It was a beautiful night on Aiur as Sovereign enjoyed Seeker's company. It had been a whole year since he left the special Nexus he had grown up in. He may eventually be free to leave Aiur when he gained better control, but for now he resided in Zamara's personal nexus, a massive pyramid like palace. He and Seeker were enjoying a lovely musical performance at one of Aiur's theater houses.
Despite what the other ponies in the Koprulu sector believed, Khalai weren't soulless, culture-less husks. In fact virtually every Khalai had a deep love of the fine arts. Seeker sat beside him, their hooves together, her head resting on his shoulder. They weren't Preservers or Dark Templar at the moment, they were just two friends, enjoying each others company. At least that was the case in Sovereign's mind.
Yet something seemed wrong. His rear hooves felt warmer than they should have. Very warm. Hot in fact. So hot, Sovereign jumped out of his seat and was now belly first on the ground. He turned around to see his rear hooves were covered in burning wreckage. Sovereign tried to pull himself out, but it was no good. He started calling out to Seeker for help, but she was nowhere to be found. His surroundings had changed.
He was no longer in the theater house, instead he was on a burning ship. He could see ponies in the distance running out of the room as bulkhead doors closed shut. Sovereign called out for help, but it was no good, the doors had already sealed him in. Seconds later he found out why. The machines inside the room began to explode, showering Sovereign in burning shrapnel. After several minutes of burning agony, an explosion created a hole in the ship's hull, sending Sovereign out of the ship in into the vacuum of space. The flames quickly went out as Sovereign's body began to decompress. Seconds later he died of explosive decompression.
It would only be the first of many that night.
Somewhere in the sector a ship had been destroyed, and Sovereign just happened to be asleep while it happened. It was one thing keeping himself emotionally stable while awake, but he was still struggling to maintain his mental fortitude while he was asleep. While the more experienced preservers had learned to deal with the mental trauma while both asleep and awake, Sovereign was still young and inexperienced.
This wasn't the first time it had happened either. Death was a constant at virtually all hours of the day throughout the New Khala, and Sovereign's dreams would often end with him reliving the final moments of the recently departed. It was simple enough to deal with one or two deaths at a time, they easily flowed into the back of his subconscious. But when too many deaths occurred at once, they would overwhelm him and come in as real and vivid as if he were experiencing the event himself. During times of war, mass killings could happen at any moment. During these dreams, Sovereign found it impossible to wake up.
In the waking world, there was an honor guard by his bed, listening to him scream, and toss in his sleep. The honor guard were dedicated to protecting important Khalai personal, and preservers ranked among the most important. When Sovereign had first become a preserver, the guards would always come racing to his side whenever he had one of his episodes. After almost a year of it, many of the guards would assume it was just another night terror. This particular guard only came by to make sure it was nothing serious before leaving the room. There was nothing he could do for him besides let the tormented preserver ride it out.
Seeker once again found herself being awakened in the middle of the night. She swore she heard Sovereign screaming for help, and shouting her name in particular at least once. She quickly got out of bed to rush to Sovereign's room to see if he was alright. She was a devoted shadow, so while she was fairly certain it was just another night terror, she wouldn't feel right simply leaving it up to the honor guard. While she may have been an unofficial bodyguard, she took her duty to safeguard Sovereign just as seriously, if not more, than the actual honor guard did.
She noticed an honor guard leaving the room meaning it was probably nothing. As she entered Sovereign's chambers, she found him rolling and screaming in pain on his bed. Sovereign was still struggling to deal with his duties as a preserver, and while she had the absolute most respect for what he did, she was concerned Zamara was pushing him too hard.
Seeker knew how to help him, though it was risky business. She closed her eyes and linked herself with the Khala. It was an act she never enjoyed as a child, and even less so as an adult. It made her an outcast among most of her peers, including her own parents. Becoming a Dark Templar only made the other Khalai more resentful towards her. Sovereign was the only one who didn't treat her with resentment. So while she hated merging with the Khala, and giving everyone else access to her deepest thoughts and feelings, she was willing to make an exception for him.
What she was doing wasn't taboo, but it certainly was frowned upon. Some Khalai sever their connection when they fall asleep; not doing so made it possible for other Khalai who were also linked to enter one's dreams. Married Khalai are known to sometimes establish personal links with one another before going to sleep, allowing for a sharing of dream without outsiders dropping in on them. Fortunately Sovereign never severs his connection when he sleeps, or at all, so it would be possible for Seeker to enter the dream and help him.
It was a dangerous act to enter a preserver's dreams however. It is always possible to wake yourself up if it was a normal dream, but what Sovereign was going through was anything but normal. He was reliving a memory, and if she could not find him and pull him out, she would be trapped inside with him, forced to relive whatever horrors he was experiencing along side him until he finally awoke. It was normally viewed as a rather futile risk, considering nothing in the dream could actually hurt Sovereign physically. But the last few months she had spent with Sovereign made it very clear he was deeply suffering on a psychological level. His personal well being was her responsibility as a shadow, and to her that meant protecting him against all harm, be it bodily or psychological.
Seeker connected herself with the Khala and linked with Sovereign. Now all she needed to do was fall asleep, though that seemed impossible due to Sovereign's screaming. Since this was hardly the first time Seeker was in this situation, she had come prepared. Seeker put herself into a state of meditation, allowing her brain to slowly enter a dream like state. She waited patiently through the screams. She had to make sure not to open her eyes until it was time. Slowly the screams around her grew louder and louder, until the blast from an explosion sent her flying.
Seekers' side had suffered a minor burn, but other than that she was alright. She looked around find herself on a Khalai ship as it took bombardment from an enemy cruiser. The ship she was on clearly wasn't a warship, so mostly likely this had been a pirate raid against a civilian vessel. Odds were no one on this ship made it out alive, and right now Sovereign was running through the motions as one of the passengers. He was doomed to repeat that Khalai's final actions which ended in their demise.
Unfortunately Seeker had entered rather late into the dream. The ship was already in shambles, and most of the crew lay dead or dying. Another attack struck the ship, causing a series of internal explosions. A blast of flames covered Seeker, sending her to the ground. Now she was just as hopeless as Sovereign was. She lay on the ground screaming as the flames slowly consumed her. Her eyes were quick to sizzle, so at least she could no longer see her body being cooked, though the smell of her own burning flesh was still assaulting her nostrils.
The torment seemed to last an eternity until finally another round from an enemy weapon smashed through the hull, completely shattering what was left of her charred remains. She should have woken up by now, but Sovereign must have still been alive in the dream; against the laws of reality, she was still conscious. It was a strange and agonizing sensation having her body shattered to pieces like that. While she no longer had a physical body, her mind was still in a state of tormented agony.
This continued for an unknown time until she woke up screaming on the floor. She frantically examined her body, then her surroundings to see she was on the ship again, but this time the ship was still intact. Seeker had entered Sovereign's dreams before, but that had been first time she had ever died before she was able to get Sovereign out. Death was a new experience for her, one that she would gladly pass up on in the future. Seeker was still shaking, her eyes burning with tears, and her heart pounding with terror. She had never been so scared in her life. As horrible as it was, it did give her a new perspective on what Sovereign potentially goes through every time he falls asleep. She had to work quickly to find Sovereign, it was only a matter of time before it all started again.
A filly followed the others running frantically to the ships escape pods. There was little hope they would be rescued, but it seemed better than staying on board a doomed ship. The other ponies were already in the pod, they were just waiting for her to enter. Just before she could, another black mare had tackled her. Whoever it was, she hit a button forcing the doors to close, cutting off the fillies escape.
"Why did you do that for?!" shouted the scared filly. "My mother was on that pod. How am I going to get off now! We're both going to die now!" she shouted.
Seeker looked at the terrified filly, sensing a familiar presence in the Khala. She had done this enough times to know what was going on. That filly was Sovereign. In his mind, he saw himself as the person whose memories he was reliving. In his mind, he was in the body of a young scared filly trying to get off the ship. Fortunately through the link, Seeker was aware of who this filly really was.
"Sovereign listen to me! It's me, Seeker. That isn't your body, focus!" she said as another blast went off. Seeker was struck by a piece of debris that had cut into her neck. She now lay on the ground, struggling to breathe while choking on her own blood.
The terrified filly could only stare at Seeker, unable to move as she was completely frozen in fear. But something did seem to look familiar about this mare. The black fur, the grey eyes, the dark blue mane...
"Sovereign" she managed to spit out. Seeker extended a hoof out to her, gesturing for her to grab on. As she did, a black mist surrounded the two, and the burning ship disappeared around them.
Sovereign woke up in his bed, though Seeker was still unconscious. She would be alright; most likely she was now in a dream of her own. Damn it Seeker, you know you can't keep doing this to yourself, thought Sovereign. It was bad enough the nightmares were slowly taking a toll on his sanity, but if she kept doing this, his nightmares may take a toll on her as well.
Sovereign lifted his friend up and placed her on his bed. The influx of memories were still pouring in, though now that he was awake, he could hopefully better deal with them. He entered his meditation chamber and began to sort through the memories. Unfortunately he had forgotten to lock the door behind him.
Seeker had dreamt peacefully the rest of the night now that she had successfully escaped Sovereign's nightmare. It was morning now, and she found herself in a very luxurious bed. Sovereign must have tucked me in again, she thought. As she got out of bed, she started looking for Sovereign to make sure he was alright. She eventually made her way into his meditation room, and naturally there he was with his back turned, no doubt still working to absorb the nights memories. The room was a very simple design. Padding on the floor, a well lite ceiling and undecorated white walls.
Something seemed strange about him though. He was sweating profusely, and shaking uncontrollably. "Sovereign? Are you alright?" she asked.
"Don't come any closer," he demanded. "Just go away, I'll be alright. Lock the door when you leave."
"Sovereign, I'm worried about you. You've been getting progressively worse these last few weeks." she said slowly approaching him.
"Seeker, get back!" he shouted. "Please... just don't come any closer." he begged.
The more she examined Sovereign, the more it looked like he wasn't quite shaking. No, he was struggling to move, but something seemed to be keeping him in place. "Sovereign is something wrong? I want to help you, if there is anything I can do."
"Get out!" he shouted angrily. "Nothing is wrong... this isn't anything I haven't dealt with before... just leave me alone... I don't want to hurt you." he begged.
Seeker slowly continued approaching, now mere inches from him. Something really was wrong with him right now. As she put a hoof on his shoulder, Sovereign shouted "Seeker don't!" but it was too late. Psionic lighting arced from his body onto her hoof, while violet tendrils of energy erupted from her flesh and latched on to Sovereign's. She tried to move, but suddenly her whole body was frozen, and she was helplessly stuck to him.
Seeker, try to stay focused. Just concentrate on keeping your body together, said Sovereign's voice in her mind.
Sovereign what's going on, why can't we move?! she asked. He didn't respond to her. He just continued sitting, shaking, trying to fight whatever it was that had possessed him.
Seeker looked in horror as slowly, her flesh dissolved into a bright red mist, while Sovereign's body began to dissolve into a bright whitish blue mist. The two Khalai's bodies had now completely dissolved into the air as clouds of red and blue mist. Seeker didn't know what had just happened, but it felt incredible.
Somehow she now existed in the form of pure void energy; she felt so at peace, free of the restricting chains of her physical form. It was the greatest feeling she had ever experienced. At the same time, she could feel Sovereign's presence nearby in the form of pure psionic energy. While she no longer had a physical presence, she reached out to him to embrace him, and welcomed him to become part of her being. Sovereign could sense her desire, and he too reached out to embrace her. As they merged, their two consciousness's became one. Their misshapen forms merged together to form a sphere of violet colored energy.
Neither Seeker nor Sovereign's minds were prepared to exist in this form. Both were unable to form any kind of words or even coherent thoughts. The only thing that existed between the two of them at the moment was just raw passion and emotion. While they couldn't tell what the other was thinking, they each could tell what the other was feeling. It was a strange sensation communicating like this with Sovereign, but she welcomed it. It was as if she had formed a private Khala with only herself and Sovereign, as if the two of them now knew each other better than they knew themselves.
As Seeker joined with him, she was overcome with a euphoria far greater than she had ever experienced when she had a physical presence, and could tell Sovereign was feeling the same. Just before they had completely merged, Seeker stopped. Something was wrong with Sovereign; he was rejecting her! Though she wasn't about to force him into it, she was wondering why he no longer wished to continue merging with her?
Of course now that the merging had started, neither of them would not be able to separate without the both of them consenting. While she was disappointed, she was willing to hear him out, though she wasn't prepared to undo the merging yet.
Sovereign did initially want to merge with her, but as they were merging, he felt there was a dark presence with them. Sovereign began warning her that they shouldn't do this, that they should try to revert forms before it was too late to undo the change. Another presence was speaking with her now. It wasn't Sovereign, but this one however did have a voice. Whatever it was, it was powerful, and it wanted them both. Come to me Seeker. Accept my gift, and I shall grant you power beyond comprehension. You will be the envy of all, embrace my gift, and all of Aiur will kneel before you.
Seeker could feel the might of the void overcoming her. She had never felt such power before, no living Templar had. She felt rage and hatred take over her. She began filling with anger towards all the other Khalai who rejected her, who hated her just because she had chosen a different path.
The voice of the void was giving her the chance to make them all pay. She reached out to Sovereign and pleaded with him to join with her. She could feel his power as well. His was different, it was raw psionic energy. While her void energy could rip apart the living essence of any foe, his psionic energy could destroy any beings physical form. With his help, the two of them could achieve perfection, and none would be able to stand before them. She again embraced him, and her essence and his form starting becoming one.
He begged her to see reason. He reminded her who she was. She wasn't a violent hateful pony. She was his friend; his friend who had recently risked her own sanity to save him from his nightmares. She was a good mare who would take no pleasure in the destruction of her own people. Seeker realized he was right, and stopped the merging. Were it not for Sovereign, she would have surely given her essence to the void.
Ah, so that is what you desire? said the voice of the void. Then you shall have that too. You don't care for power, you don't care for vengeance, you care for him don't you? Then why not merge? The two of you can be together forever. Isn't that what you really want? You can both become the ultimate being, one soul, one body, together at last for all of eternity.
The voice of the void had won. How could she say no to that? She apologized to Sovereign for what she was about to force him to do, but assured him it would be alright, that they were meant to be. The Khalai would never allow it, so this could be their only chance. Sovereign resisted her advance and again pleaded, but she continued pushing her essence on his form.
A being began to shape in the center of the sphere of energy. It appeared to be some sort of bi-pedal creature, but its form was completely covered in a black shadow, hiding its true appearance in a veil of darkness. Finally having a physical presence on their world, it chained the two ponies spirits to its will and began to siphon both form and essence from each pony. It was also preventing them from joining completely to make sure their combined will would not be able to overpower its own. Seeker couldn't believe it, she had been tricked! She had enslaved her soul to this monster, and Sovereign's soul alongside hers.
I said you'd get to be together didn't I? said the creature mockingly as it laughed. You'll get your wish, right after I've had some fun.
If she had eyes, Seeker would be in tears right about now. She begged Sovereign's forgiveness. She simply wanted to merge with him, she didn't want this. Sovereign didn't reply, he was still fighting to gain control of their new body. Unfortunately he alone didn't have the will necessary to wrest control. He realized it was because the body wasn't just his, but Seeker's as well. He told her to put aside her personal regret at the moment, and help him bring the monster under control before it was too late.
The creature effortlessly destroyed the walls of the meditation chamber, and began running rampant through out the rest of the Nexus. Two of the honor guard charged the creature and impaled it with their psi blades. Sovereign and Seeker could feel it as though their own physical body had just been stabbed, but it wasn't pain. It was simply an awareness the action had taken place.
The monster's flesh regenerated as quickly as the blades were pulled out, then easily knocked the two honor guards aside and continued its destruction of the Nexus. A message from Zamara traveled throughout the Khala ordering all personal to evacuate.
As hard as Sovereign and Seeker tried, they could not bring the beast under control. If their minds were able to have merged successfully, they would have overpowered this monster. But as separate minds, they could not muster enough will to over come it. They also felt their own connection to their world weakening as well. The monster was burning through the two of them as if they were fuel.
Seeker could feel her spirit slowly leaving their world and becoming one with the void, while Sovereign's became one with the Khala. The monster had no intention of letting them stay together once he had finished feeding off them. One thing was for certain, as the creature expended Sovereign and Seeker's life force, its presence on their plane of existence also weakened.
While Seeker and Sovereign couldn't bring the monster under control, they found the more they resisted its movements, the quicker it burned through them. The two realized that the only way to stop it, was for the two of them to burn through the entirety of their form and essence as quickly as possible. Though doing so would also hasten their own demise, it would also minimize the damage the creature could do. Being in agreement, they struggled against the monster at every turn in hopes of destroying it, even if it meant destroying themselves in the process.
Seeker could barely feel her own presence now, and she assumed Sovereign was faring no better. She was certain this was their final moment together before they were separated into the void and Khala. It was a terrible feeling knowing she would never see him in the next life, and she wanted to share her last thoughts with him before they were forced apart. Unfortunately at this point, she could no longer detect Sovereign's presence. Either he was gone, or she was just so weak now that she couldn't focus enough to detect him.
The creatures attack had finally come to a stand still. It was too weak to break any more walls, and it seemed to be having trouble simply holding its own form. Another unicorn dared approach the creature. "That doesn't belong to you," said the unicorn. It was Zamara. "That stallion is a preserver of Aiur, you will not have him."
The creature was exhausted, but it sensed great purity of form in the unicorn. If it could absorb her form, it would recharge its energies allowing it to continue its rampage for just a while longer before it was forced to depart from this plane of existence. The creature reached out for the unicorn, clenching her in its hand. Zamara let out a scream as in a flash, her body exploded into a blue mist just like Sovereign's. The monster absorbed her the blue mist that was once Zamara's body; with its energies rejuvenated, it continued its rampage.
Seeker couldn't believe it. Not only had she doomed herself and Sovereign, she had also doomed the Supreme Matriarch as well. All would be lost on Aiur, and it would be all her fault!
Seeker! said the voice of Zamara. Seeker couldn't believe it. Somehow Zamara was still able to form a voice, and even coherent thought within the collective pool of energy the three of them had become. More surprising was the fact the monster was unable to move. Sovereign she continued. Seeker tried to respond, but now the mere act of maintaining her presence on their world was taking its toll on her. Don't try to respond! I've taken control of the archon. As you can tell, it can't hold its form for very long. It's been feeding off both of your life energies during its rampage. By draining yourselves the way you have, you've kept its damage to a minimum, no one was killed.
Seeker tried to apologize to her, but she was still to weak to communicate. Zamara continued speaking. Too much of your form and essence has been drained. You can not return to your physical forms on your own. I'm going to give you some of mine. I know you're both tired, but focus on reforming your bodies and you'll make it through this. she ordered.
Seeker could feel Zamara's soul trying to embrace Seeker and Sovereign's conjoined soul, but for some reason it wasn't working. Seeker, don't do this! said Zamara. Seeker suddenly realized what Zamara meant. While it was an unpleasant experienced being drained by the archon, it was only a temporary one. She once again felt the peace and joy of existing as pure energy. She felt no worry, no pain, no suffering. Only bliss, and the presence of Sovereign along side her.
With the archon no longer keeping them apart, their souls had finally completed the merge, and the two were now one. In mere moments, the last threads tying them to this world would release. When that happened, both her and Sovereign would be one with the void, in the form of pure energy, a single entity for all eternity. The last thing she wanted was a third soul included in their bond, especially one that was about to force them to separate again. Even if it was only at a subconscious level, if Seeker didn't want to return to her physical form, neither her nor Sovereign would be able to join with Zamara.
Seeker I can't merge with you unless we all consent and I can't leave this form unless all of us leave. All three of our bodies are going to burn out if you don't let Sovereign go! shouted Zamara.
Seeker continued to disobey, and was now letting herself, and Sovereign drift into the void. She was not going to release him, this was their fate.
Despite how tired he was, Sovereign did manage to communicate with her. He begged her not to do this. To release him, and to please return with him. Seeker was shocked by his reaction. Perhaps he feared the void? She offered to join him in the Khala instead. While it wasn't her first choice, it would be a small price to pay if she could be with Sovereign in the here after. Sovereign however remained adamant.
She couldn't believe it! This was finally their chance to finally be together for all eternity, and he was once again rejecting her! Didn't he see what she saw? If they died at any other time, she would become one with the void, and he with the Khala, they would never see each other again. Even if she converted to the Khala, they would join as separate entities, never being as close as they were at this moment. She was both hurt and confused. He too had felt the joy, bliss and euphoria she felt, he too had willing reached out to her to merge initially. That brief moment was the happiest both he and Seeker had ever felt, and this was their opportunity to make it last forever. Why reject her now?
She could just hold onto him, and let the two of them fade into the void together. Now that they were merged, they would both have to consent before Zamara would be allowed to free them. In doing so, she would leave Zamara to burn out entirely, in what would be sure to be a painful death. That wasn't what she wanted. She didn't want to see her people leaderless, and there would be no eternal bless unless both her and Sovereign were happy. Perhaps one day he would see the light and he would want to join her in eternity's embrace. But this was not that day; she didn't want it to be forced. Resentfully Seeker embraced Zamara as well.
Unlike Seeker and Sovereign, who weren't prepared for the rigors of becoming an archon, Zamara's mind was far more disciplined. While Seeker and Sovereign had roughly the same control over their conjoined consciousness, Zamara's presence completely overpowered the two young ponies.
Fortunately Zamara had learned from before when she had accidentally absorbed Discovery, and was careful not to let their memories drown in the depths of her consciousness. She could feel Seeker and Sovereign's fear as they were almost taken away by the flood of memories. But she embraced them like a mother holding her young, and assured the two she would let not let go.
Don't be afraid, I'm not going to let anything happen to you, she said in a comforting voice. Prepare yourselves, this will feel... strange.
With Sovereign and Seeker's souls firmly secured, she forced her essence and form onto the two of them, just enough to allow them to return to their physical bodies. The archon's body dissolved inside the sphere of energy, and reformed itself into three pony bodies. The pool of energy was then absorbed into the three of them, and they returned to their physical forms. Zamara looked down at the two unicorns laying at her hooves.
They were unconscious but alive.
"In other words you had a threesome with your best friend and your teacher. Nice," said Karn as he finished a piece of Rain Sight's apple pie. Rain Sight simply facehooved at her father's crude remark.
"I wouldn't put it that way." said Sovereign.
"Probably for the best things ended the way they did." said Karn. "You don't want to be around a mare that crazy."
Sovereign immediately reached across the table and punched Karn. "Seeker risked her sanity pulling me out of those nightmares time and time again Karn!" shouted Sovereign. "If it weren't for her, I might have been locked away in an asylum!"
Rain Sight helped her father up as he wiped some blood off his lip. She couldn't really blame Sovereign for being angry, her father did lack tact in his conversation on occassion. But she had to ask Sovereign a question of her own. "It does sound like you two cared about each other a lot. But if she meant so much to you, why did you leave?"