"She took Leo..." was the only thing Straw managed to say before collapsing on the floor of Twilight's laboratory.
The princess rushed away from a stack of papers and tried to help Straw back up. When it was clear that even sitting was too much for him, she levitated him on a mattress in the corner which she used to rest on when she needed to keep an eye on some project overnight.
"Who did? Where? What happened? You've been away for only about half a day. Well, night."
"Somepony... called... Scream," Straw was barely awake, "She said... she would keep him..."
"Come on, Straw, I've met Scream only once or twice, and I know she likes to play games, but what use would she have for your friend. There has to be something more."
"A payment... for helping... sir Cromach."
"Oh dear."
"She said... said it would be only for a night... but she is evil... I saw through her..."
"Calm down, calm down. First, how did you end up with her? What happened with Void? No, first things first, you need rest. Where is the wisp?"
"Saddlebag," Straw was just whispering now.
Upon Twilight's magic tugging on the saddlebag's buckle, the inky ball flew out, tentacles lashing out randomly.
"My dear mentor's fat plot, what happened to it? Well, him. Wait, did you say Cromach? Was I right then?"
"..."
What Straw said was so quiet Twilight couldn't make it out.
"Alright, alright. Are you still with me?"
A weak nod.
"Good. I think you should believe Scream and take it easy tonight. In case she doesn't keep her word then I'll ask the princesses for help in getting Leo back. You can sleep here."
Straw didn't answer, but his breathing calmed down. Twilight threw a spare lab coat over him.
"Now, what about you?" she turned to the black wisp floating around, "Are you really Cromach?"
The wisp flew up and down.
"Hmmm. Is it really you? I'm talking about continuity of you remembering what happened after the explosion, or are you just some memory preserved by divine power."
The wisp stared... somehow. It didn't have any way of talking such a complex question through, nor did it have eyes, but it still managed to convey a clear meaning that Twilight deserved to be punched in the face.
"I have to explore all possibilities, but I guess you are right, there's no way you can answer that at the moment. I think I'm going to need Straw awake for this, so... will you stay alive until tomorrow?"
The wisp jerked up and down again.
"Good. You can stay here with him," Twilight nodded towards the sleeping hippogriff, "I'll be back here the first thing in the morning."
Straw was left alone in the laboratory.
You are overstepping your boundaries, hippogriff. The broken alicorn's gift will, however, not last forever. If you ever try what you did in that whorse's dimension again then I will make sure you regret it... for a very, very long time. Still, you have been more than useful so I might forgive you for this one. It is time to give up hope, though. What you are doing to the griffon's soul is torture. It is beyond his strength to come back, and all you are doing is burning him over and over with power beyond your understanding.
"We... can... save..." he mumbled, mostly asleep.
Hope dies last, I guess. Still, we need to make sure it does. Sleep well.
Straw was too exhausted to dream.
Hoofsteps woke him up, as well as something tickling his muzzle. He couldn't stop himself from sneezing.
A dark purple tail?
Twilight's hind leg sent him and the mattress against a wall.
"Sorry! Sorry! Sorry!" the princess repeated to the dazed and waking up Straw, "I completely forgot you were here."
"Forgot about me as well, your Highness?" said another voice.
THAT one woke Straw up instantly. His wings shot wide, he jumped up, and turned his head fast enough to give himself neck cramp.
"LEO!" he groaned, "You're okay!"
"That's a bit too early to say but yeah, I think I'm mostly fine," the unicorn smiled, "You look like you can barely stand, though."
"I'm fine," Straw waved his talons dismissively, but quickly put his leg down as he lost balance, "What did she do to you?"
"Eeerm," Leo blushed and scratched his head, "A lot of stuff. Let's just say that I know things about mare body that they have no idea about. She made me practice... over and over. I couldn't believe when princess Twilight told me I was gone only for the night."
"How long did it feel to you?"
"We... 'practiced', I went to sleep, we kept going. That happened over and over, so let's say... at least few days and keep it at that."
Leo wasn't telling them everything, that much Straw knew.
"And are you really okay, Leo?"
"Confused a bit, but fine, Straw. Definitely better than you, at least considering how you look."
"Right," princess Twilight interjected, "Why did you return here in such a bad shape, Straw? You couldn't even talk."
Straw and Leo exchanged glances. The noble was the one to talk.
"Nightmare is doing something to him. He drifts off whenever he's not focusing on some immediate danger. It's as if he just shuts down until somepony needs him again. See?" he pointed at Straw who had sat down after Leo started explaining, "He's doing it again."
Twilight waved a hoof in front of Straw's face. He caught on during the second attempt.
"Huh? Your Highness?"
"Nevermind, sorry," Twilight turned back to Leo. A second later she turned back to Straw staring blankly at the floor, "Aaand there he goes again. I see what you mean."
"He's never been one to push himself forward, but this is pretty weird. It started inside Void's dimension, but it was really bad at Scream's. He said it had something to do with Nightmare trying to be 'quiet'. It's just... I'm thinking about how he got me and Fortune together and what he said afterwards, that we had so little time and we didn't know what could happen at any moment so there was no need for fear."
Twilight sighed.
"Well, I can't help you with that outright, but I'll be happy to arrange some kind of research. First, though, I think I have an idea which might point us in the right direction, both with mister Cromach and with Straw's incapacitation."
"What is it?"
"Seeing that Cromach's state has changed, I suppose Void gave you some pointers, right?"
"Yes, he said that if we pour divine power of various alicorns into Cromach and if his soul is strong enough, it might succeed in forming a new body out of it. He said we can't use too much power of a single alicorn otherwise it would hurt it. Then he did something which tired him out, presumably the transfer, and sent us to Scream's dimension because we had no way to return and he couldn't send us back to the castle."
"No way to r-? HEAVENS, I AM SO SORRY! That's what happens when I try to one-up somepony," wailed Twilight, hooves flailing in the air.
"Calm down, your Highness, what's done is done. Scream helped by giving up some of her power as well, and, if I ever manage to get intimate with Fortune, by doing much more than that."
Twilight blushed. Leo just smiled to himself.
"No need for that, your Highness. Last night I lived every fantasy one could imagine. I can't even think of anything as 'dirty' or 'pervy' anymore. All I can hope for is Fortune being happy spending time with me... anywhere. If she screams a little, I won't mind."
Coughing violently, Twilight rushed over to her workbench.
"Right, ehm, I wish you good buc- luck and all, but we should return to the matter at hoof. Since our only chance is to ask alicorns for help, why not start with the closest ones, namely princess Luna. She might also help Straw with his condition. After all, she's been Nightmare's host for a millenium. If anypony knows how to recover from its influence then it is her."
Pffff, hahahahaha!
"Hey, Straw... zombie Straw... Zomberry," Leo snickered, "Let's go see the princess. If we're lucky then she's not asleep yet."
"Yeah, she'll surely help," Straw followed, more like a puppet than a living, breathing pony, "I've heard sir Cromach worked directly for her and some high-profile griffons. If there is a chance to save him then she can't refuse."
"Suuure, let's go with that," they left the lab, and took staircase after staircase through the castle.
"Braaaaains..." Straw mumbled.
"You're a pony, not a griffon. Although, you know, hippogrif... which part is which?"
"Graaaaains..."
"Much better."
They chuckled together.
"Do I look THAT bad?" Straw asked.
"Shuffling, blank stare, mumbling to yourself from time to time... yeah, pretty bad."
"I'm just tired. I've never expected to be a part of some movement fighting against gods. I don't know if I have it in me to see it through. Not that I have a choice, though."
"Come on, you just need a break."
"I can't afford a break!" Straw objected much more strongly than he wanted, "I mean, if we wait for me to get better then sir Cromach might run out of time. On top of that... who knows if I can get better anyway."
"Zomb- Straw- Strombie, yeah, that works. I'll punch the god out of you if I have to, or better yet - I'll pay somepony else to do so. We'll see this through together."
Slightly warmer inside, Straw knocked on princess Luna's door, expecting to be sent on a long vacation to the moon. Luckily, the princess had not gone to sleep yet, although she sighed heavily when she saw them at her door.
"Bad news?" she asked, looking at Straw.
"Just news," Leo took charge, "We need your help."
Cromach's wisp flew out of Leo's saddlebag where it seemed to spend most of its free time.
"What is this?" Luna leaned away, brows furrowed, when the wisp stopped in front of her muzzle.
"About that," the unicorn coughed, "Ehm, that is the soul of sir Cromach which needs a bit of your alicorn power to have a chance at regaining its body. That's the short version."
"And the long version?" Luna poked the wisp, it circled around and landed on her head.
"Basically the same thing. Void, the alicorn of Death, told us there was a slim chance of sir Cromach returning if we managed to gather enough power AND his soul itself was strong enough. Void and alicorn named Scream have infused the wisp already."
"I see," Luna shook the wisp off her head, "You are not lying, so I have no problem with helping you, although it is going to leave me weakened for several days, or maybe weeks. It all depends on the amount of power the soul can handle. Come inside," she gestured into her room, "This place is sufficiently protected, I hope, from any prying eyes. A princess of Equestria showing weakness could lead to all sorts of unpleasant things."
Luna's room was expansive, far larger than any other place in the castle, and Leo realized it had to be another pocket dimensions, at least parts of it, although much smaller than Void's or Scream's. The ceiling was covered in glowing star constellations, the interior...
...now pitch black.
Apparently, the princess was starting the ritual, and nothing was visible aside from brilliant white lines spreading through her entire body.
Leo realized he must have blanked out for some time, because as his senses returned he was standing yet again in front of the princess' room. Straw didn't seem concerned, Cromach's wisp now looked like a turbulent storm with small bolts of lightning flashing inside it, and the lunar princess was watching them curiously, sweat running through her coat.
"Uhh, what happened?"
"I... value my privacy," princess Luna answered, "Do you need anything else? It's been a long night, and I need my rest, especially after this. Speaking of rest, your friend looks as if he hasn't slept in days."
"Yeah, that's the other thing, your Highness. I'm not sure how to start. It's sort of sensitive."
"Don't you start as well! I've had enough of this kind of behaviour from the nobles during night court. Honesty is something I value in those close to me and, by pure coincidence, you belong to that category at the moment."
"Alright," Leo took a deep breath, "It's about you being Nightmare's host pleasedon'tsendmetothemoon!"
"Go on," Luna encouraged him, although the temperature seemed to drop several degrees.
"Nightmare is doing something to him. He doesn't react to much aside from imminent danger, and whenever we aren't doing anything he just... shuts down. He himself said he felt hollow."
"Aaaaah, I see," Luna nodded, "The Nightmare is devouring him. Taking away what makes him who he is. The same thing happened to me while I was imprisoned. It started like a little voice encouraging my doubts, fears, thoughts of revenge. It was easy to resist at first, but it grew and grew, steadily becoming my only company on the dead rock. I still knew I was Luna at the time, but whenever I wasn't focusing on it, it felt more and more distant. That is where he is right now. STRAW BASKET!" she suddenly barked out.
"Huh? Yes, your Highness?" he jumped a little.
"By royal order, you are to take a break from helping sir Cromach."
"But we don't have time," Straw looked at her desperately, "His soul might crumble before we can get enough power for him."
"So can yours. I've been through this even after my return. I just kept hiding in my room... well, not even hiding but simply letting time pass. I had no real idea who I was aside from some faint memories about my sister and myself. What helped me was... a thestral who became my bodyguard," Luna said the name in such manner that it may as well have been a hug to the dead pony, "Sharp Biscuit, and my sister who showed me what I used to like. My bodyguard and I spent months just going through things I might enjoy in this new age, we conversed for hours without a break, and he was there throughout the empty days of my return. You need to do what makes you the pony you are, Straw Basket. It will help you stay that way, not just an empty shell that Nightmare wants. As much as I loathe saying this - sleep is not your friend at the moment. What do you enjoy?"
"Uhhh..." Straw tried to think. Everything felt distant, unimportant. He couldn't remember when was the last time he really WANTED something. Finally, a little spark lit up inside him, "I... it was really fun seeing Manehattan for the first time, a really big city with so many ponies. I could feel and hear the hooves walking around me, it was like the heart of the city was beating," Straw's voice ended up much louder than the mumble it had started as.
"Hmmm," Luna puckered her lips in thought, "This close to Hearth's Warming, Canterlot should be full of ponies selling things related to the festivities. Why don't you visit a fair, have an evening off?"
Straw opened his mouth to object again, but Luna raised her hoof and continued:
"I will make sure my sister grants her blessing to sir Cromach's soul, so you will not be wasting time. After all, Tia would rather eat her crown than to be out-goodwilled by Scream. Now, I'll send a message to the recruit shift manager to find a replacement for the two of you, so go out and have fun for today. Relax, and do what you enjoy."
"Well, time to see all the visitors from various parts of Equestria, Strawberry!" Leo's cheer was rather forced, but better than nothing.
"Yeah, but you're paying," Straw chuckled.
"SO THAT'S WHY YOU'VE BEEN FAKING THIS WHOLE TIME!" the noble yelled at him, grinning.
"You'll never catch me aliiiiiveeee!" Straw ran through the castle.
Luna watched them run outside, through the training grounds, and into the city itself.
"A month at most..." she mumbled to the thunderstorm-like wisp sitting once again on her head.