Jecolt/Hyde

by EthanClark

Reflections

The stone walls that encased the dungeon brought a chill to the guards at their posts. Their armor clinked repeatedly, sending the echos down the long, gloomy halls. Upon the walls were the scattered glows of torches, their flames licking the still air.

Down the dimly lit hallway, past the dozens of identical iron bars that lined the walls, was a single, solitary cell. Its door was heavy, a sturdy combination of banded iron and dark wood. The sharp clopping of hooves could be heard from within, followed by a voice.

“How could this have happened?!”

Jecolt paced, tracing the distance between the walls of his small cell.

“I did everything right, down to the last detail. It should have worked!” With a final stamp of his hoof Jecolt threw his back against the wall, sliding to the ground. He released another sigh.

Well I thought you did a good job.

Jecolt’s eyes widened at the subtle echo in his mind. He sprung up from his seated place, his brow tensed.

“You. You did this,” Jecolt yelled at the empty space before him. “This is all your fault!

Me? Ha! You’re the one who wanted to save the world, or some such nonsense.

“This is not about that!” Jecolt voice rose with every response.

“The murders, this cell, everything! Your fault! I wanted to try and help the ponies of this city embrace their good-natured selves, but you… you…”

Jecolt raised a hoof and slammed it onto the bed, causing the thin mattress to jump a little. He slumped to the floor. Dark spots formed on the cool stone and Jecolt realized he was crying. He wiped his eyes before facing a small mirror that hung on the wall.

He studied the face that the glass made. The eyes were red and baggy, the cheeks were gaunt. Jecolt stared at the image of himself, becoming lost in its weary expression.

Oh, come now. Didn’t you enjoy it? The exhilaration, the sweet feeling of superiority?

“You have ruined me,” Jecolt said blankly.

You didn’t answer my question.

The staring contest with the mirror made Jecolt’s eyes burn. He turned from the depressing visage and stared between the iron bars of the small window of the cell. Placing his head against them, his coat was met with the cool night air. A flutter arose in his stomach.

“Yes,” he said softly, barely heard over the evening wind. “I did enjoy it, and that is what frightens me.”

Jecolt’s somber moment was interrupted by a thundering laughter in his mind, causing him to wince. He rubbed his temples as he walked limply to the bed beside him.

Are you serious? It frightens you? It should excite you, to have such power within you.

A soft snicker echoed in Jecolt’s mind. The chilling sensation caused his ears to twitch.

I love it!

“Well I am not you, understand?” Jecolt shouted. He shook and beat his head with his hooves, but only softly.

“I am not a murderer. I am a good stallion, and a respected doctor. I do not stoop to the filth-laden lows where you reside!”

And yet you are powerless to stop me

Jecolt whipped his hoof into the air and opened his mouth to speak, only to grasp his abdomen as a familiar pain shot through him. He winced and tensed but not as violently as before. He was becoming used to the transformations.

Before Jecolt could react he felt his mind begin to fog. With a jerk of his head his eyes landed once again on the mirror, meeting an all too familiar sight.

“Oh, my. I am quite a looker.” Hyde sneered at the reflection of his darkened face. He trailed his hoof along his slightly-curved horn and ended on his jet black mane.

“Poor Jecolt. If only you understood.”

I do understand

Hyde’s glimmering eyes went dull and widened to their full size. His wild mane swished through the air as he searched around the room for the source of the voice.

“J-Jecolt? How are you —?”

The same way you do, you buffoon. I’m in this brain, too.

Hyde eased the tension in his stance. He trailed back to the mirror and saw the frowning face of Jecolt replacing his own reflection. Hyde sat on the bed and stared into his counterpart’s eyes.

“My, my, you are a fast learner,” Hyde said through a chuckle. “Now do the one with the balloons.”

His spine straightened as his muscles tightened. A small grunt was all Hyde could muster before succumbing to the paralyzing pain now surging within him. He fell onto the bed, twitching violently, before a sense of relief washed over him.

Did you enjoy that? It’s a lovely trick I learned to keep you in line.

Jecolt released a mocking chuckle of his own. Hyde lifted his aching body from the bed and darted his vision to the small mirror where Jecolt’s face had appeared.

“You will pay for that, you little —”

Oh, enough, Hyde! Save your childish bickering.

“Childish?” Hyde approached the mirror, his clenched teeth illuminated by the moonlight. “I show you pleasures unlike any you have known and you call me childish?”

Do you think I should be grateful to you? You are a monster. A murderer! You are everything I fear to be.

“I am everything you want to be!” Hyde’s neck tensed as he roared into the glass picture of his double. The shine in his eyes reflected back onto his face from the mirror, emphasizing his frightful expression.

“You want the power to complete your work, to show Celestia your resolve. I am that power. I have accomplished more in one day than you have in your entire life. So you tell me, Jecolt, was it worth it to know you succeeded? To know that power is finally yours?”

Hyde’s heavy breathing, brought on by the rush of his furious rebuttal, began to subside. Jecolt’s brow furled, his focused eyes staring through the mirror.

I don’t know what unnatural power you possess, Hyde, but it is not worth the lives of those you have killed. You pride yourself on your strength and speed, but you are evil in its purest form . You are the very thing I have sought to rid from this world.

“And you’ve done such a grand job at that,” said Hyde, mockingly.

Silence returned to the stone cell. Hyde turned from the mirror, and from Jecolt, and flopped himself onto the bed. With a deep, grumbling sigh he closed his eyes.

“You’re such a weakling, Jecolt.”

And you are a frightful waste of my energy

Hyde burst into his thundering laugh. It reverberated throughout the cell, leaking out into the hallway. A series of rapid knocks on the door cut Hyde’s jubilation short. Torch light glinted off of the golden helmet and through the bars of the door.

“Hey, quiet down in there!”

The guard squealed and jumped back as Hyde slammed against the door faster than he could react.

“Why not come in here and make me? I could use a playmate!”

The guard recovered from his near-heart attack and quickly walked away, watching Hyde’s eyes follow him down the hallway. When he disappeared around a corner, Hyde fell back from the door with a grin on his face.

How did you do that?

“It’s called intimidation, Jecolt. Pay attention, you’ll learn a few things.”

No, how did you move so fast? You cleared the distance in almost no time.

“It took you this long to notice?” Hyde scoffed before returning to the window on the opposite wall, bathing his face in the moonlight. A few seconds passed as Hyde stared into the glowing sphere in the sky.

“I’m like a wild animal stalking its prey. My strength and speed are unmatched, especially by the pompous elite of this city. I honestly didn’t know how strong I was until I was subdued by the Princess’ guards. It took fourteen of them to restrain me, and that was after the fight with our mystery guests.”

Yet obviously not strong enough to resist Princess Luna.

“Shut up! I would have torn her apart if I wasn’t restrained. I could feel her magic breaking, and if I had been given a little more time…”

You can resist magic?

“No,” Hyde removed his dark jacket and tossed it onto the bed. “I heal, and quite efficiently at that. Don’t you remember the night at the Broken Bud?”

I remember you snapped off that pony’s horn before crushing her neck.

“You’re such a critic,” Hyde groaned. “Can’t you just appreciate these gifts? Seriously.”

These ‘gifts’ are unnatural, just like you. It’s hard to appreciate something that puts you inside of a prison cell.

“But the power, Jecolt, the power to eliminate your enemies. Imagine if you had me around when you presented to the Committee. None of those stuffy fools would dare reject you.”

I never needed brute force to progress in my station, only wit and a well-earned education.

“And a raging sense of self-righteousness.”

Hyde’s eyes shot open as he gasped for breath. He felt his consciousness be pulled back as Jecolt regained control of their shared body. The blood returned to his head and restored his blurred vision.

What was that for?

“It’s my body, Hyde, you’re just living in it.” Jecolt’s lightheadedness faded completely. He sat on the bed and stared into the mirror. The comfort of staring into his own eyes was soon replaced with the annoyed sensation of staring into Hyde’s.

You could at least give a little warning.

“Well excuse me,” Jecolt mocked, waving his hooves in emphasis. “Goodness, don’t you ever get tired of being a complete pain?”

The face of Hyde in the mirror cocked an eyebrow, maintaining a dead-pan expression void of amusement.

Jecolt, I’m a murderous psychopath with superpowers. It’s what I do.

There was a pause as Jecolt’s eyes widened at Hyde’s confession. He blinked a few times, trying to process the simplicity of the statement. Hyde’s expression remained unchanged as the silence in their shared mind began to spread.

What?

“Nothing,” Jecolt stammered, looking away from his double’s gaze. “It’s just quite honest coming from you.”

I’m a murderer, daddy, not a liar.

“You say that as if the two don’t go hoof in hoof.”

And what would you have me do? Pretend that I’m no different than the prey of this city, as if I’m just as weak as them? Why should I hide what I am, Jecolt?

“Because you end up in places like this if you don’t.” Jecolt spread his hooves, showcasing the small cell that contained them. Hyde scoffed.

As if this place will hold me. I will escape from here, one way or—

“Sweet Celestia, Hyde,” Jecolt said through a groan. “Enough with the arrogance. Can’t you see you’ve lost?”

I haven’t lost anything, Jecolt. You can’t control me and neither can the princesses.

“You were trapped in Luna’s grasp,” Jecolt stated, leaning closer to the mirror. “You all but kissed her horseshoes while she had you on the floor and you think you can escape?”

I would tear her to pieces!

“And I won’t let you!”

Jecolt’s strained gaze met the emerald eyes of his doppelganger as a silence filled the room. Hyde struggled to find a rebuttal as his lower jaw trembled in contrast to his intense scowl. Jecolt took a deep breath.

“Look, let’s get one thing straight.” Jecolt’s tone returned to normal. “I don’t like you, and you don’t like me. But if you decide to challenge one of the most powerful beings in Equestria simply because she put you in your place then we are both going to die, and I would prefer to live through this nightmarish turn in my life. Understand?”

Hyde evaded Jecolt’s vision, his face still tense from the argument. He trembled at the thought of submitting to the princess he now loathed. He turned back to Jecolt with a reluctant groan.

Then what do you propose, oh wise one?

“You do what they want. We’re not in any position to refuse their wishes, especially you. It’s only by Celestia’s will that we haven’t been hanged and I don’t feel that Luna will be any more merciful.”

Jecolt stared out of the barred window with solemn eyes, but not before Hyde released a soft chuckle within their shared consciousness.

“What’s so funny now?” Jecolt muttered.

You know that, one way or another, I end up dead.

“Yes.” Jecolt produced a wry smile. “And the thought does not at all bring me discomfort.”

Jecolt stared out into the starry night as he felt Hyde recede into his mind. He took a few moments before making his way to the thin mattress, throwing himself onto it. The sound of the wind filled his ears and, slowly, his weary eyes closed.

Comments

[lalas181]

Aaaah! I love this! Are you still working on it? It can't just end here, I love how Jecolt and Hyde are characterised, how you write the princesses, everything!

[EthanClark]

Hey friends, finally getting "back in the saddle".

Haha, I'll leave now...

I've gone ahead and marked this story as Cancelled. I honestly ran out of steam for this story and I don't think I was mature enough to handle some of the criticisms from the editor. In short, it's dead.

I may resurrect it at another time but who knows.