Twilight was still working off the pleasure she felt when her and the others were teleported out. She was giggling when Spike came over and touched her shoulder. She flinched, and turned to him. It took her a moment to recognize him. "What, what do you want?!"
"Um... Twi? You feeling alright?" Spike asked worried. He didn't like the look in her eyes. It was as if she were possessed by something. Something that wasn't at all like the friendly pony he had known all his life. "You looked kinda angry out there, and now you're all giggly." Before she could say anything (which is probably for the best), Vinyl leaped in front of her.
"Yo, that was so sick!" Vinyl gushed. "Hey, when'd you learn that insta-kill skill? Never seen anything like that except from Rainbow Dash!" Twilight pushed the pony out of the way, causing her and Spike to land in a heap. She glared back at them.
"I've gotten more power. That's all that matters." She walked out of the arena, and was nearly to the Chaos Gate when Rarity stopped her. She turned to her with a dark smile. "Looks like you all were right. I got my Avatar. Now you just have to find Tri-Edge and-" The marshmallow pony put her hoof to Twilight's mouth, silencing her.
"Twilight, what you did was a serious problem. Yes, you managed to summon your Avatar. However, you need to gain control over it. If you think you can use it properly, then you are sorely mistaken." Twilight growled, but Rarity brushed it off. "Zecora gave us a location to help train you in summoning your Avatar. It seems there is an outbreak of AIDA there that we need to deal with."
"Get out of the way!" Twilight yelled at the top of her lungs, but it was too late. The swarm was moving too fast. There was no way she'd make it in time. They'd end up just like Fluttershy, and once again, she'd be the one responsible. She felt the darkness closing in around her, and she pushed herself to move faster, when a white blur appeared and knocked the two aside. The black swarm penetrated Rarity's form and blasted her into the wall. She fell into a heap. "NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!"
Rarity started to get up, and Twilight felt relieved. But something was wrong. Her body wasn't moving right. "Twilight...." she whispered, "run away." She looked at Twilight, and her eyes were black. Suddenly, AIDA began pouring forth from her. Rarity let out a piercing scream of pain, and Twilight knew it wasn't just her character being affected. She remembered when she was attacked by Tri-Edge, how it had burned into her actual flesh. Now, her friend (for Rarity was still her friend, no matter how angry she was at her), and seeing her suffer was too much.
Twilight held her hoof out, reaching for her, when a pattern appeared around Rarity. It was a pink pattern, shaped like armor. It looked different, but Twilight knew what was happening. Rarity's Avatar was going to appear. It seemed the AIDA was forcing it out. The full extent of the warning hit Twilight. Rarity clearly had much better control of her Avatar, and now she was infected. The combination couldn't be good. Twilight turned to run, but she couldn't do it. This was Rarity, the same Rarity who had saved her, the Rarity she had known for so long, the Rarity who had become one of her closest friends, and despite being cold to her, still cared for her well being. The same Rarity, who was suffering right now before her eyes, and still wanted her to save herself. Twilight felt Skeith calling to her, and she answered. Her own armor pattern began to form.
"I am NOT letting you take any more of my friends!" Twilight raged. Skeith appeared, and Twilight watched as Rarity's Avatar took form. Twilight let out a gasp. Rarity's Avatar was at least twice as large as hers, and was a terrifying sight. It's legs were bound together, and formed a blade on the lower half. Her arms were bound by a ring of spikes, and large cracked pieces of armor hung from her head in a shape similar to her hair. A large intimidating spike went through her midsection. AIDA came from all along her form. Twilght/Skeith took a step back. This wasn't going to be easy.
She pulled out her scythe, then blocked with it as Rarity unleashed a large orb of energy at her. It broke through her block, and stunned her. Rarity moved back, and shot a group of needle-like energy beams from her back. Twilight managed to dodge them, but they circled back and hit her in her blind spot. Twilight gritted her teeth and fired a few blasts of her own. Rarity dodged them, then sent another orb at her. This time, rather than try and block, Twilight slashed at it. It was torn to pieces after the third hit. Twilight quickly retaliated by dashing forward and slashing at Rarity. The larger Avatar took the blows, and retreated.
Twilight took a moment to recuperate. It seemed Rarity's Avatar was strong, but the binding's only allowed it to use ranged attacks. It also seemed she was only able to dodge Twilight's slower energy blasts, but not her quick slashes. She'd have to pour on the heat from close range if she wanted to win. She prepared to launch another barrage of attacks, when the tip of the spike in the Avatar's midsection began to glow. An eye formed, and Twilight realized what would happen next. "Oh no..." she said fearfully, as a Data Drain sped out. The blast hit her hard, draining the air from her lungs. The pain was as she remembered, but this time, instead of causing her to black it, it simply kept burning. "No... not gonna lose... I'm not gonna lose like this!"
Focusing, Twilight broke free of the Data Drain, and struck at Rarity. Rarity used the large armor to defend herself, and Twilight struck it until it opened. Rarity appeared to be stunned, and Twilight took her chance. She unleashed all she had in a final decisive blow. She heard a breaking sound, then turned. Her body moved automatically, forming her own Data Drain. She fired, and it hit Rarity dead on. The rainbow ribbons of data sprang forth from her, and her Avatar disappeared. She fell slowly, and Twilight burst from her own Avatar and quickly ran to catch her.
Rarity landed in her hooves. Twilight shook her, tears beginning to form in her eyes. "No, no, no! You can't go like this! You can't!" Twilight kept shaking, her eyes beginning to burn, when the white unicorn opened her eyes. They were once again the magnificent sapphire blue she had always seen. Rarity smiled at her.
"My... that was unpleasant. I must look so unbecoming..." Twilight's jaw dropped, then she began to laugh uncontrollably. Soon, Rarity, joined in, and the two of them sat there, the trouble they'd just suffered through fading into the past.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
The next battle was against Trixie, Snips, and Snails. Twilight, Spike, and Vinyl were across from them, striking an awesome battle pose. The audience was in an uproar. "Why are we posing like this again?" Spike asked Vinyl. The electric-maned unicorn smiled fiercely.
"Duh! If we strike an awesome pose and get the crowd on our side, then the other team won't have the heart to fight!" She had not even a hint of sarcasm or regret in her voice. Twilight had to respect that, because she was feeling quite silly. It also seemed that Trixie was angrier than usual at their display.
"We should get ready to fight soon. The fight is going to start soon, and we should be ready. Don't forget what's at stake if we lose." Vinyl and Spike nodded, and soon they were all in battle positions. Not a moment after, the announcer counted down to the match start.
"Three.... Two.... One.... BEGIN!"
Suddenly, Snips and Snails were on Vinyl and Spike. Before Twilight could do anything, Trixie and her clashed blades. Twilight, using her broadsword, had the advantage of strength, and pushed Trixie back. She managed to get a few hits on the blue unicorn, before Trixie retaliated hard. As a Blade Brandier, she was faster than Twilight when using her Edge Punisher abilities. Twilight tried to block, but she was being hit too fast. She'd need to switch to her Twin Blade abilities if she wanted to keep up. She backed away, and attempted to switch, but Trixie was having none of it.
"Oh, you're not getting away that easily, Twilight Snarkle!" Trixie put on the pressure harder, and Twilight noticed her health was getting low. She had to heal, or there was no way she'd be able to win. She locked blades with Trixie again, and looked for Vinyl and Spike. They were both being pressed on by Snips and Snails, the colts showing amazingly high skill. Twilight pushed against Trixie, but she was too weak. Trixie managed to overpower her, driving her health even lower. Twilight decided she needed to use a skill, and attacked with Tiger Blitz. The attack only bought her a moment, but it was enough to switch to her Twin Blade skills. She held up her daggers, ready to counterstrike. Vinyl and Spike were suddenly at her sides, both breathing as heavily as her.
"These kids are no joke," Vinyl huffed. Somehow, her goggles had managed to slip down her face, revealing her magenta eyes. All the humor was gone from them. Twilight saw a passion burning in them she had never seen before. She turned and looked at Twilight.
"Wow, I've never seen this side of you." Twilight said amazed. Vinyl scoffed.
"That's because things haven't been this serious. You may not have wanted to be part of Canard that much, but it's all me and Vinyl have here. That guild is where all of our happy memories are from. Now, only me and Vinyl are left, and we're on the brink of collapse. So yeah, I'm not exactly a happy pony. I'm going to give it everything I've got to protect what I care about." Her words pulled at Twilight's heart. Vinyl was so much like she was... like she used to be. Now, Trixie was threatening to take it all away from her, and once again, ponies would suffer and Twilight would be responsible. Her anger built, and she could hear Skeith whispering in her ear. She gave in to the lull of the power, and felt the familiar rush of her body becoming cocooned in Skeith's. Once more they were one, and she lifted their scythe.
Trixe, Snips, and Snails were moving in the slow motion that all normal players moved in when AIDA or an Epitaph User activated. She felt revolted. Compared to her, they were insects. No, they were less than insects; they werenothing. The thoughts struck Twilight as rather strange, but she pushed the thought away. She was going to erase this problem. She held her scythe execution style (how she knew what execution style was like, she'd never be able to explain) and began to laugh. With a vicious stroke, she tore through them all. She released Skeith, and a dark sense of annoyance passed through her. The feeling was alien.
The trio teleported out, and Vinyl hugged Twilight. "Thank you so much... you don't know what it means to me and Octavia. You're a great guild master, Twi!" Twilight blushed and looked away. This pony was way too... something. It wasn't entirely bad, but it gave her weird chills sometimes. She left Vinyl to talk with Spike, when she received a message. She read it over, then exclaimed with much annoyance, "What?!" The others looked to her.
"What is it Twilight?" Spike asked. She simply brushed him off however, and made towards the exit. Spike ran after her. "Come on Twi, what's going on?"
"Nothing concerning you, Spike," Twilight said without looking back. "Let me know when our next match is." As she exited, she couldn't see the tear escaping her assistant's eye.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Twilight stood at the Chaos Gate beside Ditzy. "So you're sure you've found some more information on Tri-Edge?" Twilight asked. The golden-eyed mare nodded.
"Yes! While I was exploring many a likely area, I happened across a purely scenic area, like the Grand Hullz Cathedral, which bears a mark! I had no time to properly examine it however, because I was sure I heard voices. So I called you so that we could investigate together!" Twilight rolled her eyes. It seemed she was only called because Ditzy was too afraid to investigate on her own. Still, a lead was a lead, and she'd take any lead she had. The two travelled to Delta Hidden Forbidden Bulwark, and appeared on a cliff overlooking a deep canyon. The entire cliff was blocked off by a large wall, which appeared to reach the sky. Twilight spotted two characters further down, and she and Ditzy ducked behind some bushes. Twilight moved closer, while Ditzy said she'd hang back and defend their exit. "Better to not have us both get caught at the same time... I can be back-up!"
Twilight moved carefully, and reached the two players. She noticed the Tri-Edge mark on the wall. It was huge. Before she could dwell on it, she looked back to the two players and stifled a gasp.
"What is it you need of me here? These symbols I don't enjoy being near..." said Zecora. The zebra was sitting down facing the wall, but Twilight could tell it wasn't what was on her mind.
"I simply wanted to talk to an old acquaintance is all," said Celestia mysteriously. Twilight couldn't believe it. She'd been trying to find Celestia for some time now. The last time she had seen her teacher, she had been standing before the Grand Hullz Cathedral, telling Twilight that Tri-Edge had returned to the scene of the crime. She said she would help, but Twilight had been too impatient to wait and had rushed in. Since then, Celestia had been a ghost. It was strange though. Although Spike said she played the game, Twilight couldn't figure why she would in her condition. And why after all this time was she talking to Zecora?
"A talk with you is never simple, no; there is something in your mind that you wish me to know."
Celestia smirked, then turned to Zecora. "Always so to the point... I admire that. You should take some time to relax though. All kinds of things can happen to those who take things too seriously all the time. But I take it you know that already?" Zecora said nothing. Celestia turned her attention to the wall. "I wonder... what secrets lie behind this wall? The lore said it was built as a barrier to keep away something extraordinary and terrible. A secret which could change 'The World.'"
Zecora adjusted her glasses. "I believe there is no such creation; this wall is here simply as decoration." She looked to Celestia, her expression not revealing anything on her mind. Celestia turned to her, her smirk also hiding the secrets of her thoughts. The two watched each other for a moment, before Zecora sighed. "One day Celestia, I will find what you keep hidden-"
"Ah, but my knowledge is forbidden," Celestia finished, mocking Zecora. The zebra didn't rise to the bait however, and simply teleported out. Celestia looked down to her sealed limb, the smile fading slightly from her lips. "Yes, my knowledge is quite forbidden... but when the time is right, all will be revealed." She then, too, teleported out.
Twilight stepped out of the bushes, and put her hoof to the Tri-Edge symbol. Nothing happened. She sighed, and thought about what she had overheard. It was obvious that Zecora and Celestia had secrets, and she was sure she wasn't meant to hear that conversation just now. Twilight couldn't help but feel a spike of spite. She had been trying to find Celestia for some time now; if Zecora had kept an eye on her as closely as she had said, then surely she would've known how much Twilight wanted to speak to her mentor. Instead, she kept her away.
"This is not over, not by a long shot," Twilight promised. She went up the path and met Ditzy, informing her that there was nothing to find. The pony looked disappointed, but then perked up when Twilight thanked her for her diligence.
"Not a problem, ma'am!" Ditzy raised her hoof to her head. "Glad I could be of assistance in our ongoing investigation of that dastardly Tri-Edge! I'll stay on it like blueberries on a muffin!" She rubbed her belly. "Mmm... muffin."
Twilight rolled her eyes and made her way back to the arena just as Spike was making a message. She caught him off guard, making him spit out a burst of fire. It was adorable how he did it in the game the same as he did in real life. "Twi! I was just going to get you! Our next match is starting right now! If we win this, we get to challenge Rainbow Dash!"
"Well, let's not keep them waiting!" Twilight was brimming with energy. She couldn't figure out what kind of energy, but she was sure she was ready for anything. When they all were teleported to the arena, she realized the folly of this assessment. Everypony's jaw dropped. "You.... why are you all here?!"
The team they were facing, was Rarity, Applejack, and her brother, Shining Armor. Twilight watched as AJ stepped forward. "Hey Twi. We need to have a chat."
"Why are you here?" Twilight was having a hard time thinking straight. "We're after the same thing, and I'm actually doing something about it. So why are you interfering?"
AJ looked at Twilight with a sad look that only seemed to make her wrath grow stronger. "Listen sugarcube, we're fine with you dealing with Rainbow Dash. She's become a problem recently, but we haven't had the time to properly investigate. But that's not why we're here to talk about your problem. Ya can't just go around using yer Avatar all willy-nilly like. These things cause repercussions. An Epitaph User attacking normal players is almost as dangerous as AIDA attacking em. You need to learn that just cuz ya have power, doesn't mean you can use it whenever ya like. If you had used a Data Drain, then Trixie and them others would be just like Fluttershy."
Twilight couldn't recall the moment when her Skeith appeared. The mention of Fluttershy's name had caused such burning emotion in her that everything seemed to skip forward, and she was moving to attack Applejack. She wanted to shut her mouth once and for all. Applejack sighed, and her own Avatar appeared, blocking Twilight's attack. She hit Twilight with a barrage of energy from close range, Twi could barely feel it. Her anger had put her beyond pain.
She slashed at AJ more, each successful hit fueling her bloodlust. She began to laugh as she hit her. Applejack simply took the hits, no longer trying to resist. Twilight prepared to attack once more, when she felt all her anger disappear. She looked around. She was still in Avatar Space, but she could no longer feel Skeith's presence. All the bitterness she's been building was simply... gone. A sound made her turn, and she was met with a terrifying sight.
Skeith was decimating Applejack's Avatar. Bits and pieces of its form were falling off, and Skeith had stopped using his staff as a scythe. The energy blade was gone; now, it was simply beating AJ with the staff.
"Stop it."
Twilight's voice was a whisper as she watched in horror as AJ's Avatar's beautiful dragon-like form, with its long majestic tail and its leaf-like accents became beaten, battered, and torn. Skeith had stopped using the staff, and was now viciously attacking with claws. Data was flowing like blood now, and AJ was barely moving.
"Stop it!"
Twilight's voice still wouldn't carry. She could feel the anger, the hatred, the pure unadulterated lust for pain that came off of Skeith in waves. Skeith held AJ's head, and began to tear at her harder and harder. Twilight wanted to look away, but she couldn't turn away from the horror. Skeith threw Applejack into the edge of Avatar Space and watched it bounce off, then reached and grabbed her. As he pulled her back in, he formed his staff again and stabbed her through. Twilight felt as if she could feel the hit herself.
"STOP IT!!!"
Twilight's shouts wouldn't reach. AJ began to fall, no force keeping her afloat. Skeith held up his hand, and pointed it to the broken form. Twilight knew what was coming next. Just as she thought it, the familiar eye of energy appeared. It pointed at AJ, and the walls of light formed around it. They began to spin, and the energy was collected faster and faster.
"STOPITSTOPITSTOPITSTOPITSTOPITSTOPITSTOPITSTOPITSTOPITSTOPITSTOPIT!!!!!!"
Twilight watched as Skeith shot a Data Drain at AJ, and it hit her dead on. The scream was like a wild thing's. Twilight realized it was coming from her. AJ turned to her, and Twilight could swear she could see the orange earth pony through her Avatar's deteriorating form. Words came to her from it.
"Twi, I hope you realize now the danger this power is we have. We're not fully in control of them, but they can take control of us. Now, don't you go thinking this as your fault. I knew this would happen; it had to, for you to learn. Grow stronger Twi, but never lose yourself in the darkness. Your Avatar is the most important of them all, but also the most dangerous. See ya soon, Twi....."
As her friend slowly disappeared, and Skeith let out a final roar of savagery, Twilight felt as if a piece of her had died. She looked at her fading Avatar with a hollow anger. Applejack had suffered all of that, so much pain, so much unbearable pain, just for her. Avatar Space collapsed back into the arena, and Twilight was on her knees staring at the ground. Tears fell from her eyes like a waterfall, and they refused to quit. Twilight felt a gentle hoof on her shoulder, and looked up. It was Shining Armor. He looked at his sister, and his expression hardened. He tilted his head backwards, indicating for her to look past him.
Twilight acknowledged it, and saw an amazing sight. Applejack was there, leaning against Rarity with a slightly dazed expression, but she was there. Twilight smiled. Applejack turned to her, and she smiled as well.
"We forfeit!" Shining Armor announced loudly. Spike and Vinyl looked at him in surprise, but Twilight was too tired to be surprised. She tilted left, then right, then blacked out.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Twilight came to a few minutes later, with Vinyl and Spike propping her up. "We won..." she managed to mumble. Spike nodded, and Vinyl patted her shoulder. Twilight took a moment to take in her surroundings. She was still at the arena, but she saw their name underneath Rainbow Dash's, and the battle was listed for the next day.
"Twi, I think you should get some sleep," Spike suggested. "You've been playing pretty hard. Passing out earlier doesn't help either. If we want to stand a chance against Rainbow Dash, we'll need all of us at our best."
"Yeah! Even I'm clocking out early. Me and Tavi have plans, and I need all the rest I can get to make sure everything goes right." Vinyl waved her goodbyes, then signed off. Spike looked back to Twilight.
"I'm serious Twi... you're there alone. You need to take care of yourself. I'll see you tomorrow." Then he too signed off. Twilight was alone with her thoughts, when she thought she saw a familiar sight in the shadows. It looked like Pinkie Pie, but with straight hair. When Twilight tried to get a closer look, the image faded away. She shivered. It was creepy to think the pink pony had been watching her so silently. Twilight thought about it, then realized that Pinkie was her only friend she hadn't been able to account for for quite some time. Since Fluttershy fell into a coma come to think of it. Twilight rubbed her eyes. She really did need sleep. She logged off, then went to take a long sleep. She had a hard time however, for her dreams were filled with visions of darkness and claws, and friends fading from her forever...