It had been about a week since TEK's mission in the Northern Mountains. Ever since, Shade was acting much more closed off then usual. He'd still interact with everypony, but now he was quiet and always seemed down. His teammates were quite concerned about what might be going through his mind since a certain incident on their last mission. What he almost did certainly had an effect on how they saw him now, but they still recognized the painful regret he felt for his actions, and could see the turmoil within him growing each day. Though he had serious flaws, he was still their friend, and they decided to do what they could to find a way to help. They found a solution with the help of Princess Luna.
"Are you guys sure about this?"
"No, but it might be our only option, Shade."
Shade, Jet, the rest of TEK, and Princess Luna were currently gathered in one of the spare resting quarters for the royal guards, with Jet and Shade sitting upright in two separate beds next to each other.
"Indeed, Shade Vortex. Though I do not take liking to this any more than you do, my power over the realm of dreams may be the only way to enter your mind and solve what troubles you."
Shade didn't like it at all. Not one bit. No-pony should be in his head, he thought. Vinyl, however, seemed oddly fascinated with what was about to take place.
"So, run this by me again... Princess Luna is gonna do some kinda 'dream link' thing to let you enter Shade's mind? AWESOME!"
Jet shook his head.
"This is no game, Vinyl. As cool as it may seem, the mind is a dangerous and deceptive place. It's not gonna be a safe area."
"Yeah! Jet's gonna clean out Shade's mind so he doesn't go crazy again!"
Ditzy piped in with a hoof thrust up into the air. She met eyes with Shade, who was staring back at her with a bemused but slightly hurt expression. She felt extremely embarrassed.
"….Oh, yeah... No offense, Shade..."
Shade only sighed.
"None taken... I... I really am sorry about what happened on that mountain last week... My lack of self control, and fear of what I could do... it's the only reason I'm accepting your help. And whoopty-freaking-do, the Princess of the Night is able to connect minds through dreams, somehow. Have you ever done this before, by the way?"
Luna sighed softly.
"I will admit, it has been some time since I have performed a dream-share. But do not worry. I shall ensure that all will proceed without any complications."
Shade still remained skeptical.
*Great. Just great. This can't POSSIBLY go wrong...*
"I'm sure the Princess knows what she's doing Shade. We'll be fine."
Kae'lik walked up to Jet's bed and looked at him with eyes full of concern and conviction.
"Are you absolutely sure you won't need us? It doesn't have to be just you two, we can help!"
Jet looked at Kae'lik, and then to the rest of his team. Each had a look that said the same thing: begging to help, and ready to do whatever it took to help their friend. Jet thought back to when Shade and himself were first recruiting Taskforce members, and he couldn't help but smile.
*We made the right choice*
"I value how much all of you want to help. Really it's commendable. But Shade feels-"
"There should be as few ponies in my head as possible..."
TEK didn't agree with it, but they understood and respected Shade's wishes. Luna turned to the two stallions in the beds beside her.
"If you are ready, shall we proceed?"
Jet and Shade looked at each other, Jet's eyes filled with determination to help his friend, Shade's eyes filled with doubt and fear. But both looked back to Luna and nodded.
"Very well... Now, lay back and relax yourselves..."
Jet and Shade did as they were told and laid back on their individual beds. Luna then closed her eyes, and the spiraling groove in her horn began to fill with white light. TEK watched in awe as two tendrils of light slowly protruded from her horn and made contact with Jet and Shade's foreheads.
"Trippy..."
Vinyl's words were the last thing the three connected ponies heard as they slipped into unconsciousness.
______________
"Uggggghhh… Wha… where am I?"
"Hey. Hey bro, wake up."
Shade blinked heavily a few more times before he was fully awake… or dreaming awake… whatever.
"Wha... Jet?"
"Yeah, it's me. C'mon, get up... you've gotta see this."
Finally getting up on his hooves, Shade took in his surroundings.
"Whoa."
All around him was vast space, seemingly endless. But it was far from empty. The sky itself was covered with dark storm clouds, and there were dead trees all around them. On the trees where what seemed like hundreds of black crows, all of them staring at the two stallions with unblinking red eyes. There were mountains in the distance, and some kind of giant, red orb on the far horizon. The air was cold, and had an eerie feeling, as if something was always watching. There was a crackle of thunder in the sky every once in a while as well, followed by the caws of all the crows.
"This… this is my mind?"
Shade was awestruck. Jet took another look around and nodded.
"It's definitely not mine. Looks like Princess Luna's plan worked. Our manifested consciences have been transported into this... mindscape."
Shade wasn't listening though. His mind was fixed on a small gleam of light in the otherwise gray and bleak world. The small beam of light was breaching the darkness of the storm clouds, and shining on a single, small cottage.
"Is that… Fluttershy's house?"
Jet looked to where Shade was gazing.
"Looks like it. Huh, the one spot with light is your marefriend's house. Interesting. Now, let's get back to the task at hoof, because I don't wanna be here long."
"Then you must move quickly."
Jet and Shade looked behind them and up to the sky, and saw Luna descending downwards to their position.
"Princess Luna!"
Both stallions shouted in unison.
"There will be an entrance to the deeper parts of your mind. After you find it, you will have to find and face your greatest fears."
Jet nodded in understanding, but Shade looked around and scoffed.
"But this place is huge! Where are we supposed to find an entrance to anything?"
Jet thought to himself for a moment before coming up with a plan.
"Well, it's your mind and your fears. Where would your fears be lurking?"
"Hmm... Well, I'm not too fond of dragons or timber wolves."
Immediately they both looked to the mountains in the distance.
"Then it seems you know where you're headed. I now must take my leave. The journey ahead is yours alone."
Shade's head snapped back to Luna.
"Y-you're leaving?"
Luna smiled as she began ascending back into the sky.
"Fear not. I have faith that you will succeed..."
And in a bright light, Luna disappeared. Jet looked to his friend, who looked as nervous as the time when they were assigned to investigate the Changeling activity in the Everfree Forest all those months ago.
"I thought you wanted as few ponies here as possible anyway?"
"Let's just get this over with..."
Shade and Jet then turned around, facing the mountains.
"So... Guess this is where we're heading..."
As if on cue, the trees in front of Shade morphed out of the way, opening up a path in the forest-like area. The path seemed to lead to the mountains.
"Creepy..."
_______________
Luna's eyes reopened, and the light tendrils disconnected from her horn and merged into a single conduit linking the minds of Jet and Shade. She turned to the rest of TEK, still watching in awe and anticipation.
"It is done. They have successfully entered the mind of Shade Vortex."
"Will they be okay?"
Ditzy asked worryingly, her hoof to her mouth.
"It is too early to say anything for certain right now. There is no way of determining what they may encounter within Shade's mind. We can only wait and hope all goes well. I've separated myself so that I may monitor their physical condition."
"Don't worry, Ditzy! If Princess Luna's watching over them, I know they'll be alright!"
Kae'lik spoke with confidence. While the rest of TEK too remained hopeful, they knew Luna was right. They could only wait for time to tell if their leaders came out of their shared dream okay.
And they were going to have to wait a loooonnnng time...
________________
"Well that escalated quickly…"
"No joke. We've only been walking for like what, 30 minutes? And already we've run into-"
But Shade was cut off by a long and loud howl by one of the various Timber Wolves before them.
Shade and Jet were in quite the pickle. As they were walking on the path revealed by the trees, out of the blue came around ten Timber Wolves. Snarls, growls and the occasional howl filled the air.
"Uhhhh… so what do we do? If we fight them, we might damage your mind or something."
Shade shook his head.
"The very reason we came here was to destroy my fears from the inside. These wolves have put themselves here to block us from reaching the dragons cave."
"Ohhhh, I get it. You gotta face your fears in a kind of trial set-up. Wow your mind is cheesy as heck."
"Shut up and concentrate. I doubt we'll be able to beat them by normal means."
The wolves were closing in, getting ever so closer to the backed up ponies. As the wolves crept their way towards them, Jet closed his eyes and thought for about five seconds.
"Wait, this is YOUR mind. You're the master here. Just, I don't know, imagine them blowing up or something."
Shade closed his eyes for a few seconds as well before opening them again.
"I-I can't... I can't think straight..."
"Oh for pete's sa-"
The closest wolf charged forward and bared his jagged fangs, ready for fresh blood. Jet saw it coming, and using his lightning fast reflexes he swung a wing, sending a blue wave through the air. When it made contact it sliced the wolf in two, crumbling it's body to the ground.
*Huh, my wind blades DO still work here.*
Jet turned around to find another wolf already behind him, closing in too fast for him to react.
*HOW? WHERE DID THIS ONE COME FROM?*
Before it ripped Jet's body apart, the wolf's head exploded into burning splinters from a quick energy blast.
"Phew... thanks bro..."
Shade nodded.
"Yeah. But as we thought this isn't normal."
"I know, they're just popping out of thin air!"
Jet spoke as he sliced two more wolves in half. Shade had to teleport behind himself to avoid another wooden hound that tried to jump him from behind.
"Gah, how do they keep appearing in our blind spots? This is getting tedious."
"Whoa!"
Jet was barely able to avoid a slashing claw, which was only an inch from his eye. He flung open his wings and took a great leap backwards to gain some distance.
"That was too close. I can't hear them coming or anything, it's like their not even there."
Shade nodded as he crushed a wolf's head underhoof.
"No joke. They don't give off any kind of aura or energy so all I have to go off on is my own reflexes."
Jet and Shade were holding their ground, but soon enough the destroyed wolves would rebuild themselves. Combined with the fact that more wolves were appearing out of nowhere, their numbers were adding up quickly.
"Okay we gotta get outta here. I thought we would be able to defeat them, but they're doing nothing but multiplying!"
Shade yelled with frustration through the growls and yelps of the ongoing battle. Jet nodded and flew up high above the wolves.
"I'll buy us some time. Lets see how they take this..."
Jet spread out his wings to their full span, their feathers glowing brightly.
"...BLADE STORM!"
Jet gritted his teeth as he pushed his wings to the limit, flapping rapidly and unleashing a miniature hurricane of wind blades that obliterated anything that got caught in the gust. The air was fraught with crescent-shaped slashes of air currents. Not a single wolf was spared from destruction.
Shade managed to teleport away and watched from a distance.
"For a Pegasus, he has a ton of magical energy..."
When Jet calmed down and the wind stopped, the entire area was a pile of twigs, rocks, and roots from destroyed trees. Jet flew over to Shade and collapsed on the ground.
"*Wheeze* That took... *wheeze* a lot of energy..."
Shade looked back over to the graveyard of twigs to find them already moving, struggling to find their other pieces.
"We have to keep moving. They're already trying to regenerate."
Jet had barely enough energy to even stand.
"Okay... Although I won't be able to use Wind Blades or anything else for a while..."
Shade nodded and carried Jet along with his telekinesis, until Jet was strong enough to walk on his own again. They had only walked for about ten seconds before a loud howl sounded out behind them. Shade looked back and his pupils immediately shrunk to the size of pin tips.
"Crap."
Behind them were hundreds, if not thousands of Timber Wolves. They covered every inch of the land behind them, like a flood of wooden carnivores. This time, it was Shade's turn to do some critical thinking.
*We're not far from the cave, I guess I could teleport us there in two warps... But then I'll only be able to teleport one more time for a while…*
"Uhhh, Shade… they're kinda running at us…"
Shade looked at his friend, then at the wolves, and furrowed his brow as he continued to think.
*No other options. I gotta do it.*
*Flash!*
And suddenly the two ponies were a lot closer to the mountain. The wolves were catching up quickly though, hundreds of them rushing towards the two stallions. Shade looked back to the them and then back at the mountain. He closed his eyes in focus, and with great mental strain he got himself and Jet to the cave, lying right in front of it.
*Gah... I'm really tired now...*
Shade had used up most of his energy teleporting both Jet and himself such a distance, especially after doing so two times in succession.
Jet, on the other hand, was now strong enough to at least speed walk to the cave, with Shade not far behind.
The wolves weren't wasting time either, and were closing the distance insanely fast.
Although they were in the cave, the two ponies where still defenseless, and the cave was open and doing nothing to stop the wolves from simply waltzing in.
Shade went into panic mode.
*NO! This is just like the past! Only difference is there's WAY more wolves now!*
Suddenly a critical realization dawned on him.
*Wait... If this is just like the past, then that means...*
Looking to his left, there it was, a large rounded stone, large enough to cover the cave mouth. Jet followed Shade's eyes and he saw the boulder as well.
"How did we not notice that?"
Shade got up and lowered his horn.
"C'mon, that stone is our only hope. We gotta use it to cover the entrance!"
Jet thought about it and hesitated.
"Yeah but, isn't a dragon supposed to be in here?"
"...We'll have to cross that bridge when we get there. For now we gotta worry about the present. Besides, which would you rather deal with: one dragon, or THAT?"
Jet looked back at the thousands of Timber Wolves that literally covered every inch of the land before them.
"...Yeah, dragon. No contest."
While Shade struggled to use his telekinesis to try and pull the stone towards him, Jet was behind it pushing physically. It was steady going, until they noticed that they had to speed it up, because the wolves were dangerously close now.
"SCREW IT!"
Shade concentrated as hard as he could, and suddenly his body was enveloped in a blue aura, his eyes glowing brightly and extremely focused.
With a massive boost in power, Shade lifted the stone in the air and pulled it flying towards the cave. Jet was barely able to fly in front of it and into the cave before the stone slammed into the entrance with a loud and echoing thud, kicking up a small cloud of dust and tiny chips of rock. Only about three seconds afterwards, the two ponies could hear feral growls and scratches on the other side.
Shade closed his eyes, and the blue aura disappeared. When he opened them again, his eyes had lost their bright glow. He wasn't standing for too long before he collapsed on the ground. Jet rushed up to his friend.
"Did you really need to use your Adrenaline Rush?"
Shade wanted to respond but he could barely even stay awake. Jet noticed and laid Shade's head down.
"You need to rest. Going into Adrenaline Rush so fast when you were already pretty drained took way too much out of you. I'll keep watch."
Shade weakly nodded before falling out cold. While Shade slept, Jet thought to himself.
*This is only the beginning…*
_______________
"GAH!"
Shade jerked awake, violently flailing in response to whatever was touching him.
"Dude calm down it's just me!"
He saw it was only Jet standing above him, and eased his nerves.
"Sorry... This place is bringing back old habits... What's up?"
"You've been out for maybe an hour. I had to move us because the growls and stuff were making me uncomfortable. I did my best to carry you through the cave."
"I see... So why did you wake me again?"
"That."
Jet pointed a hoof behind him to what seemed like a giant hole in the cave wall in front of them.
"What is that?"
"It appears to be an entrance to another cavern. It's most likely the lair of the dragon."
Shade looked back at the huge "doorway." It was pitch black, preventing any visibility of what was inside. It had an eerie presence to it as well, providing a sense of danger, warning about whatever lay beyond the darkness.
"I... think your right..."
"You should be fully recovered right? I am."
Shade nodded hesitantly.
"...Yeah, I think I've regained all my strength..."
There was a pause as Jet and Shade continued to stare at the dark entrance for what felt like an eternity.
"...You... You wanna take this head on?"
Jet sighed.
"Well, we don't really have too many options... All we can do is try and finish this as soon as possible."
It was faint, but Jet was sure he heard Shade gulp.
"You ready?"
Shade hesitated again, but eventually nodded.
"...Ready."
Taking a few steps forward, the duo entered into the unknown. As they stepped through the entrance, the darkness faded away as if it was never there, an illusion concealing the cavern itself.
Once inside, they noticed that the cavern was oddly empty. There was nothing more than a huge cavern with a number of large rocks scattered near the walls. The middle of the cavern was especially void of anything.
"Huh, there's nothing in here. Guess it was just a false alarm."
Shade shook his head.
"I don't think so… I don't know how to explain it, but I can feel something's in here..."
All of a sudden, small chucks of rock and dust started falling from the ceiling. Shade and Jet instantly froze before looking at each other, and then slowly looking up at the ceiling.
When they did, Shade instantly recognized the massive, purple-spined, pale-lavender dragon with cyan eyes staring back. Its muzzle was displaying a vicious smile of ivory fangs. Its claws were sunken deeply into solid stone as it clung upside down to the ceiling, and the stallions watched in terror as it released its hold and dropped onto the ground with a loud explosion of dust and rock, landing perfectly on its claws.
Jet and Shade covered their eyes from the dust clouds while the Dragon stood up to it's full height, it's head spines almost reaching the ceiling. It then emitted a deafening roar that shook the very cavern to the core.
"……"
"……"
The dragon opened his enormous jaws and did not hesitate to unleash a wave of flames.
Before Shade could even think, Jet had already flown both of them behind one of the rocks to their right to use as cover. Shade immediately scurried to back up against the boulder, panting as he stayed low. Jet was already forming a plan.
"Alright Shade! I'll keep him occupied above, you handle him from the ground!"
Before Shade could object, Jet was already flying back into the heat of battle. Shade fearfully peaked over the boulder to see Jet flying around the dragon, assaulting him with wind blades and avoiding fire blasts. One blast ended up heading straight towards the boulder Shade was behind, and he ducked quickly as it exploded on contact, leaving the opposite side of the boulder smoldering and red hot. Shade huddled closely against his side of the rock in fear, his body shuddering, his teeth clenched, and his eyes shut tightly.
Meanwhile Jet was wondering where his support was, as his attacks were doing jack squat against the now irritated predator.
"Uhhhh Shade, I could use a little help here!"
From above, Jet could see Shade cowering behind a half scorched rock. Shade peaked up and awkwardly met eyes with Jet.
"C'mon Shade! Pull yourself together!"
Jet just barely dodged a quick claw swipe from the angered dragon. At the same time, Shade struggled to move at all.
*What is wrong with me? Why am I so... paralyzed with fear? If I can't get past this, how will I be able to deal with-*
"GAH!!!"
Shade's thoughts were interrupted when he heard Jet scream in pain. He looked up to see he had been knocked out of the air by a powerful tail swipe, just like what had happened to him back in the Everfree.
Jet collided against a cave wall and fell to the ground unconscious. The dragon flashed a toothy grin as he slowly crept towards his prey.
"JET!"
Shade's body froze briefly, but his mind was racing at supersonic speeds.
*...I can't let this happen...*
He took some time to refocus himself, and to build up some extra energy. He was determined to save his friend, and no amount of fear was going to hold him back this time.
*...I WON'T LET THIS HAPPEN!*
"HEY!!!"
The lavender dragon stopped and turned to his left. There he saw the gray unicorn standing atop a charred boulder, wrapped in a bright blue aura with small sparks of energy phasing in and out around him, his eyes glowing just as brightly.
"STAY AWAY FROM MY FRIEND!"
The dragon accepted Shade's challenge, a decision he would later regret. Shade, with boosted power from another Adrenaline Rush, proceeded to effortlessly lift a good forty percent of the boulders within the cavern, telekinetically hurling every single one at the overgrown lizard. The large stones were too numerous, too fast, and coming from too many directions for the dragon to successfully evade, chunks of rock crashing and crumbling against his body.
The beast roared in a pained fury, and returned fire with actual fire. A blazing hot flamethrower streamed out from his maw, but Shade blocked it with a quick barrier shield. The dragon stared Shade down with its piercing cyan eyes, but Shade stared right back with his determined sapphire eyes, refusing to be intimidated this time.
Shade's attention was briefly torn away from the standoff when his ears picked up Jet groaning, and he looked over to see him getting back up, clearly in pain. He teleported over to his side, the dragon turning his head to keep his attention on the now regrouped ponies. Before he could do anything, however, Shade completely immobilized him, holding him in place with his strengthened telekinesis.
"Ugghhh... You seem to have a handle on things..."
Jet finally got up to his hooves ready to get back in the action. Still keeping the dragon at bay, Shade turned to his reawakened partner.
"You ready to finish this?"
Jet nodded, and he and Shade both turned to face the struggling dragon. Jet, with the remaining strength and energy he had, ignored his pain and flew up into the air, while Shade aimed his already glowing horn.
"HERE WE..."
Jet's wings were outstretched to their full span and winding back slightly, before he flapped them both hard and rapidly at the same time Shade fired his horn.
"...GO!!!"
Shade released all his energy into one highly concentrated beam, while Jet unleashed a forward cyclone of energized blades of wind. The combo attack struck against the dragon hard with multiple hits, severely weakening his strength. He emitted a final, angered roar as it collapsed onto the ground falling on his side with a mighty crash that shook the very ground.
The intense assault of energy and air slashes dissipated, with Shade's Adrenaline Rush fully depleted and Jet landing back on the ground, breathing heavily.
"You... You did it bro... You overcame your fear and came out like a champ..."
Shade wiped the sweat from his brow, breathing hard himself.
"I... I honestly don't know what came over me there... I saw you in trouble and I just... I couldn't let anything happen to you... Adrenaline Rush probably helped me overpower my fear too."
"Yeah, no doubt..."
Shade suddenly found himself smiling.
"But hey, Jet... thanks. Thanks for believing in me, and having my back there. I don't think I could've done that without you."
"No prob-"
But Jet was interrupted by something very unexpected. The dragon's large jaws opened up once again. Jet and Shade jumped into battle positions, but what they saw led them to lower their guard.
Instead of the fire infested maw of a dragon, there was a door, oddly enough. The dragon's mouth was huge, so the door sat comfortably inside it, with steps leading up to it in place of where its tongue normally sat. It's silver lining accented its red face.
Shade and Jet looked to the door, then back at each other.
"Wait, I thought the Dragon was your biggest test?"
"Apparently not. But I'm sure that my truly greatest test lies beyond this door."
Jet nodded and made his way toward the door. He reached out his hoof to open it, but he was stopped. His hoof was unable to pass further than about a third of a meter from the door, blocked some sort of invisible wall. Shade noticed and decided to try as well. He, however touched the door with no problem.
They both understood what this meant. Jet spoke up first.
"I guess your mind wants you to take this one solo."
Shade nodded.
"I guess so... You gonna be alright here?"
"Yeah, I'll be fine. But Shade, listen to me."
Shade turned around to see a very serious look on Jet's face.
"No matter what you find beyond that door, remember: this is YOUR mind. YOU have control here. And if all else fails, remember us."
"'Us?'"
"Me, TEK, Celestia, Fluttershy, and everypony else. We're all with you, backing you up."
Shade was touched by the sentiment, and paused before nodding.
"...Thanks, Jet. Sometimes I forget that... It means more to me than you realize..."
Jet nodded, and Shade turned to the door.
"I'm gonna go through this door... and defeat whatever lays ahead of me so we can go home."
Pushing through, Shade walked into the unknown, the door sealing behind him.
"I know you will, Shade..."
_________________
Shade knew the dragon wasn't his greatest and final obstacle. Not by a long shot. In fact, he already knew what lay ahead of him as he walked the dark, winding pathway. Everywhere was darkness, but Shade could see everything clearly. The ground was cold, made of smooth obsidian rock. It arched over him like a tunnel, and the light at its end was faint and barely broke through.
*Ironic how the path to the darkest part of my mind leads to an area of light, even if it's faint.*
Upon reaching the tunnel's end, Shade found himself in another forest-like environment, even more eerie than the first one. The sky was pale white, and a fog engulfed the dead trees around him. Shade could feel himself growing colder, unsure if from the temperature or from fear, if not both.
But Shade wasn't going to back down. Not when he'd already gotten so far. Jet's words filled him with determination and strength, and he stared defiantly, although nervous, into the shrouded mist. Without a hint of wavering in his voice, Shade called out to his final test.
"I know you're there! Show yourself already!"
There was a chilling silence, which lasted much longer than Shade would have liked, his limbs feeling weaker and his stomach starting to sink. Then he saw a shadowed form approaching through the fog.
"I knew you'd show up eventually..."
Its shape became clearer as it drew closer, taking slow, almost careful steps.
"...After all, the one thing I fear more than anything else..."
The form's appearance was visibly clear to Shade now, although he didn't need to see who stood before him to know his identity.
"...Is myself."
Shade was facing a near-perfect reflection of himself, aside from some very key differences. The Shade from the shadows was much more rough looking, as if he had been living in this forest for his entire lifetime. His mane was frayed and untamed, and he also wore the same cloak Shade had worn while in the Everfree. It, too, was torn and raggedy, its shredded ends flowing in a wind that did not seem to be present. This other Shade emitted a sinister chuckle.
"Not surprised to see the real you?"
That got under Shade's skin. He refused to accept such a comparison.
"You are NOT the real me... I... I refuse to become anything like you..."
"Still you choose to ignore me... How hurtful..."
Shade's "shadow" reflection was walking around and began circling Shade slowly, an evil grin shaping his face.
"...But while you pushed me aside and tried to forget me, I only grew stronger. And one day, when you least expect it..."
Shadow Shade stopped directly at Shade's left, facing the opposite direction.
"...I will consume you..."
Shade remained determined to keep that from happening. Defiantly, he replied to Shadow Shade as he was walking away from him during his circling motion.
"Then I'll just have to rid myself of you... become even stronger than you, so I can destroy any chance of becoming anything like you!"
Shadow Shade looked back with a sarcastically amused expression. Then he gave way to chaotic, maniacal laughter. He closed his eyes before speaking in a malicious, echoing voice.
"You idiot..."
The sky was growing rapidly darker, black clouds spreading from behind Shadow Shade and closing in above Shade, choking out all light.
"...Do you honestly believe..."
Shadow Shade's gray coat darkened vastly, and his mane and tail became black flames of darkness. He opened his eyes, which were now completely blue and glowing brightly, contrasting with the surrounding darkness.
"...That you can defeat yourself!?"
Shade was already in his battle stance. Preparation was crucial now, because he knew he was about to face his greatest test yet.
The determined unicorn charged forward, his dark counterpart following suit. Shade's horn began charging with bright blue energy as he rushed towards his enemy. He jumped into the air and fired a massive energy blast, but Shadow Shade teleported out of the way, reappearing in front of Shade. Shadow Shade then engulfed Shade and everything around him in thick, pitch-black darkness.
Shade could feel himself growing colder as he was oppressed by all of his darkest thoughts, fears, and memories. He saw visions of ponies he cared about meeting with terrible fates, traumatic scenes from his past, and worst-case scenarios of him losing control of himself, causing pain to those closest to him. The series of images flooded his mind, and he tried closing his eyes to avoid them, but to no avail. He screamed from the mental agony.
"Don't you see? I'm not just you... I'm the darkest parts of you!"
Shade could hear his own voice mocking him, taunting as Shade struggled and screamed in the darkness.
"All your fear... Your pain... Your hate... I am your worst Nightmare!"
The word was truly fitting for what Shade was enduring. Shadow Shade - his "Nightmare" self - was throwing every bit of negativity that lurked within Shade. But Shade wasn't going to take it any longer.
"...SHUT UP!!!"
By sheer willpower, Shade overcame the darkness surrounding him, blasting it away from him mentally and physically with a telekinetic pulse wave. Nightmare Shade, too, was pushed back by the wave, recoiling on the now brightening ground. Shade took a few seconds to gather himself together, shaking his head to clear away the horrible images from his mind.
"Now..."
The shadowy form of Nightmare Shade rose to his hooves, looking to see Shade boldly standing in opposition, ready to attack.
"...Let's try that again."
"Impressive... But if you think you can simply overpower me, you're gonna have a bad time..."
Both stallions - if you could call Nightmare Shade a stallion - prepared themselves for round two. Then, both suddenly charged at each other. They also both teleported at the same time, something Nightmare Shade hadn't expected but which Shade was counting on.
As both reappeared facing away from each other, Shade trusted his hind legs out in a powerful back kick, knocking Nightmare Shade onto the ground once again. Nightmare looked up, his glowing sapphire eyes meeting with Shade's.
He faded into darkness, his shadows spreading across the landscape and rising into the shrouded sky. The dark cloud it formed began firing bolts of darkness at Shade, who dodged each strike with swift agility. He stopped only to return fire with blasts of azure energy, tearing through the black sky and Nightmare Shade's form with their light. Successful hits produced an echoed scream from the shadowy cloud, and it swirled into a vortex of darkness, swooping down and rapidly approaching Shade.
Its speed overpowered Shade's reflexes, colliding with him and carrying him through the forest, crashing him through dead trees with great force. It flung him outwards and he was sent skidding on the cold ground. Nightmare Shade reformed and watch Shade struggle to get up. He shook his head and spoke in a voice that almost sounded pitiful.
"You still don't get it... You only grow tired and become exhausted as you try to fight me... Yet I only grow stronger!"
Shade got halfway to his hooves, pain felt all throughout his body.
*He's right... My strength is wearing down fast, yet he's barely even breaking a sweat...*
"The more you try to push me back, the weaker you make yourself to me... I'll take over you at your weakest moment, and it will be your own fault!"
Shade's efforts to rise failed, dropping back to the ground in pain and breathing heavily.
*I can't beat him...*
Shade could hear Nightmare Shade's sinister laughter again, echoing throughout the forest. He could feel the cold again as well, and opened his eyes slightly to see streams of darkness coming from Nightmare Shade, wrapping around Shade and pulling him into the dark void of misery he had experienced earlier. Shade wasn't even trying to fight this time. He was tired, and all hopes of overcoming the final challenge of his own mind began fading away. He had accepted this test alone, and he was going to fail it alone.
At least, that's what he felt until what happened next.
"...Shade!"
Shade could hear a faint voice, and he felt the warmth of light breaking through the cold darkness. He opened his eyes with the last glimmer of hope he still possessed. From the ground he lay on, he saw a bright light approaching him through the thick shadows around him. As it drew closer, Shade could see a familiar form within the bright gleam.
"...Fluttershy?"
Shade slowly rose, about halfway, as Fluttershy - or rather, his mind's projection of her - hovered towards him.
"You can't give up now, Shade..."
She landed in front of him, offering her hoof to help Shade get up. Shade, however, hesitated, his demeanor grim and full of pain, physical and emotional.
"I... I can't, Shy... I can't defeat the darkness inside me... It just keeps getting stronger the more I try to fight it..."
Fluttershy's projection sat down in front of Shade, placing her warm hoof of light on his shoulder.
"We all have our own dark side, Shade... It's not something you can simply remove or destroy. You have to learn to accept and control it."
Shade didn't quite understand.
"...Control it?"
"By accepting that it's there within you, you'll make the effort to control the anger you feel. But if you just keep telling yourself it's not there, you'll only give it a chance to grow, and eventually take over you..."
Shade thought about Fluttershy's words, and how similar they sounded to what Nightmare Shade himself said.
*"While you pushed me aside and tried to forget me, I only grew stronger..." Nightmare was telling the truth. All this time I've been trying to push my darkest thoughts and emotions deep down inside me, but I've only been making it worse...*
Shade looked back up and saw Fluttershy's projection smiling warmly.
"And Shade, always remember that you're not alone..."
Shade looked around, and saw that in place of the vast darkness around him we're memories of all his friends, TEK and otherwise. He saw scenes of the lighthearted interactions he had with the elements of harmony, the teamwork and loyalty he shared with his fellow TEK members, and the love he felt for and received from the mare whose projection sat before him. These memories returned the feelings of hope and happiness into Shade's heart, as well as tears to his eyes. Looking back at Fluttershy's projection of light, he got up and hugged her tightly.
"Thank you, Fluttershy... Thank you for showing me this..."
"I'll always be here for you Shade..."
As Fluttershy said these final words, her form of light shone brighter, and then it faded away. Shade's eyes reopened, filled with determination and the knowledge of what he needed to do next. Wiping the tears from his eyes, he focused all his remaining power, and drew further strength from the memories of his friends. He could feel his energy starting to flow through him, until it began surging and enveloping in a glowing blue aura. His body lifted slightly off the ground, and he drew himself in close before thrusting his limbs outward, sending a massive spherical pulse of positive energy, completely dispelling Nightmare Shade's darkness around him. Shade saw that Nightmare Shade was surprised at this, as his own glowing azure eyes were filled with fear.
"WHAT!? How did you break free!?"
Shade landed back on the ground, standing with newfound confidence in himself.
"I was reminded of a very important fact..."
Shade waved his hoof to the side, and the dark clouds filling the sky cleared away. Nightmare Shade cowered at Shade's sudden control over his mental environment.
"You see, 'Nightmare Shade,' you were completely right about the two of us. You are all of my negativity, the darkest side of my emotions and thoughts, and I have been trying to push you away and pretend you don't exist."
Shade walked towards Nightmare Shade as he spoke, and in the process he cleared away the dense fog that was spread across the forest.
"But your dead wrong if you think I'm gonna simply allow you to take over me."
Nightmare Shade could feel his own strength and power quickly dissipating like the fog and clouds before him. His hold over Shade was failing, and Shade was well aware of it.
"You see, I'm not alone in this struggle against you, against myself. I have my friends, old and new, a team I consider to be like family, a best friend who's the brother I never had, and a loving marefriend who's been by my side since fillyhood. They're what give me the strength to go on each day, to do the things I have to do."
Shade stood right in front of his dark reflection, whose shadowy form was visibly starting to disintegrate into flames of darkness. He stared back at Shade with a combined expression of fear and anger, his teeth clenched and eyes filled with a fiery hatred.
"You're not gonna take control of me, Nightmare... I'm the one that's taking control of you!"
Nightmare Shade screamed as his form of darkness was absorbed into Shade, his hate-filled "no" echoing throughout the forest. Shade let out a deep sigh of relief and exhaustion. And turned to the reopened pathway returning to an awaiting Jet Fly.
__________________
Shade emerged from the door within the dragon's mouth, and was greeted by the patiently waiting Jet and, surprisingly, Princess Luna.
"Shade! You made it out!"
Shade stepped out of the reptile's jaws and stood on the cave ground in front of his friend and the Princess of the night.
"Yeah. That was... something else. Didn't expect to see you here, Princess."
"Luna showed up not too long ago to check on our progress. I told her how you were facing your last trial and she agreed to wait with me."
Shade nodded in understanding. Princess Luna smiled at both stallions.
"If you two are ready, shall we return to the realm of reality?"
Both nodded, Shade with much more enthusiasm.
"Yeah, I'm ready to get out of my own head for a while..."
Luna nodded, closing her eyes as her horn began to glow. Soon the three of them were engulfed in a bright, white light. When Shade reopened his eyes, he was once again laying on the bed in the spare resting quarters, Jet reawakening on his bed next to Shade's, and Luna and the rest of TEK standing before them. Shade could see the shared look of worried anticipation on the faces of all his teammates.
"Did it work?"
Shade looked to Ditzy, and to the rest of his team, and nodded slowly.
"I... I think it did..."
What followed was a collective outburst of cheering and rejoicing. Luna chuckled as all of TEK swarmed Jet and Shade with a massive group hug, only for them all to nearly be crushed by Bulk. Shade received a hoof-full of encouraging words from his friends, and TEK was happy to once again have their friend back to normal.
After a while, the room had cleared substantially, leaving only Jet and Shade remaining. As Shade was about to leave, Jet stopped him.
"Shade... I hate to ask, but... What did you see in there? Behind the door?"
Shade paused and took a deep breath, then looked back to Jet.
"I... I saw myself..."