//------------------------------// // Arc XIX Episode V: Final Stand // Story: Family Begins With You // by Jmaster49 //------------------------------// “You’re not as smart as you think you are,” Micro Chips commented as the nanomachines surrounding his body had formed into a white lab coat--in which he placed his hands in the pockets of. “We’ve got you figured out. Isn’t that right, professor?” As if rising from the depths of Tartarus itself, Aidon appeared from within the ground, clawing his way to the surface to make his entrance into the scene. “I concur. This one has made a grave error in judgement.” “...No…no errors,” Lucide forced herself to stand upright with a wide, unstable smile on her face--completely in denial over the current state of affairs. “I won’t concede to some lowly humans and their pathetic talking dog.” Micro Chips smugly pushed his glasses up against his face and retorted, “You mean this talking dog?” “...!” With a fearful gasp, Lucide turned her head in the direction of the dog she had thought she entangled in magic-sapping thorns. In reality, those anti-magic thorns had caused Spike to tap into his own personal supply thanks to the Aether. “She’s such an idiot…” he thought to himself. BOOM! A small implosion of violet magic occurred around his body, consuming the thorns that had him ensnared. But what was left over was not Spike the Normal Dog… “Rrrrrgh…” From the ashes of the implosion, rose what appeared to be a seven-foot tall purple and green werewolf with sharp claws, long, jagged sets of teeth, beaming red eyes, and intense muscular definition along his arms and legs which gave the impression of a strong, agile figure. Spike had become a Wolfman. The mere sight of the canine beast caused Lucide to take a step backwards--her legs quivered, her knees shook and multiple beads of sweat ran down the sides of her face. “No…n-no…how is that…that’s impossible!” First off, Spike could still speak--however, what was new was the fact that his voice was now filtered through multiple, demonic layers that projected his voice further, befitting his new appearance. “...You don’t know anything about the Aether, do you? As long as there’s magic in the air, I can call upon it for myself. I’ve been through many magical shenanigans as Twilight’s dog--and she’s always been the one to protect me. But now…it’s my turn to protect her.” With a shing!, green claws were exposed from his fingertips--each one appeared to be as sharp as kitchen knives. With Lucide effectively backed into a corner, she was stunned into silence. A silence that Flash Sentry broke as he and Sandbar joined the others in standing against her. “Give it up, lady,” he called out, pointing in her direction, “You’re outnumbered and outclassed. You don’t have to be some harbinger of destiny to make a difference. What matters is being your own person--not some puppet held aloft by the strings of fate. Is that what you are?” he continued as he took a step forward, “Someone else’s plaything? A toymaker’s creation inside a crystal ball?!” Flash’s words caused Lucide to grit her teeth as she held the sides of her head. It was all true--she had been unable to break free of her own shackles and couldn’t see what was plainly in front of her: Mortality and its sense of free will. Instead, she lashed out. “Shut up…shut up…SHUT UP!” she wailed as she retrieved something from her pocket--a pipe-shaped device with a small red button on top. “Take another step, and you can kiss your precious girlfriends goodbye!” she cackled hysterically with a deranged smile as she revealed a set of explosives strapped to her own body. “...” As soon as he saw the detonator, Aidon de-powered himself, reverting to his usual human form. He pulled Flash back, positioning himself in front of his students. “I won’t let you do this! These humans have done nothing to you--you don’t need to succumb to insanity--!” Once again, Lucide burst aloud in crazed laughter with her thumb twitching against the surface of the detonator. “Ahaha! Cut the shit, Aidoneous! You’re no different than us! Why bother sticking around with these lame, boring, uninspiring, cookie-cutter humans when you can have all the power in the multiverse and make everything as you see fit! A playground of your deepest desires! Not to mention: Revenge on that crusty old bastard, Starswirl The Bearded!” she said while viciously balling her free, left hand into a fist. Spike was on all fours like a proper wolf. His tail swayed, itching to take off at a moment’s notice. But Aidon knew that the potential risk was too great. He held out one hand in Spike’s direction and gave him a command, “Heel.” Then, he held out his other hand towards Lucide. “Listen. This isn’t worth it. I don’t know what it is you’re going through, but petty violence in an attempt to exact a wrong isn’t justice.” He looked over his shoulder at Micro Chips, Sandbar, and Flash Sentry who had been standing behind him, cowering in fear of the woman’s bomb. “These kids…these young adults are going to change the future of this world. I’ve come to accept where I belong: Here helping them rise above challenges in order to turn out better than I did. Something you clearly don’t comprehend.” Lucide’s left eyelid began to twitch as she retorted, “What in the shit are you talking about?” “Good. She’s distracted from thinking about pressing the button.” Aidon stood upright, and stroked his chin with an oddly casual frown given the situation. “You and your boss clearly think lowly of yourselves. So lowly that you’d go on an entire tirade just to try and reshape an entire world after already being rejected from one…you’re the one who needs pity. Not me. I’ve made the best of my situation. But there’s still hope for you. If you just gave this world a chance instead of blindly following your superior…” Lucide tilted her head downwards, staring at the ground. “...You’re wrong. Nothing you say will sway me from my goal. Even if I have to give up my own life, Lady Acida will succeed!” In the moments that led up to Lucide pressing that button on the detonator, Flash was already thinking. “It’s a remote detonator which requires a radio signal in order to provide feedback for the device to receive a command. If I can somehow manage to stop her before she sets it off…” Flash could see her thumb move to press the detonator, and he instantly jumped into action, running out in front of the group. “NO!!” “FLASH!” everyone shouted immediately after--right before-- Click.