Part 6 (Alex) - Chapter 4
Behind her, Alex’s friends made their way into the library. First came Joseph. One of his legs looked broken, and he had burns up and down his side. Yet his face made no sign he registered the pain. His steps were rigid and mechanical. Moriah came behind him, moving forward with great resistance in every step, as though she were battling an army of invisible ghosts. She dragged Alex’s saddle bags behind her along the ground, though she looked very much like she didn’t want to. Behind them were several more of the enemy; Abrams with a rifle she was fairly sure would not be loaded with rubber bullets, and several of the ponies she had always thought were ex-military. She supposed that was probably still true, though they were unfortunately no longer on her side.
Alex did not run. Not just because she was sure she would just be put down like a rabid dog, though that was part of it. Alex couldn’t run, no matter how much she wanted to. Darkness surrounded her. Darkness filled her mind, filled her body with smoke and shadows and refused to let her budge. She now experienced firsthand what Odium was like, trapped though he might be in the pony who called himself Night Speaker. With every step Speaker closed, Odium neared her also. The very light of day outside seemed to fade to pale shadows through the windows, as all the world bowed to the might of those beings.
This time, only one voice spoke. Alex had no way of knowing if Odium was speaking out loud, or else the strange being spoke directly into her mind. Whoever it was, it burned at her consciousness to hear. It was like listening to the words of a black hole, pitiless and vast. “Weak human will, veiled in flesh. It is good the pretenders created you. It is less of a burden than waiting for you to arrive at your power naturally.”
Night Speaker seemed to tower above her. Tens, hundreds, thousands of feet. Nothing was any bigger, nothing was any smaller. Odium was showing her how her power compared to it. She could not move, not even an inch. “Your species is an abomination. When you have been erased, I will rewrite their nature in my image, better subjects than even the Equestrian vermin.” One of Ryan’s hooves took her face, forcing her to look up at him, into those empty eyes.
The contact lasted only moments, but the agony that flowed from it would have set her body to retching if she had the freedom to move. This creature, this was the abomination! Every part of her soul, human and pony alike, screamed this creature had no right to exist. It corrupted the very ground it touched.
It must’ve heard her thoughts, because Speaker released her, shoving her roughly to the ground. Its laughter sounded like gunfire, like the noose of a hangman’s rope snapping taut around a neck. Hatred, so pure it was a physical thing. “You will bow before I consume you, feeble species.” He gestured imperiously, and Moriah tossed the saddle bags in front of her. Alex couldn’t actually turn her head, so they suddenly filled the space in front of her, latched “sun” side facing her. “I know the reservoir of Equestrian deceptions lies within. Open it.”
Alex reached forward, her hooves moving of their own accord. She gripped the edge of the lock in her forelegs without any desire at all. She screamed in her mind, curling away from the shame. She had been trusted with something sacred, trusted over hundreds of other candidates. The future of humanity might very well depend on the magical knowledge still contained in the library, unburned. Once she opened it, there was nothing to protect the books inside.
The satchel opened. For the first time in her life, Alex saw what other ponies saw when they opened it. Stitched faux leather, empty except for a little lint and a little dust. There was no door, and no library. For the first time, Alex felt a ray of hope, burning away a shred of the shadows that snaked around her mind. Princess Twilight had said her soul was the key. It wasn’t her soul opening the bag. She could not be forced into violating her sacred responsibility after all.
Alex felt her body close and open the satchel several more times, faster and rougher each time. She tried both sides, with the same result. There was nothing inside no matter how many times the spirit of hatred puppeted her.
Alex realized if she could not be forced into opening the satchel, there might be many things she couldn’t be forced to do. She decided to try speaking. It worked. “What’s the point of getting in and burning the books? Couldn’t you just hide the library? That would get rid of it as sure as burning.” Alex, of course, knew that would not get rid of the library. But she was pretty sure they wouldn’t, not after so short a time to study the spell that had created it. Alex had faith in Twilight Sparkle, the Equestrian Princess of Magic. She had faith in many things.
She didn’t expect a response from the nightmare creature, any more than she would have expected a response from a hurricane. In a rush, she felt a knife pressed up against her throat. Her own hoof held it, though she didn’t know where she had gotten it or how a single hoof could apply pressure like that. “Unseal the gate, feeble creature, or you bleed.” All at once, Alex felt one of her hooves released, able to move again. It was the hoof that didn’t have the knife, mere inches from the saddlebags. If she willingly opened the front, she had no doubt it would work, even under great duress. The spell was smart, but it couldn’t possibly be that smart.
The filly didn’t move her hoof. She did move the other part of her body she had control over, the one she had taken rather than been given. Her mouth. “Fuck you!” She spat in the dual-creature’s face, and didn’t blink as the metal pressed against her throat. “I don’t obey you!” Again the force rushed in, rushing to take back her hoof and her mouth and the rest of her.
The knife came at her throat. Though she knew she would not really die, she also knew there would be terrible pain. She felt wet blood where the knife pierced her, and she did not regret it. She would not bow, regardless of the consequences.
The strength of the earth flowed into her in a torrent, mightier than ever she had felt it before. Her skin filled and filled and filled with it. The blade caught in her flesh, which had suddenly gone stronger than steel. It shattered, leaving only a miniscule shard and a few drops of blood running down her neck. Alex wrenched back control of her other hoof, setting them both back down and glaring up at Odium with the contempt of a planet burning in her eyes. “I do not bow to you.” She could not move from that spot, yet in it she stood erect, defiant.
“We will see.” Her headset clattered to the ground, Taylor's voice still screaming from the floor. An alien force lifted her clear off the ground, dragging her by her throat down away from the windows and down the stairs. The deeper they went, the thicker the shadows became. As they neared the bottom and all traces of sunlight faded, Alex felt the magic from the earth begin to weaken. Night Speaker’s magic, or Odium’s, or whichever had taken her down into the dark, was holding her out of reach of the earth. Though she regained enough will to kick and struggle, it was no use. She couldn’t reach. The strength of her planet faded by the second, and the grip grew stronger and stronger. Her world began to stretch and contort as the air left her lungs. She was being strangled.
Yet somehow, she remained aware enough to hear Odium’s voice, calling out to someone she couldn’t see. At the top of the stairs, Carol with her dark wings spread, watching with helpless horror. All the world was filled with his spectral face. It was going to be the last thing she saw when she died. “Dog, use your weapon. Shoot her.”
She closed her eyes, bracing herself against the pain. Alex had died several different ways, but bullets would be new. She couldn’t imagine it would be very enjoyable.
The bullets didn’t come. “Dog, I said to use your primitive weapon and kill her. Odium demands it; she will be more compliant when she is stripped of her body. You are no lich, no Alicorn. You will obey.”
Alex felt the grip around her throat slacken, enough for her to take a single merciful gulp of air. The world came into sudden relief. Odium’s servants, even the ones that had been her friends until she had foolishly sent them to stop a being as ancient and powerful as this. Abrams was at the front of the group, aiming his M4 directly at her chest. His huge paws shook, one finger lifting towards the trigger and back again, over and over. Life flickered in his eyes.
His effort was for nothing. Under the directed, personal attention of this nightmare being, he could not possibly resist. He pulled the trigger.
But not before altering his aim, by just a few degrees. Bullets whizzed through the air, but only one grazed Alex’s shoulder. White hot blood poured out, and she screamed. She screamed and screamed without any resistance for her speech now.
Beside her, Ryan had done far worse. Abrams's bullets had taken him in the head. There was no stirring of life. The strange pressure vanished from her mind, though the pain did not. This wound didn’t threaten her life, so it probably wouldn’t heal all that much faster than usual.
“That’s for Philly, bastard.” Abrams leaned close to the corpse, all trace of his calm fracturing. “We will not be your slaves, or your victims!”
For one wonderful, glorious moment, Alex let herself hope that it might be over. Granted, she spent it coughing and spluttering on the floor, filling herself with the magic of the earth to strengthen her and let her breathe freely again. In that moment, she thought that all it would take was killing the host. She had not known Night Speaker, wasn’t sure yet if she would have done the same, but it didn’t matter now. He was dead. He would take Odium with him to hell, and the danger to humanity’s future would be over.
The moment passed. From the corpse came a surging, flickering shadow. It grew and grew, a patch of darkness in the center of the room that expanded as it consumed all flickers of illumination. Alex could only just make out a face in the billowing purplish smoke, looking only vaguely pony. Rage boiled from this being like heat from a star, and its eyes were fixed immediately on her.
“It needs a new host!” Joseph’s voice from the top of the stairs, no longer baring a shred of the compulsion on him. He said more, though she couldn't hear all of it. Only a few threads of the conversation from above made it down to her. “We have to let the light in! Somepony get a mirror!” Alex could see no sign of the light from the upper world. Light was a dream, a distant memory. Only her memory of Celestia’s mane remained clear to her just then.
The shadowy presence reached Abrams first. It did not even try to take him as a host, though Alex was sure he would be able to do nothing to stop it. Instead the anger surged and boiled over, and the shadows tore him to pieces.
It happened so quickly, she didn’t even get the chance to look away. Once moment, triumph on Abrams face, defiance and rage against cruel fate. The next, Alex had been splattered with something foul and the nightmare was advancing on her.
She knew without knowing how she knew that no other host would do. The shadows thickened and secured around her, forcing themselves into her eyes and down her throat. She spasmed and convulsed, fighting valiantly, but not even her earth pony nature could help her now. That might strengthen her body, make it resistant to knives or bullets or strangulation, but it could do nothing to shield her mind. The hatred rushed in unopposed.
Alex’s perception of the physical world abruptly ended, the sensations of her body severed. Lonely Day was torn from her body then, and cast into the depths of her subconscious.
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After your warning in the comments yesterday, I was at least somewhat prepared, but the 'oh crap' is still strong in this one.
It's also a crying shame about Abrams. RIP, valiant soldier.
Well then... Can't wait to see what happens next!
Too easy, no?
Taking her down too easy...
..I am so very glad this isn't a Friday update. Whatever you're going to do Alex, better do it quickly!
Did Odium hint that Alex might have ascended on her own eventually?
hmmm.... It's interesting that you specified that Lonely Day was thrown into her subconscious. For a mare that runs around with three names, having only that one, the one she almost never uses, named specifically can't be just coincidence.
I'm not worried. Oh, there's definitely a visceral reaction, a pit in my stomach, a feeling of concern. You hit those buttons. But intellectually, I have confidence. Especially given the image on Alex's communication bracer.
Yeesh.... The last chapter will have to be a lot longer than normal to avoid being a huge anticlimax after this.
(Incidentally, I happen to have just watched a video review of Nightmare on Elm Street 2, so Odium somehow ended up with Robert Englund's voice and the whole basement scene ended up feeling like the climax of an 80s horror film.
Of course, that's just me.)
"If 'Odium' is anything like Nano describes 'Mother' to be, it can probably be driven off with Silverwood trees and their pure nodes. Shame they don't exist in that universe >.<"
Next chapter, Mindscape battle.
So, the battle must conclude in the only place where a creature like this can truly be fought and vanquished - The psychic plane. I suspect that Alex is about to learn things about herself that she never previously imagined were possible.
Ahh sombra!
I'm mean ah! Alodium
No! Not Abrams!
He was pretty chill.
This may either have been a brilliant move or the worst/last mistake Odium ever made.
Well... shit.
Alright, here's what COULD happen, Odium takes the body, burns the library, and takes over the dead empty world, and eventually ill be trumped by a rebellion down the road when hundreds of human-turned-ponies drop in.
Now what is ACTUALLY going to happen?
Next chapter I suppose.
Hmm... Team Alexandria's second trojan horse?
Are Riley and Cloudy skulking about somewhere? 
6364004
That's exactly what I thought after reading this chapter.
Yeah, this about sums up my reaction.
What...the...HELL was that?! Alex should have totally won and slaughtered that ABOMINATION!! T____T
I found this to be rather fitting for the chapter:
I'm playing a sad version of canon and now I want to cry. That's how good this chapter is.
I so sad.
This... is getting kinda confusing. There are suddenly a lot of known and unknown unknowns and I'm really curious as to how you're going to sort out this mess in the remaining ~4500 words of Alex' arc. Especially with an all powerful ancient demonic being on the scene. Ah well, I'll have confidence in you, lean back and for the first time refrain from analyzing and speculating.
Onward.
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My money is on the latter.
One of the most pathetic villains on the show. Defeated by SPIKE as just obliterated the group.
Well I suppose Odium and Sombra are different. And Sombra was trapped in ice for a thousand years after being Harmony'd.
Either way something similar to the scene with Sombras fear door will probably happen. Alex faces her worst fears, overcomes them, and then overcomes Odium.
Btw those eye shadow things are what happens when ponies use dark magic not get possessed. As evidenced by Celestias use of dark magic.
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You don't think Odium is maybe using dark magic to do the possessing?
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I think Odium pretty much is MADE of Dark Magic.
I WOULD JUST LIKE TO TAKE A MOMENT TO APPRECIATE THE FACT THAT THE WRITER IS PUMPING OUT TWO CHAPTERS OF A LOT OF WORDS A DAY. THAT TAKES WORK, AND SHE ALREADY HAS A LOT TO DO, SO I WOULD LIKE TO THANK HER.
Crap!
Clever Twilight is clever, nice to know that the books are still safe—
Wait, never mind.
Hell. Yeah. Thank you mother Earth! *fist-pump*
As an aside, that's an interesting implication about alicorns, though it's entirely possible that Odium is not a particularly trustworthy source.
Hell yeah x2!
Ahh, dangit, hate to see Abrams go like that. Good work while you were with us, soldier.
Craaap. We still have Cloudy and Riley out there, maybe they'll swoop in at the last moment with a little alien changeling brain magic.
Oh thank god for a second there I thought shooting it had worked. I was thinking it was a little Anti-Climatic.
At least it seems that the library is still safe in the bag, though kinda serves Odium's purposes at this point.
Hell, all he needs to do at this point is run the hell away. He can't open the Bag Library and nobody else can. They can't harm Alex for risk of loosing the Library for good, and it probably wouldn't stick even then. Odium seemed to be perfectly capable of overpowering a field generator with Ryan (The one in the APC), so that might not be the magic bullet needed here. This turn of events might have played into his plans entirely.
Unless the others can pull something together at the last moment, this might not have a happy ending. Though I am not sure what two of each of Earth, Unicorn, and Pegasi ponies can do against a dark evil controlling an alicorn in the making...
So he possessed Alex...
Who at this point has two, count it TWO physical abilities of note.
Earth pony magic...
And Regeneration / Immortality...
No Pegasi magic
No Unicorn magic
No Alicorn magic
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Unless this tool is planning to wait however long it takes for Alex to grow into an Alicorn, he just bodyjacked a glorified punching bag.
Its her Soul that has access the secret princess stash... and has the planet on speed dial apparently...
He has only his OWN power to work with, as formidable as it is... he chose a unicorn meat puppet for a reason...
I wonder if this is going to end like a squirrel gnawing on a power line...
Carol's presence and Abrams statement do not bode well for Riley...
...but at the same time... Riley has been pretty genre savvy thus far...
Can't say I didn't see that coming. Dark entities like that are seldom irrevocably tied to their hosts. A pity Alex didn't have time to prepare. Right now the only solution I can see: Alex locks herself in the magic saddlebags and traps herself with Odium forever. And wouldn't that be a downer....
Also: Semper Fi, Abrams. Whether you were a Marine or not, you were faithful to the end.
6365122 Then again this the being that was rocking Night Speaker with the one-winged angel treatment for a bit. Odium might be powerful enough in his own right to fight his way out. He knew about Alex's situation, so I doubt he would have possessed her if he thought he couldn't handle the power. I also believe that Joseph said something about Umbrum needing to have a physical body else they dissipate fairly quickly.
I would not be surprised if this is the magical push needed to make her an alicorn actually.
6364031
Any moment now I just know that Riley is gonna jump in and wreck Odium's shit.
I don't know how, but she'll be there.
Personally I think Odium just made a big mistake. From the way it's been talking it still seems to think that what has been going on with Alex was purely Equestrian magic. It doesn't seem to understand that Gaia herself is channeling power through her. And now with Alex subsumed in her own subconscious , I think things are about to go all 'Saint Sinner' up in here.
upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/1/1b/SaintSinner1.jpeg
Only in this case a doubt I single Sombra type life form is going to last very long against the will of the earth.
Now there's a BEEEEEEEEG question I think everyone's missing:
Why is Odium so scared SPITLESS of our favorite little Changeling?
Think. First thing Odium did was try to have his slaves KILL her! Not Alex, not any of the unicorns, not even the Humans who have anti-magic and possibly magic-creature-killing force fields.... the CHANGELING.
Could it be that a creature made entirely of hate has something to FEAR from a creature that can eat emotions?
Hmmmmmmmmmmmm......
6366040 More importantly, what would the effects of eating A CREATURE THAT EMBODIES HATE have on Riley? If I remember correctly, eating emotions induces the emotions in her.
... Wait, is Carol Riley in disguise?
On a side note, although I've already stated this several times before, Starscribe, I find it hard to believe you've never read Fallout: Equestria. I keep seeing one thing after another that's comparable to that story. If I didn't know any better, I'd say Alex was wearing a Pipbuck. The memory crystals are a lot like memory orbs. In fact, in Fallout Equestria, There was a dark, malevolent spirit trapped inside of a black spell-book and, through that book, was able to trick ponies to perform yesterday deeds. I don't recall it forcing ponies to act against their will like Odium does but what I'm getting at here is that necromancy was a huge part of Fallout: Equestria as it seems to be in this story.
Agent Smith has assimilated Neo.
6363168
For me the major appeal of immortality is in being alive to see the consequences of your actions, and more specifically your failures. This requires a character with a great lust for life, but I find it much more enjoyable than the "Ye Are As Mayflies to Me" apathy long lived immortals have a habit of falling into. It moves the threat from the immortal to the world around them, forcing them to be more proactive. It's even better when the character has immortality and nothing else going for them, as it makes it all the easier to fail and more satisfying to succeed.
Lose to a warlord in single combat? Wake up to a burning village!
Help a group of refugees find a place to settle? Enjoy watching that camp grow into a bustling trade hub!
Attend a friend's baptism and later their burial, then kiss today goodbye and point yourself towards tomorrow.
I can see how your argument applies to Alex. She is looking at immortality on a longer time scale than almost any other immortal I can think of that isn't explicitly a god, so I can definitely see that by the end of the timeline she will have a incredibly alien thought process. Most 'immortals' I can think of don't even break the millennium mark. I think the hard part will be portraying the gradual transformation from Alex to Archive over that long of a time span.
But yeah, I kinda assumed that any story I wrote where someone succeeded in gaining immortality would go into the Non-Canon folder automatically. :p Well actually almost all my ideas would most likely become non-cannon since they're set so far into the future. Ce La Vie.
6365017
There's one name missing there.
*twitch* Update late today... *twitch* Big climax... *twitch* Refreshing FiMFic every 5 minutes...
Abrams went out like a true warrior, defiant in the face of evil, facing death openly.
Save a spot at the tabe for me in the Halls of Valhalla, brother.
All right, that's it. With all of the 4th wall breaking powers invested in me, I shall DESTROY you, you that have destroyed the books, taken over Alex, and broken Oliver's heart, you souless creature... Every time you die I will bring you back, just to end you in a brand new way. And when I have done every single possible technique, I will do it again, and again, and again, giving you no rest. You may plead for mercy, Odium, but I shall not grant it upon you.
Wow, I scare myself sometimes.
bearing
I think this may be a recurring error, indicating perhaps a misunderstanding on your part, unless I'm confusing your story with another.
7027559
Can I help?