32 - Finale (2/2)
Ch. 32 - Finale (2/2)
984 Years Ago
“Retreat! Retreat! Re-”
Smack.
The griffin soldier tumbled through the air. The world spun with him, blurring across his eyes. “Argh!”
“RRRAAAGH!”
A black griffin, clad in similar armor, dove from above and slammed into the soldier, pushing them both into the ground.
“ACK!” the soldier gasped. Feathers, dust, and broken floor tiles were thrown up. The ground caved under the griffin's back, forming a minor crater. “Hock!” Blood erupted from his mouth. He clawed the air, then at the shadow crushing him. Ponies of every color stood around, shaking or gasping in horror.
Cadmium eagle eyes looked down upon the griffin.
“Off, demon!”
The shade looked up sharply. A bright beam of radiant golden light struck the dark griffin in the face. “Grah!” it squawked, spinning across the room. It bounced and settled in a heap. One armor-clad pony jumped back in surprise.
“Ah...cough...old...codger...” the soldier wheezed, bright red blood flowing down his beak.
Ponies parted to either side from their defensive formation. A figure walked between them.
“Stand back, Greifswald. You are injured.” A pony – withered by age but standing tall like a mountain – walked by the downed griffin. Upon his head was a large, most peculiar hat. A gray beard billowed and swayed with his talking. A horn adorned his head. It shined with a golden aura, to match the old stallion's golden eyes.
Golden, glowing eyes looked up from the ground some paces away. The dark griffin rose to lion and eagle feet, wings raised aggressively. “Hurr...?”
The unicorn stepped forward. “Fiend from the dark! You will trouble my companions no more! For now you fight the master of magic!” He reared back, front legs kicking the air. “Starswirl, the Bearded!”
The shade responded by losing its shape.
“What the deuce?” Starswirl exclaimed, taking a ready stance. His horn remained lit.
“It's...it's happening...cough...again!” The griffin soldier backed away, eagle claw clutching his chest. “Soldiers! S-soldiers...cough...stand ready!”
“Greifswald,” said Starswirl, exasperated, “what in Tartarus is...what?” His keen eyes grew wide.
The mighty shadow had shrunk, reduced itself. It stood a withered figure on four hooves. A black hat adorned its head, as did an obsidian horn. Darkness flowed from its chin, a beard composed of black hairs that lost itself in the shadows. Eyes glowing like flickering candles peeked out from under the hat.
“It's...S-starswirl!” Greifswald coughed.
“Oh...dear...” Starswirl mumbled.
The shadow reared up, head held high. Its horn flashed yellow. It stomped on the ground, and the horn lit up like the sun. A great wind burst forth in front of the shadow, sweeping out.
Ponies flew back for the force of the explosion. Screams rang in the air.
Starswirl the Bearded press his horn before him, its light cutting a swath that parted the river of wind to either side of him. “Hrrrrraah!”
When the explosion subsided, dozens of soldiers lay scattered around the hall.
Greifswald called out, huddled as he was behind the wizard, “Everyone out! Re-COUGH-t-treat!” He hacked blood all over his claws. He waved at his troops towards the door.
None were long in filing out. Dust billowed up where they trod.
The griffin turned to the wizard and his copy. He was blinded by a flash of light. “Ah! St-starswirl...old c-codger!” he called.
Lightning sprang up from either unicorn, meeting between them in a bright convergence point. The bolt born from Starswirl's horn shone like gold. The lightning spawned from the shadow was a sickly yellow, like that of piss. These arcs met in the middle, where smaller electrical charges arced to the ground rapidly.
“Greifswald!” Starswirl shouted, straining under the effort. Despite the light, he stared forward resolute. “Go! We cannot fight this monster here! I will follow shortly!”
“...right!” Greifswald nodded, then spread his wings. They carried him to the door, where he rolled through. A pony helped him to his feet, and he shuffled weakly away from the threshold.
Inside, the wizard summoned an extra burst of mana, directing his will against his opponent. His golden lightning surged, causing the place of arcane meeting to swell in brightness and power. At the last moment, the old stallion cut off the spell, simultaniously weaving a simple one of air walking. Wind flowed to his hooves, pushing him back and away.
The shade's lightning struck the ground, and the creature cut off its spell. It searched the spot, only to see the wizard flying out the door.
Starswirl the Bearded landed on the stones outside, his cape whipping in the evening wind. His head shot up. “Prepare yourselves! It comes!”
The entire company rushed into formation, weapons trained at the opening. Pegasi took to the sky, Earth ponies on the ground. Starswirl – the group's sole unicorn – stood firm with horn alight by aura. Even Greifswald took up a torch, knowing he remained too injured to fight but unwilling to stand by useless. All eyes were set on the temple entrance.
For a moment they waited...then they grew antsy. The shadow did not come out.
Cocking an eyebrow, Starswirl the Bearded walked to the doorway, peering inside.
Within, the doppelganger appraised the original. A few torches lay abandoned on the floor, but visibility was still poor for the shadows and dust. Piss-yellow eyes stood out from the dark.
Finally, the shade walked sideways...and picked up a brown satchel from the ground. It turned its back on the door, and walked further in.
“Hmm?” Starswirl said, studying the creature. “...hmm...oh...I see...”
“What?” Greifswald said, hobbling up and peering inside. “What is happening? What do you see?”
“Whose satchel is that?”
“Uh...”
The two turned around. An earth pony shuffled over, peering inside. “I found that satchel on an altar. I thought it was...”
Starswirl groaned. “Ugh! You fool!” He leaned his head in, face nearly touching that of the soldier. The soldier leaned back uncomfortably.
“What? What is the matter?” Greifswald said, wiping blood from his beak. “Are we not in battle still?”
“Nay, Greifswald, we are not.” The wizard sighed. He pointed a hoof towards the altar. “See how the shapeshifter returns the satchel to its proper place?”
One look in the gloom proved, indeed, the shadow placing the bag to the altar. “Yes?” the griffin said, scratching his head. His blood splattered talon stained a few of his cranial feathers in the act.
“It is obviously a guardian, then,” Starswirl said. He spied the shadow dissolving into nothing and melting into the floor. “Somepony – ancient Maretanian, by the look of these ruins – sealed that bag away, and bound an abyssal shadow, or some other dark specter, to the site to guard it. It will not travel beyond the walls of this temple, and will fight so long as its charge is threatened with theft.” He cast a dirty look to the earth pony soldier.
“Then what do we do, wizard?” Greifswald said, casting fervid glances towards at the darkness.
“Summon the smiths,” Starlswirl said, walking away. “Have them cast a lock from cold iron, and use it to seal these doors. Make no key. Whatsoever remains in that satchel, it will do no creature good to go after it.
“Seal the door. And hope whatever was meant to be locked away remains so. Permanently.”
Present Day
“RAH!”
A pale hand grasps for a leather strap. An ebony fist catches a belly. Thorns sprout from its skin, piercing soft flesh.
Painwheel gasped, hand falling short. “Oof...ha...ack!” She looked down, vision swimming. Her other hand groped around her stomach, catching a cold arm. A black mass was sunk into her belly. Painwheel looked up. “Ack...”
The shade retracted its fist, spikes sliding back into place. Were they retreating into shadow flesh...or merely a whole dark mass reforming? The shade pulled its fist back, then smacked Painwheel in the face.
The human staggered backwards, clutching her face with one hand and her stomach with the other.
“Shit...grrh...fuck!” she said, swaying about, until she regained proper foot. She rubbed her cheek. Casting a glance to the shadow creature, she brought up her other hand. It was splashed with a smear of thick, black blood. Her belly stung horribly, but she could feel it closing uncomfortably.
It growled. She remembered vaguely not having breakfast.
The shadow watched her, expression hidden, assuming the mask wasn't its face.
The mask. Why the mask? “Grah!” Painwheel grunted, lunging. Her fist sailed just shy of the shade's face. It coiled its right arm back for an overhead punch, but Painwheel caught it with her left. She raised a foot, muscles tightening. She kicked at the shade's stomach, parasites stinging as they pierced her flesh and the shade's.
“Guh!” Staggering back, the shade planted its feet. The blades on its back spun up, then came crashing towards Painwheel. Loud, mechanical ringing filled the air.
The buzzsaw cut across Painwheel's arm. “Hrah!” she cried, gritting her teeth. Resisting the urge to clutch her arm, she spun up her own Buar Drive. Painwheel kicked from the ground with one foot, spinning on the other foot and rotating. Her buzzsaw swept horizontally, meeting the shade's blades as they came for another pass around. They clanged, sparks firing off where they engaged.
Painwheel stooped to all fours, face upturned to watch her opponent. The Buar Drive hung above her, like a scorpion tail, then shot out. The shade raised its Buar defensively, ebony shoulder braced against the flat of ebony blade. More sparks flew where Painwheel's blades hammered against it.
The shade, reeling back, pushed forward, knocking both fighters' blades away.
There, Painwheel thought. Her arms straightened out, palms down, taking her full weight. Tucking her legs under her, Painwheel kicked with both. Gae Bolga parasites fired out across her limbs. Her feet and spikes caught the shade in the chest.
“Bruh!” the shade grunted, knocked off its feet and onto its butt. It rolled over, Buar Drives flailing in the air wildly.
The parasites in her legs retracting, Painwheel got her feet under her and scrambled for the satchel. She snatched it up, then starting running.
“Go, Painwheel, Go!” Twilight called, leaning against the door frame.
“Go Painwheel, she's our girl!” Discord cheered. Literally, he cheered, with pom poms and uniform and everything. He hopped from one foot to another. “If she can't do it, I might just hu-”
The sound of rushing wind.
“Gah!” Painwheel cried, eyes going wide. She stumbled, a sharp pain running up her leg. She tried to right herself, to keep running, but her ankle stung, even more than usual, and refused to bear her weight. She fell over, an outstretched hand slipping on a broken tile. She noticed she was right around that crushed portion of the floor. Her arm spun from under her, and she landed hard on her shoulder. “ARGH!”
She winced, hissing out air. Forcing an eye open, she looked to her leg. A black spike protruded from her ankle, but it wasn't one of hers. “Bwuh?” she said, bending her knee and twisting her foot closer. The spike – black as pitch – began to dissolve into smoke before her eyes. “Ugh!”
Painwheel looked back into the room. The shade was raising an arm out, and shaking. Its flesh writhed, barely visible in the dark. Bulges formed there.
“Shit...shit!” Painwheel said, pushing herself up. She winced, clasping the satchel-bearing hand to her shoulder. She hopped on her good foot, the other still knitting back together.
“Humf!” the shade grunted.
Painwheel gasped, a sharp sensation in her back. She fell forward again. Two spikes protruded from her back.
“Painwheel!” Twilight called.
“Hah...guh...ack,” Painwheel wheezed, propped up with one arm. “Ah!” The arm gave way, as it was held up by her damaged shoulder. The satchel slipped from her grasp, thudding to the floor beside her.
“Painwheel!” Twilight screamed, held back by the arms of Discord. “Let go of me! I have to help her!”
“No!” Painwheel coughed, lifting herself up with her good arm. “I can do this myself!” She planted her damaged foot down, the spike dissolved and the damage mended. Painwheel coughed and heaved, wincing. Gritting her teeth, she raised her bad arm and, heedless of the still-mending shoulder, twisted it over. “Argh!” Her hand found the spikes, gripped them, and yanked them out, a spray of black blood briefly flying out. With hate in her heart, she cast the smoking spikes to the ground with a clatter.
She looked over her shoulder. She broke out into a sweat.
The shade was hugging the ground, its Buar Drive spinning rapidly on the floor and digging into it. Shards of tile and dust flew up, traction building up in the blades.
“...oh no...” Twilight said.
“Oh my,” Discord said.
“Oh...shit!” Painwheel said, trying desperately to drag herself to her feet.
“RRRAGH!”
As soon as she had her feet under her, Painwheel braced herself with her Buar Drive behind her. No sooner had she done so that a fast moving shadow monster slammed into her, propelled by a high speed Buar Drive. “AAAH!” she screamed, thrown aside by the force of the impact. She sailed into a pillar, banging her head against the stone. “Gah!” The satchel fell to the ground a few paces distant.
The shade sped on towards the mouth of the temple.
“Ah!” Twilight shouted.
“Eeeek!” Discord shrieked in a high voice, jumping into Twilight's forelegs and wrapping his arms around her neck.
But the shade slowed to a stop just shy of the temple entrance. The faux Buar Drive detached from the floor, tiny shards of tile dropping from it. A cloud of dust ambled past, the shade rising on muscular, emaciated legs.
It raised a black arm over its head, shielding its eyes from the sun. It looked at Discord intently.
“Oh...hello there.” Discord smiled skittishly, wiggling fingers in a timid wave.
“Grrrr...” the shade growled.
“Hey...bastard!”
The shade looked over its shoulder curiously. “Mmrr?”
Painwheel rose from the ground, supporting herself against the pillar. Rubbing her head gingerly, she barked, “yeah! Y-you! We're not...done...you hear me?” Panting, she took a battle stance, eying the shade and the satchel in turn.
The shade eyed the bag too. Then it growled, advancing towards Painwheel methodically. Dust billowed up where it stepped, and it started running.
Gritting her teeth, Painwheel spun up her Buar Drive. The doppelganger spun up its blades in response.
Then Painwheel took her blades to the pillar.
“Grah?” the shade grumbled, stopping in its tracks. It watched, tilting its head in confusion.
Painwheel's buzzsaw dug into the stone pillar. Rocks and dust flew off in all directions. The sound was deafening. Finally, the stone fractured, the blades pushing through and out the other side.
The shade tilted its head the other way, then looked around.
The human sucked in air. Then she threw her arms over her head, wrapping around the pillar. “Haaaaaah...” She pulled, muscles straining, parasites writhing uncomfortably. Blood vessels engorged under the strain. “...haaaaaah...” She braced her feet against the ground. Her breath was ragged. “Hhhhhaaaaa!”
Crack.
The doppelganger looked up to the ceiling. The very top of the pillar cracked, then broke off completely.
“S-SMASH!”
The shade looked to Painwheel just in time to see the human heave the broken pillar right at it. “Gha-?”
Slam.
A metric ton – or thereabouts – rammed into Painwheel's doppelganger. Knocking the shadow off its feet, the pillar careened across the room, crashing to the ground with a sickening crunch. The pillar bounced once, hitting the ground again and cracking in two. The halves bounced no more, but rolled away. An enormous cloud of dust rose from the impact sight, obscuring what the darkness alone did not.
Twilight Sparkle and Discord – the latter still held up by the former – stared in shock. Then they turned towards Painwheel.
The human panted and wheezed heavily, arms hanging limply at her sides. Her sweat-matted chest heaved.
“...go...t-to...hell...” she gasped, pointing towards the dust cloud.
“Yeah! Good wo-” Twilight cheered, then turned to Discord, who yet remained in her forelegs. The draconequus smiled at her. She let him drop to the ground. “Good work, Painwheel!” Twilight said, banging her front hooves together.
“Ugh...yes, that's right young lady,” Discord said, rubbing his rump gingerly. “Good job. Now hurry over with that satchel.”
Painwheel nodded. She spied the satchel, and walked over, picking it up. Carrying it loosely, she began the trek to the door. White light spilled in, interrupted by the dark silhouettes of an alicorn pony and a chimerical being. Though she felt weary, the human felt as though a weight were lifted from her shoulders.
“GRRRAAAAGH!”
Painwheel turned suddenly. From the cloud of dust in the corner, her doppelganger vaulted into the air, blades spinning like a helicopter.
“Wha-?”
The shade dived, tackling Painwheel to the floor, spikes extended spitefully.
“AGH!” Painwheel screamed, her flesh pierced by semi-ephemeral spikes. Dust rose to the air as the two landed in a heap, casting long shadows in the light that danced across her eyes.
“Painwheel!” Twilight gasped.
“Hrrh,” breathed the shade, straddling the human. It's glowing golden eyes swept over her, then settled on her hand. It reached and grabbed the satchel by its leather strap, pulling on it.
“Huh? Rah?” Painwheel grunted, feeling the tug on the line. She scowled, pulling back on the strap. “No! Fuck off!” Putting a foot under her, Painwheel pulled her fist back. She threw a punch, landing on the shade's cheek.
The shade in turn tugged harder, throwing a jab or two at Painwheel.
The two combatants continued like this, a back-and-forth tug-of-war. Tug, jab. Tug, jab. Jab, jab, tug. Growl, tug, jab.
Tug. Snap.
The strap of the satchel broke, sending the two tumbling away from each other.
“Uh!” Painwheel said, falling to the ground. Her muscles screamed out, the parasites protesting as they always did. She rubbed her battered cheek, messaged her struck nose, a tiny trickle of thick black blood falling to her lips. She wiped it away, dragging herself to her feet, though her joints were sore for doing it. As if gravity were another of her enemies. She looked to the ground at her feet.
The shade, having clambered to its feet as well, similarly looked to the ground.
The satchel lay where it was dropped. Its leather shoulder strap was broken, but it was otherwise unharmed.
Scarlet eyes, set in black, met cadmium eyes, set in black.
Painwheel tensed her arm, flexing muscles. It hurt, as it always did. That only made her more eager. She barred her teeth.
They both stepped forward. Their fists clenched. As they pulled back, electricity danced across their bodies. Painwheel sniffed ozone, that familiar scent.
“GRRRAAAAH!”
“DIE!”
Stepping right into striking range. Two fighters. Two punches. They impacted in each others' faces. Both recoiled for the force, audible thuds resounding in unison. Black blood sprayed from Painwheel's busted nose. Black smoke puffed from the shade's face. A tiny cracking sound could be heard, a tiny piece of something hard flying off and clattering to the floor. It issued smoke as well; not soft was it, like Painwheel's leather mask, but hard like pottery.
The two combatants straightened out, reached back, sparked lightning, and collided again. They knocked each other in the face, both staggering sideways, then swaying back up. Then a third time, together once more.
Their eyes met again. Red. Yellow. Red. Yellow.
Painwheel heaved, spitting out a thick globule of blood. She turned and bent over, sweeping her leg and catching the shade with her heel, foot sailing high over her. The shadow reeled briefly, then planted a hand on the ground and swept its leg horizontally. It smacked Painwheel on the side, who threw a punch to the shadow's shoulder, thudding audibly and cutting with a spike. Smoke rose from the wound.
A shade punch; dodged under. Painwheel's kick; blocked with both forearms. The shade's Buar Drive spun up, slicing down. Painwheel sidestepped it, then began to spark with electricity. She lunged forward, shoulder checking the shade. It staggered then lunged itself, drawing low, spitting electricity, and uppercut, spikes shooting up with it that cut across Painwheel's back.
Painwheel jabs once, twice. One blocked, another not. Painwheel followed by spinning, connecting with a roundhouse kick. Shade jab, then low kick, that stabs Painwheel's leg. Painwheel and her shadow swing with Buar Drives. Their spinning blades connect over their heads, showing them with sparks. They connect again, together, with blades. Whirling metal bounced off whirling metal once, twice, then remained in a steady contact. Sparks flew wide, a cacophony ringing out and echoing throughout the temple.
The shade threw a punch, but Painwheel caught it in her hand. She tried a punch herself, but it was in turn caught by the doppelganger. The two combatants locked their hands, then pushed in close. Painwheel stood face to face with the shade, eyes a hand's width apart.
“Grrr!” the shade growled.
“Haaaaah!” Painwheel breathed.
They remained locked for several seconds.
Right in front of her, Painwheel could see the mask that may or may not have been the doppelganger's whole face. The light from outside played across the creature's surface. While it was shadow matter in principle, it had a sheen of sorts. And along that surface, just below those golden eyes, was a hard line. A seam. A crack.
Painwheel didn't hesitate. “GRRRAAH!” She pulled back, then slammed her forehead into the shade's face.
“Rah!” the shade exclaimed, head jerking back. It blinked, yellow glow cutting in and out rapidly.
Her forehead gained a red spot, but Painwheel kept at it. She performed another headbutt, and then another. Each time, her cranium slammed into a hard surface, each time causing a loud crack. Each time, the fractures grew bigger.
It was such a poor decision, Painwheel realized, to attack directly with the forehead. She was getting a headache. It made her furious. “AAAARGH!” she yelled, pulling back one last time. Electricity rolled off her body. Painwheel struck the shade's face with all her strength. She came away dizzy.
“Ah!” the shade said. Shards of black material flew off its face. A cloud of black smoke poured out.
Blinking away the tears forming in her eyes, Painwheel looked at the shade. “...uh...oh...”
It seemed new. Half of Painwheel's face, formed from shadows, looking out upon her sternly. A bushy eyebrow, bent low over a golden glowing eye. One half of a mouth turned down at the edges.
It cringed in pain, then became resolute.
“Rah!” it growled, leaning back. It fell backwards, dragging Painwheel down.
“Wah!” Painwheel said, arms being yanked uncomfortably. She tried to resist the pull...but the shade had an irresistible mass. Was she herself that heavy? “Gah!” She lost her footing, falling forward.
The shade raised a foot and planted it squarely in Painwheel's stomach. As the human fell atop it, the doppelganger kicked against her with all its might, pushing it up and over.
“What the...fuck!” Painwheel said, flipping head over heels. She lost all sense of orientation, the ground and scenery blurring past. Losing her grip on the shade's hands, Painwheel landed hard on her back. “Argh!”
She craned her neck back, then paused.
“What's happening?” Twilight called.
The shade, head also bent backwards, raised its hands and bent its knees. Its muscles tightened, electricity sparking off.
Oh no, Painwheel thought, heart hammering in her chest.
“DEATH...”
Long thorns shot from the shade's wrists and feet. Bending arms and legs down, it planted the spikes on the ground, then pushed. Rising from the ground, the shadow loomed like a huge spider. Its Buar Drive hung below it, and began spinning.
Shit shit shit shit shit shit shit! Painwheel only had time to raise her arms in front of her face.
“CRAWL!” The shade walked.
It crab walked over Painwheel, the Buar Drive dragged over her as it went.
“PAINWHEEL!”
“AAAAAAAAAAHHHH!”
“Oh nuts!”
Spike reached out a claw, but the handle drifted just beyond his reach. He watched as the teapot dropped to the floor, shattering upon impact. As the clatter died down, shards scattered in all directions.
“...haybiscuits...” Spike said, shoulders slumped. Mindful of the sharp porcelain, he hopped off the step-stool and retrieved a broom and dustpan. “And that was one of Twilight favorites, too.”
Carefully, Spike gathered the pieces, thankful there were mostly large shards. He would hate to wander into the kitchen in the middle of the night, and unknowingly cut his foot on one. Or was in possible to cut through his scales? It was a question he didn't want answered anytime soon.
He placed the teapot pieces on the counter, examining them. Spike picked up two pieces, both bearing paint. “Hmm...”
The two halves formed the picture of the Freesia*.
“Oh dear,” he said, frowning. He suddenly had a bad feeling.
Painwheel screamed.
“Painwheel!”
The shade hauled itself to its feet, stilt-like thorns retracted. It glanced down.
“Sweet Celestia no! Painwheel!”
The human lay on the ground, curled into a ball. “Aaaaah!” she cried in pain. Cuts wept and bubbled with viscous black blood, all across her body. Several places on her arms, legs, and abdomen sported puncture wounds. Her new Qipao – sewn lovingly by Rarity – was tattered, torn, and stained by droplets of black. Painwheel shivered, fingers clutching her arms.
“Painwheel!”
Twilight Sparkle struggled against the mismatched limbs hugging her. Kicked and writhed. “Let go of me, Discord! This isn't a game, damn it!” Tears ran down the alicorn's cheeks. “Painwheel! Painwheel I'm coming!” She flailed harder. “Discord! Let. Me. GO! UGH!”
“No. Absolutely not.” The avatar of chaos tightened his grip. His voice was hard.
“But she's going to die!” Twilight screeched.
“And if you go in there, you'll die too.”
Twilight stopped flailing – so hard anyway – and turned briefly to the dranconequus.
Discord stared at the scene before him. He planted his lion paw on Twilight's head. “This creature isn't just some dumb monster you can overpower or outsmart, Princess. Old magic, the likes not seen in this world in a hundred lifetimes, binds this being here. And it isn't limited to any form, but can appear as its opponent. It is not a guardian, but a true shadow of its enemy.
“It has all of Painwheel's capabilities...and all her skills. It knows her better than she knows herself. She is fighting her dark reflection.” Discord turned Twilight's head so she stared right at the doppelganger. “And if it's a matter of multiples, there's no question. It will assume the form of the most powerful combatant.” He jerked Twilight's head suddenly. “What would happen if it copied your powers, huh? Or mine?” Discord shook his head, letting Twilight's go. “The results would be devastating. No...this is her fight, and her fight alone.”
Fresh, salty tears flowed from Twilight's eyes. She sniffed. “Painwheel...” She didn't struggle anymore.
On the floor, amid black-splattered tiles, Painwheel rolled over on her front. “Gaaah!” she gasped, shaking like a leaf. A palm found the ground, supporting her. She hissed, eyes clasped shut. Tears rolled down her face. Painwheel cracked a red-and-black eye open.
Three paces away, the shade stood, feet spread apart. Shining yellow eyes watched Painwheel passively. The exposed section of its face displayed no emotion, though the eye remained open unnaturally wide.
The satchel lay at the shade's feet.
Painwheel turned to stare at the floor.
“Painwheel...” Twilight said softly. Her ears were drooped. “You're hurt. Hurt...really bad. Just...just let it go. You don't have to do this to yourself.”
The human's fingers flexed, bending until they angled hard, tips digging against the hard tile. Tear drops – and a little blood – dribbled to the floor. Painwheel shook all over.
She gritted her teeth. “I can't do that.”
The shade standing above tilted its head.
“I...I have to do it,” Painwheel said, working to get a knee under her. “He's right...that bastard over there is right...” She sniffed. “It's not about getting what I want anymore...I can't give up now, and negotiate for some other deal...I don't want what I want if it means just getting it. I can't...I...
“...I want...to win!”
The shade leaned back slightly. Almost imperceptibly...it opened its mouth. Its fingers wiggled...shook. An involuntary movement not quite surpressed.
Shuffling to her knees, Painwheel pulled a leg up and planted her hand upon her knee. Her breath was ragged. She felt...heavy. She WAS heavy, but she felt it all the more. With all her strength, she heaved, forcing herself to her feet.
Immediately, her vision swam. Painwheel swayed back and forth, drunkenly wobbling about for balance. She realized – hazily – the Buar Drive was just extra weight. A mental impulse collapsed the blades into one solid bar, and planted it on the ground. It served as a third pillar, allowing Painwheel to balance finally. Eyes wandering over her body, she noted how her wounds were less severe, but not by nearly enough. Many of her cuts and stab wounds had stopped bleeding so much, but were far from healed. Some simply did not change. Painwheel felt profoundly drained.
I have nothing left, she thought. My body is trying to heal itself, and has nothing to work with. I'm running on empty.
She looked towards the shade. Her vision was blurry. Painwheel stumbled forward, a push from the Buar Drive contributing much of the momentum.
The shade karate chopped Painwheel in the neck.
“Gack!” Painwheel choked, stumbling backwards, clutching her throat. Losing her balance didn't occur to her until she hit the ground. “Ah!”
“Painwheel, this is insane,” Twilight said, “You don't need to prove anything! So many ponies – people – care about you. You have so much to live for. Don't throw it all away!”
Discord said nothing. He simply watched the human writhe on the ground, having a coughing fit, then looked to the shadow.
The shadow met Discord's gaze. It cocked a bushy eyebrow, frowning.
“I-I...I'm...cough...not done...”
Painwheel rose to her knees again, then tried to support herself on one. She was halfway to her feet when her muscles gave out. “Ah!” she cried, falling flat on her face.
“...Painwheel...” Twilight cried, “...stop...please...”
The human brought herself to hands and knees, grunting loudly. She gasped for breath, hair falling in front of her eyes. Dust coated the better part of her body, much glued there by wet, oil-colored fluids. She crawled on all fours, drawing closer. With trembling hand, she reached out for the satchel. She could see it right in front of her.
“Tch.”
The shade reached down and grabbed the human by the neck. With prodigious might, the shade lifted the Painwheel off the ground.
“Gack! Ack! Guh!” Painwheel choked, grabbing the ebony hand reflexively but having little strength left to make anything of it. Even to reduce the weight pressure on her throat.
“Painwheel!” Twilight screamed, beginning her flailing anew.
Discord held the alicorn firm. His four hearts and one anti-heart beat furiously and/or harmonically.
Painwheel's feet dangled beneath her. She tried to strike out with the Buar Drive, but the shadow batted it away with its own. She added another hand to grabbing the shade's arm, trying desperately to support herself. Her vision was...spinning.
The shade stared at her. Their eyes met, red to yellow.
It...scowled. The shade trembled, muscles tightened. It's dark lips parted. Its teeth were gritted.
It was actually angry. “...use...less...” it choked softly, with great effort, in an unsettling baritone.
The black fist let go.
The black foot swung around and kicked Painwheel in the chest, hard enough to send her flying straight up.
“GAH!” Painwheel said.
“PAINWHEEL!”
“Oh dear...” Discord mumbled. “He's angry now.”
Painwheel soured high into the air, towards the ceiling. As she reached the apex of her flight, she rotated so she hung parallel to the roof.
That...hurt, she thought.
The doppelganger jumped up and over her, hanging just above Painwheel. Its body began to spark and bulge. Everywhere. Its faux Buar Drive began spinning up. “HEEEERRRR!” it growled.
Oh. Painwheel's eyes went wide. I know this. This will hurt a lot more.
“GRRRRAAAGH!”
Dozens of spikes erupted from the shadow's body. They sailed all around and through Painwheel.
“...eeee...” Painwheel breathed, at least one spike puncturing a lung. She had no way of knowing how many times she was just impaled, and how many spikes just existed to cage her in. All she could see were the spikes. And the black angel of death before her.
She couldn't move her arms, or her legs. She turned her head, looking over her shoulder (which was stuck with a spike.
They were falling. Straining her neck, Painwheel could see the ground. Illuminated by light pouring in from outside. Shadows of a pony and a something wiggling about on the ground. Black blood smeared in little pools.
And the satchel, sitting where it dropped.
Painwheel's heart skipped a beat. I know how to win.
In her peripheral vision, Painwheel saw the spinning blades advancing for her.
Time slowed to a crawl. Acting quickly, Painwheel flexed every muscle she could. The blades advanced slowly towards her; her perceptions were dialated to the point of seeing each individual blade move. She kept her head facing sideways, with the buzzsaw just in sight.
Her parasites squirmed under the pressure.
For the Trinity's sake, she thought, make yourself useful for once!
“Ngh!”
Spikes erupted from Painwheel's body, angled so as to converge in front of her. They just crossed each other when the shade's Buar Drive impacted them. Sparks flew out in all directions.
Hold it. Just a little more.
The two fighters, joined together in a forest of thorns, fell. Light and sound and black blood flew out from them.
Just a little more.
Painwheel's parasites began to melt away under the constant assault. They shivered, yet remained rigid enough.
“Grrrrr...” the shade grumbled, leaning in more. It pressed the buzzsaw harder.
The ground was in spitting distance.
Chunks of Gae Bolga broke away, several all at once. The blades passed straight through the barrier, right into Painwheel's chest. It bit into her flesh, over and over. Black blood and black ichor sprayed everywhere. Painwheel grimaced. "Ack!"
The shade was...disappointed. It...
“...I...win...”
Painwheel's Buar Drive – directly behind her and therefore free of the ebony forest of spikes – reached down. Blades shifting, it formed a primitive claw. It seized the satchel, swung back, and then threw it towards the door.
The shade's exposed eye shot open wide, following the flying bag. The doppelganger retracted everything. Spikes, blades, everything.
Painwheel slammed to the ground hard, relatively recent wounds spraying more blood where the spikes and blades had vacated. “Gack!”
The shade planted a foot on the ground and jumped horizontally. It reached for the satchel.
Which easily cleared the threshold, seized by the waiting paw of a draconequus.
“Gotcha!” Discord cheered, holding the satchel up.
The shade fell to the ground short of the door frame. It crawled to its knees, looking at Discord. Its eyes were wide, its mouth agape where it had room to move.
Then...it smiled. “Heh...heh...ha ha...hooo...” It chuckled briefly. Then its body began to deform, melting like butter in an oven. Its smiling face dissolved into a dark mass. Sinking into the floor, it lost all substance, reverting to a simple shadow. The shadow flowed across the ground and returned to Painwheel's shadow.
Painwheel merely looked on, head tilted back from her prone position.
“...I...cough...win...you...fuck...”
Then she passed out.
“I did it!”
Spike held aloft his latest handiwork. The shattered teapot was a difficult task, but once he figured out how all the pieces fit together, a little glue was all it needed. “Good as new!
“...okay, so maybe not,” Spike frowned, noticing just how obvious the cracks were. “Hmm...hopefully Twilight won't notice.”
“Who?”
Spike turned to that ever enigmatic owl. “Twilight,” he said, “weren't you listening? Ugh, whatever. She should just be glad the thing is in one piece.” He studied the flower that adorned the side. “Maybe when she and Painwheel return, we can have some tea together. Just the three of us. Me, Twilight, and Painwheel.”
“Who?”
“Painwheel.”
“Who?”
“Painwheel!”
“Who?”
“Painwheel!”
The human blinked, the bright sunlight shining right in her eyes. Painwheel brought a hand up to shade her face. She looked toward the silhouette with the horn that made the noise. “Ugh...stop shouting my name...you sound like a broken record...”
“Oh thank goodness you're okay!” Twilight Sparkle threw her hooves over Painwheel's torso. “I thought I...I thought you were going to...t-to d-die and...” She started sobbing, burying her face in Painwheel's chest. “...you...s-stupid...could have gotten yourself killed...”
“Ow, ow! Okay, enough!” Painwheel pushed the weepy pony off with her other hand. “Easy on the front. I just got cut up bad.”
“...sniff...yeah,” Twilight said, wiping a tear from her already horribly matted face fur. “But you're already recovering. See?” She pointed at the human's body.
Painwheel cocked an eyebrow, then examined her hand. It had been cut multiple times, yet was mostly whole. She propped herself up with an elbow and examined her body. Most of her lacerations, scrapes, bruises, and puncture wounds were sealed or rapidly fading. “What the hell?”
“It was Discord's doing,” Twilight said, sitting on her haunches. “When he saw how you weren't healing, he injected you with this enormous needle of sugars and proteins. In fact...I don't entirely see how he could do that and not kill you instantly from filling your bloodstream with a large quantity of fluids, all at once. IV drips work slowly for a reason! This is unbelievable! Impossible! How did he do it?”
“I'll never tell!”
Discord hovered nearby, swinging the satchel around by the strap (which was somehow – probably magically – repaired as if new). “You're welcome, by the way.”
Painwheel frowned, forcing herself to a sitting-up position, despite Twilight's protestations. “I'm not going to thank you.”
“I know,” Discord said, rolling his eyes so hard the pupils warped the physical dimensions of his eyeballs. “Consider it payment for being so entertaining. Seriously, what an epic maneuver you pulled back there. Really impressive. Really.”
“And what about my parasites?” Painwheel said, trying to rise to her feet, despite Twilight's insistent protestations. “You promised.”
Discord stopped twirling the satchel, catching it in his hand. “Hmm...no.”
“You son of a bitch!” Painwheel said, taking a firm stand and raising a fist. “I'll kill you!”
“Kidding! Kidding!” Discord said, splaying his hands out. “I'm only joking. You're right.” He smiled. “A deal's a deal.” He snapped his fingers.
The world went white for a second.
…
Painwheel blinked.
She felt...strange. Like her whole body ached.
No. It was an ache born from a lack of ache.
She looked down at her body. It looked as emaciated as ever, but she expected that. It would be many hearty meals before she regained her earlier figure.
It was that feeling. She raised her hands, staring at them. She flexed her fingers.
Nothing.
She bent over slightly, then bent over more. She stood up straight again. She breathed in, out.
Nothing.
Stretch of the legs. Nothing. Turn of the head. Nothing. Hugging her arms, caressing her flesh. Messaging her muscles with her fingers. Nothing.
Nothing. Nothing. Nothing.
She felt no pain.
Her hands wandered up to her shoulders. They were bare. No nails. Her hands dove to her thighs. No nails. One hand jumped to the top of her head. The skull pin fell to the ground, her brown hair tumbled free. No nails.
They were gone. The Gae Bolga were gone. The parasites were gone. Gone. Gone. Gone.
“They're gone. They're gone!”
Her mouth opened wide, the sides upturned. “The pain is gone!”
Painwheel laughed.
“Ha...ha ha...ha ha ha...” She exploded into giggles, absolutely beaming. Tears of joy ran down her face. “Yes. Yes! YES!”
She threw her arms up in the air. “I'M FREE!” she shouted, grinning like a bastard. “NO! MORE! PAIN!”
Twilight clapped her hooves, smiling with joy. “Hurray! I'm so happy for you, Painwheel!”
Painwheel ran over and wrapped her arms around Twilight's neck. She rubbed her cheek into Twilight's eye. “Twilight! I couldn't be more happy in my life! Thank you! Thank you, thank you, thank you!”
“Nmo...broflem...Prainvheel...” Twilight said, her mouth being smothered in the human's chest. Why did humans need these fleshy lumps, anyway?
“Ahem! Aren't you forgetting someone?” Discord pointed to himself. “I should think a single thank you goes to me. Exercising phenomenal cosmic power to rewrite reality, while child's play for one of my station, is nonetheless worthy of praise.”
Painwheel ran over and threw her arms around Discord's middle, surprising the demigod. “...thank you, Discord,” she said. “For everything you've done for me.”
“Oh, it gets better, my dear.” Discord reached down to Painwheel's back.
She heard an mechanical sound. Some part of her awareness was severed. She looked over her should.
Discord held the base of the Buar Drive in his paw, separated from her spine. The blades plopped to the ground, limp.
“I supposed, while you were shooting for a quality of life increase,” Discord said, holding up the flaccid metal limb, “that you would also prefer the ability to not carry around your, shall we say, tail? All the time? So I made it detachable. I've learned so much of machines studying you, I daresay I have a few projects in mind for later.” He giggled. “But anyway, this...whatever it is, comes off. See?” He plugged the Buar Drive base into a socket in Painwheel's back. She felt the return of that extra bit of awareness. “Tail goes on.” Discord twisted the mechanism, pulling it from the socket. The awareness went away. “Tail goes off, et cetera. You get the idea.” He let the whole machine got, the Buar Drive tumbling to the ground.
Painwheel began to cry. She hugged the avatar of chaos again, burying her face in his furry chest. “Thank you! Thank you so much!”
“Humph...well...” Discord wrung his neck flesh like a collar – somehow – then pushed Painwheel away. “All in a day's work.”
“Uh, Discord?”
“Yes Twilight?”
Twilight cocked an eyebrow, still eying the Buar Drive. She would have a fun time studying that, and Painwheel's new socket...not dirty! Twilight coughed. “Where did the parasites go, exactly? If you don't mind me asking?”
“Oh, I have them here.” Discord raised a paw, palm upwards. A clear sphere appeared from nowhere with a pop. It was like glass, inside of which wriggled and writhed a tangled mass of sharp, black worms.
Painwheel's eyes went wide.
“Yes, yes,” Discord said, “I kept them. Seemed a shame to destroy something so...unique. No idea what I'm going to do with fifty kilograms of parasite. But I suppose I'll think of something.” He closed his paw, and the sphere popped like a bubble into nothing again. “Who can say? Perhaps one day, Painwheel, you might come asking me for them back.”
“...fuck that!” Painwheel said bluntly.
“And what about the satchel?” Twilight said, pointing with a hoof at the leather bag hanging from Discord's shoulder like a creepy, depraved purse. “What about that thing was so important that Painwheel had to risk her life to get it?”
“Nothing.”
“Nothing?”
“Nothing.” Discord held up the bag. “The world would continue on, Sun Butt and Lunatic would keep raising and lowering the celestial bodies, if this satchel never made it into my hands. Other than the enchantments placed upon it for its own sake, it has no real power.
“No, I wanted it for...sentimental reasons...” Discord stared longingly at the bag. “It's an eons-old creature thing. You wouldn't understand. Well, perhaps you will, Twilight, in time. But not now.”
“That seems vague and evasive,” Twilight said, frowning.
“It does, doesn't it? Oh well, that's neither here nor there.” Discord said, putting the satchel behind him. “Painwheel has gotten what she wanted – for real this time – and no one died. That's the important part. All you have now is to head on home, and move on with your lives.” He raised his paw, ready to snap.
“Discord!” Painwheel said, suddenly.
“Hmm?” Discord said, pausing his snap.
“Thanks.”
He smiled. “You're welcome, any time. I don't know. You're presence just makes everything so much more...”
He snapped. The world went white.
“...interesting.”
Twilight and Painwheel appeared on the balcony where they left, high above Equestria. Birds flew about. One pigeon that was stationed on the railing squawked and flew away.
Painwheel looked out upon the landscape. She no longer felt that sense of dread or despair. It all seemed...so much more beautiful then.
Painwheel felt happy.
“Twilight...thank you.”
“Now you're the one sounding like a broken record.” Twilight giggled, joining the human by the railing. “But you don't have to thank me. I did one of the worst things a being could do to another, to you. And when you already had experienced that pain before. If I could do anything to help you, even slightly, I would jump at it in a heartbeat. I'm obligated to.”
“Well, I don't think of you anymore as that...horrible mare...” Painwheel said, leaning against the railing, “or as someone who owes me an obligation. You, and Spike, and all the rest. You all tried your best to take care of me in my darkest hour. And I was never grateful for it.” She turned to Twilight. “That changes now. I...I want to see you all as...”
She thought of Filia. Thought of the betrayal.
Then she thought of the good times. The laughs. The sunsets. The great food and greater music.
She thought at last of Filia as Painwheel last saw her. Not knowing who she was, or what she'd done. As innocent as could be, regardless of past guilt.
...Painwheel missed Filia very much.
“...as friends.” Painwheel reached her hand out, and clasped it over Twilight's hoof.
Twilight Sparkle smiled. “I'd love that very much, too. I know the others would love it even more.” She looked out to the mountains, the birds, the fields. Cloudsdale in the distance, with pegasi buzzing about like bees. “Everything is going to be okay, Painwheel. Count on it.”
“Twilight.”
“Yes?”
The human smiled.
“Call me Carol.”
…
…
…
…
. . .
Discord hovered in the air. He looked down. His misshapen – or, as he'd call it, “exciting” - shadow was painted over the mountain stone. Like someone drew the world's most irregular crime scene chalk drawing, and then a precocious child ran in and filled the drawing in with black paint. And even painted within the lines.
On reflection, Discord didn't know if he liked the sound of how that simile ended. A child staying within the lines? The sanity! Quite horrible.
Oh, and vapor began pouring out of Discord's shadow. That's what he gets more paying too close attention to distracting similes.
The vapor rose up, collecting in a mass a meter or two above the ground. It issued out in a trickle at first, but then increased to quite a volume. Not as volumous as it used to, though, Discord noted. How the ages diminish.
Billowing and churning, the cloud warped between various shapes, until it finally picked one it liked. A head formed, as did two arms, and a slim torso. The whole cloud tapered off at the bottom into a vaporous tail. Like a ghost.
Upon its brow sat bushy, bushy eyebrows. Eyes opened upon under them; sunflower yellow.
“Arabus,” Discord said.
“What in Tartarus took you so long!” the cloud bellowed in his deep voice. “You said you were just coming back! Just going to do a little bit of shennanigans, and you'd have me out! Do you know how long I've been stuck in there?”
“Do you?”
“...touche,” Arabus said, rage deflating. “How long have I been stuck in there?”
“A little longer than I, stuck in a statue because of meddlesome ponies,” Discord said, waving a hand, “A thousand years.”
“Abyss below!” Arabus said, rubbing his head. “A thousand years...yes, it did seem like a long time...”
“If it means anything, one variably powerful abstract to another,” Discord said, “I'm...sorry, for taking so long. You wouldn't believe how much trouble it is to trick a mortal into jumping into an obvious trap, and having them be desperate enough to commit to it after its sprung.”
“Discord? Apologizing?” Arabus grabbed his head with both hands. “The world has certainly gone mad. I don't know if I want to have anything to do with it, if you can't count on an amoral being to remain amoral.”
“Yes, well...” Discord sighed. “We've all come a long way since the old days. I've fallen in with a more...stable crowd, as it were. It galls me every day...but I wouldn't trade it for the world.”
“Things have changed, if you're talking like that.” Arabus stroked his chin. “I'll need time to process all this. Might not be the best time for my well-deserved roaring rampage of revenge, huh?”
“Probably not.” Discord threw the cloud monster the satchel. “You'd best lay low a while. There's a lot of powerful folks stomping around, with their friendship and the magic that comes with it. No time for going half-cocked. Plus...” Discord pointed to Arabus' ephemeral form. “...you're looking a little thin, there. Not like the big, strong Shadow Thief I used to know.”
“Oh, lay off, will ya? I've been in a cage for a millennium. I'm hungry.” He raised his satchel, checking its weight. “The Satchel seems hungry too...thanks, by the way.”
“Well,” Discord said, grinning wryly. “Better late than never, right? Just so you know, Arabus, this makes us square. If things go south, and we end up on different sides of the fight, I won't hesitate to turn you into bong filler. Get me?”
“That I do,” Arabus said, clutching the satchel. “Guess this is goodbye.”
“Call it a 'smell ya later', why not?”
“He he, oh Discord. Always a kidder.” Arabus turned to leave. “It's time to find some shadows, that look so dull and gray...”
Discord smiled. “...there's nothing quite like shadows...”
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Forsooth and anon, milady, thou hast caught mine attention with thine unintended use of a mostly unknown word.
No, seriously, why the hell has nobody pointed out that you misspelled 'soothe' in your short description? Sooth and soothe are two completely different words with entirely unrelated meanings.
Please tell me you're making a sequel! Please!
A hate hat?
Gawd, I blew so much money last night on Steam trading cards for this game, got my badge up to level 5. And also got a Peacock foil card.
I blame you, Bluecho!
Also:
Was it possible
5420370 Fixed. Thank you, I would never have caught that. Soothe is one of those words most people never say, let alone need to spell.
5421615
I blame it on the fact that soothing is more commonly used, and most words that end in 'e' get that letter dropped when adding a suffix.
I also intentionally butchered the joke flowery early modern english in my initial comment, mirroring Sweetie's bad writing in her play.
5421477
I think I'm just fine with a card of my high-flying, death-defying waifu.
What a Fantastic Fight to end suffering