brother. “Ever since those freaks left me bedridden. I’ve been analyzing the toxins and wanting to help. You didn’t think Varti designed all of those airships, did you?” He got a stare at that, Toxic simply shrugging. “I’ve got nothing. So, all this time…” “While this organization is yours, I’ve been helping in the background as best as I could. I-” Pick’s words failed, the stallion looking away to scan the room, confirming they were alone. “Mom and Dad didn’t see what your job was doing to you, but I did. Varti too. I couldn’t stand by and just let you hurt, so we worked together.” Staring at his brother for a moment, Toxic reached over and wrapped a forelimb around the pony’s shoulders. “Thank you, Pick,” he finally said. “Thank you.” Returning the gesture, Pick wiped some moisture from his eyes, standing up with a deep breath. Toxic saw genuine trepidation now entered his brother’s expression, alarm bells starting to ring. “Pick, what is it?” The golem-pony shook his head, standing a bit taller as he met Toxic’s gaze, but even the older stallion could see the younger pony was genuinely nervous. “I won’t sugarcoat it. We were only able to rescue you.” An icy dagger punched Toxic in the gut, Pick holding up a hoof. “Gelliana is alive though, and safe as far as we can tell. Her armor absorbed what would have been a lethal blast, but she is alive. She’s held in their mountain fortress. Apparently, Fide helped craft a bracelet for her so the Shadow-King can’t touch her. We’re repairing and re-arming all vessels. We’ll have the entire fleet ready when we hit the fortress. We just need more time.” Toxic slumped to the ground, forelimbs abruptly starting to shake. They got to her. “Toxic?!” “But she is alright?” Toxic whispered, Pick nodding firmly. “Yes. We embedded large, multi-use crystals into the mountain. The Shadow-King doesn’t even know they are there. We can monitor everything, or blow half of the rock face away. Her vitals are stable, and she appears to be in a sort of artificial sleep. No signs of interrogation or spells. She’s just held there.” Seeing his brother crumple to the floor, Pick’s eyes widened in realization. “You guys are close, huh?” “U-understatement,” Toxic hissed, struggling to control his breathing as an anxiety attack threatened to cloud his thoughts. “Of course, nobody else knows. Stupid of me to assume.” “Not stupid, just out of the loop,” Pick clarified. “What do you need?” “Get me to a spell-chamber. No, find me Fide or Clari. I don’t care which,” Toxic managed to say, staggering upright. Outright horror was beginning to fade, a heat starting to burn in his hooves and chest. “Strike that. Fide, Clari, where are you?” Toxic barked to the room, “I know you can hear me!” Snapping into existence, Fide nodded to the stallion. The ethereal mare apparently now taking the lead in things. “Toxic. I am glad to see you are well,” Fide said calmly, the mare clearly not hiding that she was choosing her words carefully. “Is the lockout spell working?” Toxic asked, Pick looking on in concern as his brother’s sides heaved. “Is…” “The lockout spell would have been insufficient without intervention,” Fide said, a kind smile now on her face and prompting a surprised glance from Pick, “So, my sister and I have been delaying the Shadow-King’s efforts for over two days. Clari is now the one working in the background.” That made Toxic sit down, Pick looking at her in shock. “Wait, what?! That’s not what you told me!” The Fleet Commander said, Fide letting out a huff. “Obviously. Information tips the scale, remember? When Toxic could know, then you all could as well,” Fide explained. “The Shadow-King has been attempting to interrogate and torture Gelliana for two days. We have prevented any and all physical and mental harm to her. However, we can’t do that any longer.” “Why not?” Toxic butted in, Fide’s expression softening. “Because now you’re awake. She wasn’t even supposed to be captured,” Fide continued, “the armor I gave her only caused her to be knocked unconscious rather than utterly destroyed. The blast was meant for you. She shoved you aside.” Toxic could only stare, trying to process that information. “She…” “Saved your life. Your armor in your magically-weakened state may have not been enough. Her capture was a fluke- one that my sister and I have been balancing. We could not allow Him to harm Gelliana, not without an opposing force.” “I don’t fully understand, but I’ll take it,” Toxic muttered, “so, now what?” “Now, the lockout spell will indeed persist and prevent physical harm of any type. But the mental barrier cannot be maintained by my sister and myself without harming the balance of things. Within a few hours, our efforts will utterly cease. We will give you a final warning before that happens so you can reacclimate briefly.” Toxic struggled to his feet, nodding firmly. “You could have just said it’s my turn,” he replied, starting to walk out of the room as Pick followed. “I need to get to a spell-chamber by then.” “I suppose that would have sufficed,” Fide mused. Toxic paused in the hospital halls, he turned to look Fide in the eyes. The mare was genuinely taken aback as the stallion’s jaw clenched, struggling to force out he words. “Fide, thank you,” he said, barely above a whisper. “I can’t tell you how much…” “I think I have a general idea. Now, go,” she said with a nod. “And, you are welcome.” The next few hours were a flurry of activity. A tearful portal-call with his parents had been necessary, the Shield’s happy to hear that their two sons were safe and sound. Apparently Gelliana’s parents were with them in Canterlot; that would be a conversation for Celestia to handle. Varti had nearly crushed the stallion with a hug, but the Yak had wasted no time in bringing him up to speed. In short, Toxic had learned the organization was starting to fire on all cylinders. Equestria had only now learned of the details of the attack, mainly from the verbal account of a passing caravan near the shield-zone. Apparently, the threat of Equestria’s water supply being tainted had been surprisingly easy to eliminate. Knife and her Templar squad had rapidly deployed to dozens of locations. Only in three were devices found to inject a familiar chaos-agent into the supply. Once located, it was a simple matter for Varti to craft a tracking spell and have the Organization’s mages test and triple-test it. Not that they’d let the Shadow-King know of his failed attempts, but it made Equestria’s leadership breath a bit easier. The short conversation between Toxic and the Princess’s had been primarily of telling them everything he learned. They were clearly miffed at being kept out of the loop concerning rescue efforts, but they understood at least. It was Celestia’s final words, however, that made Toxic pause. “If you can get Gelliana out of there, Luna and myself can lend aid,” Celestia had said firmly. “We are prepared to shut down the water in multiple locations as a precaution. I won’t risk a strike if Gelliana is there. But if you can get her out…” For how powerful the King was, Toxic knew that the fury of the Solar Empress was likely unmatched. Apparently, Pick’s overload of the Bringer had fried more than half of the King’s chaos-creatures, a tactic that unfortunately would only work once. The Shadow-King was vulnerable. Most of his forces were incapacitated, the leverage on Equestria reduced if not eliminated. All that prevented his demise was a single gryphoness. Toxic planted his hooves in the spell chamber, the leyline energies flickering around his frame. The Organization was running perfectly fine without him; and that left the stallion free to focus on his primary job. Gells. A bracelet on his left forelimb would let him know if he was ever needed within moments notice, day or night. Without Fide and Clari’s intervention, Gelliana was left exposed to the Shadow-King’s mental torture. The lockout spell required a third party to intervene, and nocreature else would be as effective as Toxic in this case. Without someone to blunt the effects, Gelliana would likely not be able to tell real from fantasy, the Shadow-King able to dredge up nightmares from the darkest parts of her heart until she mentally snapped. Toxic’s eyes narrowed at that thought, red flecks of arcane energy leaking from his eyes. Not if I have anything to say about it. The floor was cold. Waking up with a pounding headache, Gelliana’s limbs felt like they were made of lead. What in…? The last thing she remembered was shoving Toxic out of the way of a magical blast, her armor taking the brunt of it. The fact she was bare feathers and fur indicated that it must have been damaged, or perhaps destroyed. Looking around, the gryphoness slowly stood on…nothing. She let out a terrified squeak, wings flaring for a fall that never came. The world around her was dark, the odd outlines of a framed room slowly becoming visible. A single, large door was visible in front of her; the gryphoness taking a moment to think. Am I dead? I can feel everything, I’m still me. But, there’s just…nothing here. Either this is the worst afterlife ever, or I’m still alive. The air was borderline frigid, cold enough to almost be uncomfortable. Time wasn’t measurable, Gelliana scouring the room as best she could with leaden limbs. There was a ghostly picture of a tree on a wall, a couch that she couldn’t lay down in. It was like being a spirit in a room, unable to touch anything other than the ground, walls, and ceiling. What was also inescapable was the crushing sense of loneliness. She felt like a bird in a cage, something watching her eagerly, hungrily. It made her fur and feathers prickle, eyes boring into the back of her head. As she huddled in a corner, the gryphoness wanted nothing more than a certain pony to hold her close. She was so tired of being the strong one. That thought made Gelliana shiver. I guess that sums it up. Being so abruptly removed from their situation was a mental shock she was still coming to terms with. One minute, she was caring for a pony she loved with all her heart. The next, she was stuck in some weird magical room. It started a cascade of thoughts that she could barely control. The fatigue was now starting to set in, and Gelliana wanted to just cry. Yet all she could muster were a few hot tears streaking down her cheeks. She was so tired. Tired of being strong, even if it was for somepony that she’d do it for again. More tears ran down her cheeks, Gelliana wrapping her claws around her torso. For the first time in more than a month, she was utterly alone. No creature answered her cries, and no warm embrace dried her tears. It was like she was back at her greenhouse during a thunderstorm, wrapped underneath blankets as she tried to forget her fears. What do I do? The answer came after another, indeterminant period of time. A knock at the door made the gryphoness’s ears perk up immediately. Forcing herself to stand, Gelliana pushed herself into a sitting position and called out. “Hello?” “Gelliana?” Her heart soared, tears springing to Gelliana’s eyes as Toxic’s familiar voice reaching her ears. “Tox? What is going on?” she asked, forcing herself towards the door, “what is this place?” “I can explain. I just need you to open this door.” Gelliana’s claws reached for the latch-and then paused. She wanted nothing more than to open the door and- Wait. Her excitement faltered. Something seemed off, Toxic’s voice abruptly not matching up. It didn’t sound right, feel right. The bracelet on her left forelimb abruptly vibrated, the crystal spitting angry sparks as the magic flowed over her body. The spell. That shield; Toxic said it would prevent… An icy dread made Gelliana’s throat close up. It overrode everything and nearly consumed the gryphoness, puzzle pieces quickly falling into place. I’m not dead. But I’m not safe either. “Gelliana? I can explain everything, I just need you to open this door. Are you alright in there?” Gelliana took a step back, looking at the door cautiously. “I’m fine, Toxic,” she said, “but something feels wrong.” “Tell me about it. This place gives me the creeps,” he replied. “I need to make sure it’s you, Toxic,” she elaborated, the voice letting out a sigh. “Huh? We really don’t have time for this. He’ll be here any minute! I don’t know how much longer you’ll be safe!” He? “Quick question. What did you ask me to do? You were so scared; what did you ask me to do, to promise? What was my answer?” “We really don’t have time for this!” “Answer me!” “Which time? First date? Second date? I was terrified!” “I meant recently.” “Oh, then definitely promise a twentieth date when we get back.” Gelliana’s eyes narrowed, her thoughts spinning as an additional latch magically appeared on the door- one she slammed shut. “Get out, whatever you are,” Gelliana hissed, “I d-don’t know who you are, but you’re not Toxic!” “Crafty girl,” the deep voice echoed, a massive, distorted face rising above the door and leering down at the gryphoness in the see-through ceiling. “So close, oh, that would have been so much easier.” “Y-you’re the Shadow…thing,” she stammered, backing up and hitting an invisible wall. “Shadow King, yes. And you, my dear gryphoness, are some lovely collateral I’m going to be thoroughly enjoying.” Just the words were enough to make Gelliana shudder, let alone the sinister tone behind them. “You know quite a bit about Toxic Shield. I need to know everything about him. His organization, him. And you’re going to tell me. Or, we do this the fun way,” the King drawled with a grin. “F-fun way?” “Did you know that some minds can only take so much nightmares? Scenes of brutality and horror before it snaps? You don’t have much experience with that, I wager. I wonder how long it will take before all they rescue is a shell.” Gelliana tried to hide her nerves, but her rear limbs gave out, the gryphoness wrapping her wings around her torso. “I’ve s-seen p-plenty,” she managed to say. “I am not giving you a thing about Toxic! I’ve survived your monsters this far!” “Oh, indeed,” the King admitted with a growl, “and caused quite a bit of damage including the loss of my lead acolyte. But that was when you had help, when you had your precious stallion. But, my dear, they are not here. Nobody is. Just you, and me and this empty space that is your mind.” “My mind? This is all…” she asked, pushing of the wall to stand a bit closer to the door- close enough to re-lock things as the entrance started to rattle. “A form of dreamscape. Where I have power you can’t imagine.” Gelliana managed a smirk; a scared one, but a partial grin nonetheless. “B-but you still can’t o-open a d-door.” There was silence from the other side, Gelliana scooting a bit closer- With a roar, a section of the door shattered inwards, a fanged mouth darting through and snapping at Gelliana’s throat. Out of pure reflex, the gryphoness drew back a clawed fist and punched, her strike breaking something on the shadow-creature’s nose with a wet crackle. “OW! How in the-?” Gelliana watched as the door slowly repaired itself, the gryphoness looking down at her claws. I did say I’d punch the Shadow-King for you, Toxic. That thought made a bit more confidence return. “You can’t get in here, can you! Not unless I let you!” Gelliana proclaimed. “That’s the spell Toxic made. It locks you out!” The fact pink sparks began to cascade from the bracelet made the gryphoness’s heart flutter. Certain types of magic had certain colors, and pink, well, Gelliana knew what that was. The King’s body shifted, sprouting a clawed fist as it slammed down onto the room. Claws scratched at the exterior, a solid purple shield pulsing softly at the attack. Some sort of powerful magic repelled the attack, the color changing to a brighter pink as the Shadow withdrew his claws. “You little brat. How did that even hit me!?” the King growled. “Fine. I don’t have to be so direct. We’ll start with a personal favorite of mine. Here’s a lovely close up of seeing gryphons freeze to death in winters! You can ignore it as much as you want, but the screams of the chicks will eventually get through!” A cold, icy wind started to blow through the room, Gelliana forcing a whimper down as she closed her eyes. How did he… “I can’t read all of your thoughts. But general things, oh, that’s just too easy,” the King drawled. “Enjoy. I’ll leave this running for a few hours. Then perhaps couple it with some thunderstorms, the howls of-” *Knock Knock Knock* Gelliana stared in shock, a second door appearing to her left. It was a simple door, a rudimentary latch being all that kept it shut. “What is-no,” the King muttered, “That’s not-” “Gelliana?” Her heart leaped as Toxic’s voice emanated from the other side, the gryphoness forcing her tired limbs into action. “Tox?” A sigh of relief was heard, along with a soft sniffle. “Gells, are you ok?” She nodded, reaching up to clamp a set of claws around her mouth for a moment to stop from crying out in relief. The difference was so stark; how could she have ever…? “I n-need to make sure it’s you,” she managed to say, “that Shadow-freak is here, He m-mimicked your voice.” “Of course. Ask me anything.” The immediate response made Gelliana’s heart nearly beat out of her chest. “I’ll a-ask two. The first he got wrong,” she said. “Don’t you two mortals ignore me!” the Shadow-King Bellowed, form swelling to the height of the skyscraper. “Oh, shut up.” Toxic’s dismissive reply made Gelliana half-laugh, half cry with relief. He’s back. “You have no power here. So, you will be SILENT!” To Gelliana’s shock, the creature’s mouth was abruptly bound with a muzzle. The King looked equally dumbfounded as he struggled with the gag, lines of energy reaching up from out of Gelliana’s view to strengthen it; leyline magic. “The questions, Gells?” She nodded, shaking herself out of the daze. “What did you ask me to do? You were so scared when you asked; and I promised to.” Toxic was quiet for a time, the stallion clearly collecting his thoughts. “Most recently?” he asked, “I asked you to be there for me when I woke up.” Gelliana couldn’t hold back a soft sob at that, nodding even though alone in the room. “P-perfect,” she stammered, “final one. What games did we play when hiding from that shadowy thing?” “Cards, tic-tak-toe, two truths, one lie, and me telling you about my Organization and how I gargled acid for my tests,” Toxic rattled off. “There is another game I much preferred though; hardly appropriate for this setting however. It usually involved you looking at me a certain way which I’ll never get tired of…” The answer made Gelliana let out a soft squeak, Toxic chuckling on the other side of the door. “And it sounds like I won again.” Opening the door, Gelliana’s eyes widened at seeing a familiar stallion staring back at her. She reached over and yanked him into an embrace, the door slamming shut behind her. “Hey there, Gells,” Toxic whispered into her ear as the stallion hugged her close. The gryphoness let herself cry, nuzzling into the pony’s fur as he rocked her back and forth. “Are you ok? Was I too late? Fide and Clari said I had a few hours.” “N-no, you were just in time,” she whispered, “what is all this? What is going on? I’ve just been in this room for I don’t know how long. Then He showed up.” Toxic gave her a final squeeze, pulling back to look her in the eye. “This is your mind,” he said calmly. “They captured you after you took that blast for me.” She couldn’t help but smile tearfully at that. “But the spell in the bracelet keeps you physically safe. Fide and Clari kept up the mental barriers while I was out. I’m safe and sound back at the Organization. But now, someone else needs to help you keep that creature out of your mind.” Gelliana shook her head even though she wanted the help. “I can d-do it,” she stammered, Toxic reaching over to give her a kiss. “Can you? Maybe,” he said, “but this is different. Remember how I said that the spell is a shield?” “Mmmhmm?” “I’m the shield. I can take whatever that monster dishes out. You can stay safe here. I’ll go out there and be the buffer.” Gelliana’s eyes widened, her head shaking vigorously as she began to understand. “W-wait, Tox!? No! You can’t-” Toxic reached over to tap her beak with a hoof. “It’s already done, Gells,” he explained. “It was done the minute you accepted the spell.” “I wouldn’t have said yes if you explained it that way!” Toxic’s expression saddened, the stallion nodding. “I know,” he admitted, “but I had to get you some help. Gells, I can’t l-let him show you. If you saw the things I’ve seen, it would change you. It would hurt you. I don’t want you to be a part of the world I work in.” He reached over and gently held Gelliana’s claws. “I want you to be a part of my world. But not that part of it. That part I want to keep locked away and as far away from those I love as possible. I want nothing more than to have someone who isn’t a part of that other world to come home to.” Even in a freakish dreamscape, the stallion made Gelliana’s heart melt. The fear and loneliness she felt before was barely even there. The Shadow-King finally tore off the muzzle, glaring down at the pair with unabashed hatred. “How DARE you silence me!” he bellowed, “A broken stallion and a gryphoness runt?! You DARE defy me?!” “Gells, do you trust me?” Toxic asked softly, still ignoring the King as if he were an angry toddler. “Of course,” was the immediate reply. “I’m going to need your permission to work here. To open the door and go outside. He’s got a lot of power here, but so do I. Especially if I have your permission.” Her head tilted curiously at that. “I don’t- I don’t understand.” “I never did tell you about my armor, about what I am. About what I agreed to be,” Toxic admitted. “Perhaps it was all for this point in time. I’ll explain later, but I need to get rid of this guy.” Gelliana gave him a long, loving kiss, then standing back from the door as Toxic looked at her expectantly. The gryphoness took a few deep breaths and nodded. “You can open it. Do whatever you need to, Tox. Just, thank you. And be safe,” she whispered. “When am I not? Ok, bad answer.” It was a lousy joke, but it made Gelliana snicker nonetheless. Concerned tears quickly took their place as Toxic unlatched the door and casually walked out of it. Just come back to me, Toxic. Standing in front of the door to Gelliana’s mind, Toxic looked up at the massive Shadow-King, genuinely unimpressed. “This is all you can do?” he asked, “a bunch of smoke and mirrors?” An eager chuckle was the King’s reply. As the scene changed to an underground laboratory, Toxic called out back to Gelliana. “Gelliana, do not open that door, not unless I answer three questions correctly!” he barked, “I’m going to blur things for you now. I don’t want you seeing this.” With a wave of his hoof, Toxic caused the room to shift to a dark opaque. The Shadow-King slammed a clawed fist down onto the pony with a snarl; the strike striking a bright pink shield around the stallion. The King’s eyes widening in shock, a few subsequent strikes being equally ineffective. “How are you able to do this?” he muttered, “this is a private realm, you cannot have power here! This is her mind, not yours!” “I have all the power here, monster,” Toxic snarled, armor starting to clamp onto his frame. “You are nothing more than a nightmare here while I have permission to help her. That gives me control of this realm. You cannot physically harm me or Gelliana! What does that leave you with?” The King laughed, the laboratory resolving into full view. Corpses hung impaled from metal girders, chaos-sludge frothing and bubbling beneath them as skeletal faces laughed. “I will break you first then!” Toxic looked around calmly, his jaw set firmly as his gaze matched the King’s. He didn’t try to hide the twitch on his face at seeing the gory scene, but he stared down the Shadow nonetheless. “This is your first shot? That’s it?” Toxic asked, the stallion trotting towards the monstrous creature. He reached out and casually caused one of the corpses to swing back and forth, Toxic’s green eyes narrowed in loathing. “You are an abomination, copying a power of dreams that only one Princess can command! You mean nothing here!” Toxic continued, staring up at the King with bared teeth. “She doesn’t need to hear this, but you do,” Toxic growled. “One moment.” With a wave of his hoof again, the room behind them became sealed off, only muffled sounds reaching Gelliana as the gryphoness paced anxiously. “Such insolence,” the King spat. “I will break you as-” “With what?” Toxic interjected. “You’ve been trying to break me for how long? Months? Years? How long have you influenced my nightmares? I almost broke long ago. You have only empty threats and desperate guesses left!” Toxic paused, his brow furrowing, “you said that I’m broken; but that’s not true. Even if I got close to it many times, when you get pushed to nearly cracking, you learn that sometimes you just have to live with things. That includes fears and nightmares. And I have been living with it!” As Toxic’s volume increased, as did a certain gryphoness’s curiosity. Unknown to the stallion, Gelliana tapped a wall, yearning to hear what exactly was transpiring. And, as she willed it, the room unblurred ever so slightly. Toxic’s voice was now clear, even if the visual scene wasn’t. “So, what can you assail me with, you shadow-demon?” Toxic asked, staring down the King. “My greatest fears? Do you even know them? You can’t read my mind; all you can do is guess. I’ve weathered nightmares that even the Princess of the Night can’t dispel, faced down horrors that made the Royal Guard vomit in disgust. So come on then! What can a King of Limbo summon?” The barest hints of unease now began to flicker across the Shadow-King’s face as the pony refused to be cowed, the Shadow’s form shrinking slightly. “Nothing? So much for the might of a King! Well, let’s go down the list, demon!” Toxic called out, the scene spinning beneath them. “I’ll start. How about this fear? This is the one where I am in Oakbark again. I can breathe just fine, but I get to watch everyone die around me, gasping for breath as they drown in their own blood. It took me years to not have that nightmare. Guess what? The reality was even worse. I know, because I was there!” The scene flipped again, the King becoming more and more unsettled as the stallion continued to speak, summoning up his own nightmares as if giving a history lesson to the Shadow. “How about this one?” Toxic asked, “Trapped in a lab, acid rising as the creatures I love are slowly dissolved? Can you do worse than that?” The Shadow had no answer, Toxic continuing to speak. “Oh, perhaps you know this fear,” he said with an abrupt and deadly-calm voice. “This is where somecreature I love gets captured, tortured, and I’m left helpless. That was a fun one after my sortie where I almost got stabbed in my tent while I slept. And now you have captured her. How do you think this is going to end, demon?” The fact Toxic was mentioning such scenarios so casually was clearly putting the Shadow-King off balance, the creature’s eyes narrowing in anger and confusion. “Oh, here’s the one where I’m stuck in a radioactive room with a broken mask. Did I mention the flesh-eating acid that I’m not immune to? Eating a radioactive sandwich and my insides fall out. Watching my family burn in a fire that I can never throw enough water on fast enough. How many more do you want, you aberration?” Toxic rattled off. “You can give me nothing that can surpass this! Come on then! What do you have? What nightmares can you conjure up? I. Am. Waiting!” “What are you?” the King growled, taking an invisible step back, “you are…what kind of pony can endure all of this? Speak of such things casually?” “I’m one of a kind,” Toxic chuckled humorlessly, “but let me make something perfectly clear. Send your nightmares. Give me your best shot. I will take it all. But you will not touch Gelliana.” The King let out a snort, clearly cautious but hardly giving up. “All this for a gryphoness runt who isn’t even your mate.” Toxic stood up straight at that, a genuine, softer grin twitching at his face. “I prefer to call her fun-sized,” he replied, “and what does that matter?” The pony paused, features twitching as the ghost of a smile touched them, “But no, she isn’t my mate, not yet at least. But I can’t imagine a life without her. Not now, and not ever. You of all things isn’t going to change that. You can try, but you’ll break before I do!” Behind some tinted walls, Gelliana had to hold back a squeak. “Here’s why you have no power here, Shadow-King of the Limbo realm,” Toxic said, armored frame standing tall. “My entire life I have been needed, rarely wanted. I’ve nearly broken myself trying to save others. And now, when some beautiful creature opens their heart to me you kidnap both of us and try to torture her. You saturated my life with even more nightmares, but you failed.” With a wave of his hoof, Toxic brought the ‘floor’ upwards until he was face to face with the Shadow, despite the continual size difference. “I’ve waited my entire life for someone like Gelliana,” Toxic said softly, “Someone who loves me, faults and all, nightmares and all. And you, demon, have threatened to take away the one creature who has brought me peace, actual joy free from my nightmares. Someone who showed me a future where I am free of it all. You dare try to take her from me?” a smirk slid onto Toxic’s face, a helmet clamping around his head as the breastplate began to pulse a soft pink. “You try and take away from me a creature who embodies everything I have tried to protect? Everything I have sworn to protect?” As leyline energy began to course around Toxic’s frame, the King’s eyes widened in genuine horror, leyline bolts flickering across the pony’s limbs as a bright pink symbol shone on his breastplate. “No, that isn’t possible,” he hissed, stepping backwards even more. “Those witches. They didn’t, they can’t!” “Shadow-King, my other name is Phoenix,” Toxic said, arcane energy igniting underneath his hooves with blue flames. “I am the first of many Guardians, but I am the guardian of Hope, of Innocence, and of Life. A guardian of the leylines, and those have more power than you can ever hope to wield. But there’s one other aspect I’m a Guardian of.” The flames took on a pink tinge, a ball of magic forming on Toxic’s retracted hoof. “It’s something I don’t expect you to understand,” he admitted, eyes narrowed to slits as the arcane energy began to spit angry sparks, “while it can be tender and soft, it can be fierce and raging. You’ve challenged the Guardian of Love for Gelliana’s life. And my answer is this; you will NEVER hurt her! Not now, not EVER! Now get out of my gryphoness’s head!” Toxic drew back his hoof and threw the ball of energy like a hoofball, the blast tearing the dreamscape asunder as it bored into the Shadow-King’s face. The creature let out a mortified scream as it desperately clawed at the energy as it ripped away eyes and mouth alike. Toxic’s eyes narrowed in a wrathful sneer as he split the energy, the lightning bolts eating away laterally at the King’s form until he finally dissolved with a choked gasp. His sides heaving, Toxic let the armor flow off his body and return to the magical nether. Taking a few moments to compose himself, the pony didn’t even try to wipe the tears off his face. The comforting warmth that flowed through his frame brought nothing but peace. Despite dredging up some of the worst of his nightmares and laying them bare, the thoughts simply faded. It was only a flicker, but Toxic felt the beginnings of freedom. Free from the fear, free from the pain. He had challenged a creature of nightmares and sent it running. But this was not for himself; this wasn’t to protect his own mind. “Gells? The three questions?” Toxic asked outside the door. What he didn’t expect was to be yanked inside without a word, a gryphoness wrapping him up in a kiss that made his head spin. Gelliana didn’t say anything. The gryphoness simply held on to Toxic as tightly as she could, curling up in his embrace as he leaned against a wall. As he rocked her back and forth, Gelliana managed a soft, stammering request. A single word that reminded Toxic that underneath her forced, tough-as-nails shell that she had needed to develop, there was still a very sensitive gryphoness he loved. A shy individual who wanted nothing more than to, at times, just tend to her garden and read a book. “S-stay?” Toxic shifted his embrace, cradling Gelliana in his forelimbs and resting his head on top of hers. “As long as you need me, I’m here,” he whispered. Gelliana’s only reply was to hug him tighter. Even in a dreamscape, Toxic wanted nothing more than to make his gryphoness feel safe. Just hang on, Gells. We’re coming! Chaos magic dripped from the Shadow-King’s frame, fizzling onto the floor as if bleeding from a physical wound. Ethereal claws gripped a shattered face, shaking with pain as the magic slowly repaired the damage. “You have underestimated them at every turn,” his willing host sighed, the individual leaning up against the rock wall. “I have tried to warn you. Let me guess, Toxic isn’t just some unicorn? I could have told you that. I did tell you that.” “That pony is a Guardian,” the King snarled, “Those witches; they dared give him that much power?! Of multiple aspects?” “Nurse your wounds and ego then. I have to return before I am missed. Commander Chaster is mustering the troops. We are down to a little over a third of your creations. I do not think that will be enough to repel the inevitable attack. The Last Light Organization was holding back last time.” As his host had been continually, the Shadow-King knew he was right. “Then make plans. That is your specialty. Take what resources you need, ensure that we have a fallback point. I do not see this gryphoness as yielding any information or entertainment.” “I assumed as such. That bracelet binds Toxic to her somehow, if I had to guess. Brilliant strategy, and I expected nothing less.” The King’s eyes narrowed at that. “You sound like you admire him.” The pony shrugged at that. “I can admire a foe, can I not? The same way I admire the power you yield.” Letting out a grudging hiss, the Shadow nodded at that. “Fair enough. Just make sure we have somewhere to retreat to,” he spat. “Good. Acceptance of a potential loss allows planning for the future. I am pleased to see you opening your mind.” “Don’t test your luck, mortal.” Fanged teeth opened in a smirk at that. “I mean no disrespect. If anything, I find it admirable that you are able to adapt so readily after thousands of years trapped within one way of thinking. I’ll check in later.” His host departing with a burst of magic, the Shadow was left alone, save for a gryphoness floating off the floor inside a metal cage. Any attempts to touch her left individuals scalded as if they grabbed lava. And now, even her mind was locked away. A flurry of ideas began to spin within the Shadow’s mind. Guardian or not, he wasn’t about to simply yield. He still could play to fears all the same. Yet his mind was wracked with doubt. The pony protecting his prisoner had beheld things far beyond the King’s imagination.