//------------------------------// // Chapter 20: Cultural Exchange // Story: The Redemption of Jericho Swain // by Ghosted Note //------------------------------// The Redemption of Jericho Swain Chapter 20: Cultural Exchange Swain's bird gave a disdainful caw as he entered the room, and he couldn't restrain a sigh as he took off the Nightmare's Regalia, feeling old pains seep back into his leg as the armor's magic left him. When he had first injured it, he had refused treatment on the basis of not wanting any debt that came with magical treatments, nor did he want any suspicion of the dark magics he had been experimenting with even in his youth. By the time he was an accomplished military veteran, the sheer amount of twisted magics that he had been a conduit for made it too risky to use magic to heal his limp. He hadn't needed it, though. Swain knew that he was the smartest, most adaptable, and most capable man in all of Valoran, with or without a limp. 'Still,' he thought to himself, 'It's... nice to be able to walk without a cane, even if it is merely for a ruse to keep Nightmare from being too suspicious.' In truth, the armor's namesake was already quite displeased with Swain after his little chat with Twilight. Whatever motive propelled Nightmare, it required that Swain learn and understand the values that had allowed a pacifistic state with no standing military besides its royal guard to survive being in a world with dangerous magical creatures and rival nations. Apparently, giving a potentially traumatizing verbal beatdown was counterproductive, though satisfying in an admittedly petty way. Of course, such pettiness was beneath Swain, so he decided that Nightmare might be right after all. He had been getting far too emotional lately. It simply wasn't suitable for someone like him to get carried away like that. His musings were interrupted by the sound of his door opening. Looking up, he saw Riven entering his study at about the same time that the smell of sweat and grime reached him. Curling his lip slightly, he made his way to his desk and sat down before regarding the intruder. "You don't have permission to be here, and I'm sure there are several places that would better serve your needs. I personally recommend a bathroom. Your suite will have one, complete with magical heating and such modern marvels as soap." Riven rolled her eyes, and plopped down in a luxurious armchair. "Nice. Almost like sitting on a cloud. Trust me, I actually did that in Equestria. Sorry if the smell of physical labor offends you, I was busy helping Rainbow Dash train. I'm sure you couldn't relate. In any case, I'm here because we need to talk. Now that you're safe in your little bunker, how do I know you'll keep your end of the deal?" The bird scoffed, and Swain couldn't resist a smirk. "Believe it or not, occasionally the truth does serve me. I meant it when I said that your reforms would help me. Conflict creates economic growth, but if kept up too long, it can result in dangerous situations like depression, plus, it simply can't do to keep all of our best teachers in the military when they could be educating our youth. What good is it to rule over a city-state of uneducated brawlers who teeter on the edge of economic collapse. The only things that have kept Noxus going over the years are our weapons exports and mercenaries, and since the League of Legends has all but eliminated true conflict, those have been in steady decline. Unless something is done soon, Noxus will begin experiencing the effects of a shrinking economy. If Noxus has a low income, I have a low income, and that simply won't do." Riven sighed. "I'm not sure if I should be glad I can always count on your selfishness, or disappointed that Noxus' future has to be placed in the care of the likes of you. You may know about how to run a country, but as long as someone like you is in power, Noxus will always be a dishonorable and bloodthirsty land." "What can I say?" said Swain with an almost inaudible chuckle, "Sentimentality simply has no place in my life. Make no mistake, though, I will tame Noxus. My will is the strongest, and I am the most capable, and thus, the most deserving." "For someone with no sentimental attachments, it seems strange that you'd keep a pet bird," replied Riven. "I know you'd lie to me without qualms, but to yourself? Now I'm not worried about if you will help me change Noxus, but if you're even capable. How can someone so delusional hope to reign in Noxus. You can't even admit that you like your freaky little bird friend without feeling so nervous and insecure about your image that it really is more pathetic than anything else." Swain glared at Riven in response. "I'm sorry you feel that way. By all means, if you want to fight Malzahar without any of my resources, if you want to reform Noxus by yourself, and if you want to alienate one of the ones most knowledgeable about the Void and how your friends might get home, then walk away now. I won't stop you. Malzahar will kill those six within a week or two. In any case I will get what I want. I will have Noxus, and I will change it according to my designs, which happen to match up with yours mostly. What company I keep is none of your concern, just know that I will get the job done. I have no reason to betray you, and I have explained multiple times why it would be counterproductive. The only trust I ask of you is to trust in my ability to get what I want. I don't need your second-guessing, or the aliens lecturing me on friendship, or Nightmare's insistence that I change the very fabric of who I am!" "Nightmare?" Riven questioned. Swain's face blanked, and without any emotion, he simply replied, "Get. Out." After Riven had departed, looking a mix between disconcerted and curious, Swain allowed himself to sink into his chair, stroking a hand along his bird's head. "I think I might have made a mistake. This magic is affecting my mind. I don't know if it's due to the power the armor gives me, or Nightmare piggybacking off of my senses, but it has to stop. I will question Nightmare about it once more, and if he has no way to keep the armor from affecting my mind, weakening my mental control, then I will don it no more." 'So focused how you cut your finger, noted the bird, I wonder if your foot will suffer when the distraction causes you to drop the knife. "What do you mean?" asked Swain. "Do not speak in riddles, you know it irritates me." 'Very well, stupid human. The one called RIven speaks truth. You show weakness to those closest to you by denying that you are human, It shows fear.' it responded. 'Self control is not the same as repression.' "You seem eager to play therapist tonight," snarked Swain. 'We have been of one mind for years,' his companion replied. 'When something threatens us, I speak. Swain sighed and nodded. "Speak then. I will listen." - - - - "Twilight dear, is something on your mind?" asked Rarity, taking her place beside the rest of the girls. "You look nervous." "Oh, no, no," replied Twilight, self-consciously unclenching her fists, causing Ezreal, who was watching off to the side, to raise an eyebrow. "It's just a little bit of jitters from this new spell. I've never cast it before, but I can't test it without all of us here." "But I thought that it was us who got nervous when you wanted to try a new spell, not you," said Rainbow Dash. "You're always sure of your spells, even when they backfire. Remember that one time where you turned us all into g-" "Well maybe I've learned from those experiences and now know to be more cautious around new magic," snipped Twilight with an annoyed tone. "Let's just get this started. Can we, please?" "Geez, fine," Rainbow Dash replied, sounding a little offended. "So what are we doing, anyway?" Twilight sighed in relief. "Okay, so you five just need to sit there. We still have our connections to the Elements of Harmony, and I'm going to try and tap into it to see how functional it is. It'll go in several steps. First, I'll draw up magical power from myself and from my Element, and then I'll chain the magic to you five. From there, it'll travel through each of you and then back to me after it focuses through the magic of your respective Elements so that I can channel it back through mine. We won't actually be casting spells with any of the energy we channel, but we will be confirming that if we need to, we can. It won't be as strong as if the artifacts were here with us, but the hope is that while we may not be turning Discord to stone, we might be able to do something a little more mundane." "I thought we had you for mundane stuff, though," noted Pinkie. "Who are we gonna use them on anyway? Swain? That meany-pants could certainly a little inner Harmony, if you know what I mean." "Well," Twilight said, "I was thinking we could help Nasus' brother, Renekton. We might be able to heal his mind a little. Think of what it would mean to Nasus." "That's a wonderful idea," said Fluttershy. "We'd love to help his brother regain his mind." "Yeah!" "It sounds like a wonderful idea." "Let's do it!" One by one, the group affirmed their consent. With a final nod, Twilight began to focus. Feeling the magic begin to stir within her, she began to let it flow throughout her body. This magic was entirely hers, and she was using it to reach out and sense her friends, feeling the magic of their Elements residing within them. She felt her magic pass through Applejack, feeling the magic of Honesty. It was calm and steady, wrapping around her own magic to provide structure to it. Next was Rarity, and Generosity joined in, a delicate but firm touch to precisely drive the magic forward. Loyalty exploded from Rainbow Dash like an unrestrained fire, amplifying all of the previous magics, only to be tempered by Fluttershy's Kindness reigning it in to controllable levels. Pinkie was the last stop of her friends, and as Laughter joined in, the strain of controlling the magic simply evaporated, and the magic of Harmony began to coalesce into a single thread as it awaited its final ingredient. Magic would seal the different Elements of Harmony into one presence, the final controlling Element that could direct it for the greater good. With a note of happy finality, Twilight let the other Elements flow into her, opening herself up so that Magic could join in... only for it not to come. As Twilight began to panic, her old on the Elements began to unravel, and the magic spiraled out of control, and with a thunderclap, she lost her last vestige of control and was flung backwards into a wall as the magic burst out of her. Her friends rushed through her side in an instant, each asking if she was okay, and if she knew what had happened. Twilight slowly got back on her feet, feeling numb. She was vaguely aware of her friends, but was entirely distracted by a very apparent emptiness inside of her that she could now feel. "Twilight?" asked one of the distant voices that surrounded her. "Are you all right, darling?" "What happened?" asked another. "You're starting to scare us," said yet another. They kept talking, but Twilight wasn't listening. Finally, after an eternity of searching within herself with a numbing fear, and the voices of her friends escalating to a dull roar, she finally spoke. "I lost it." "Pardon?" said Applejack. Twilight began backing away from her friends, her eyes watering. "I can't feel it! I lost it! I made a mistake and now I can't feel it at all." "What are you talking about, Twilight? You're not making any sense. What did you lose?" said Rainbow Dash, exasperated. "I lost the Element of Magic." With that, her self-restraint withered away, and Twilight fled to her room, sobbing.