Demons Are Forever

by Metool Bard

Identity Crisis

The march from the library didn't last that long, but for Bon-Bon, it felt like hours. Snowflakes decorated her mane and eyelashes as the winds began to pick up. She couldn't quite place it, but the air felt a lot colder than before. She clearly wasn't the only one feeling this way, as her comrades also appeared to be on-edge. She wanted nothing more than to take her grappling hook and slash one of her captors, but with so many magic horns pointed at her, she felt that she couldn't risk it.

"Company, halt!"

The changelings stopped, and their prisoners did in turn. Bon-Bon looked back to see that the secret library was no more than a stone's throw away. One of the changelings flew up to the prisoners and cleared its throat.

"Th-the archdrone's council will be with you momentarily," it said, shivering against the cold. "I-in the meantime, feel free to talk amongst yourselves."

White Lie sighed and took out its box of chocolates. "I do apologize, everypony. I had no idea Snatcher was following me."

"No one is blaming you for anything, White Lie," said Fleur. "We understand what you went through."

Bon-Bon let out a brief sigh and stared off into space. "White Lie, can I ask you something?"

"Um, sure. Go right ahead."

"You were spying on us the whole time we were climbing Coltlat, right?"

"Yes."

"How much did you tell Snatcher?"

White Lie sighed and tossed a chocolate into its mouth. "Too much. And there's no telling what Snatcher will do with that information."

Minuette wrinkled her nose. "Blech~! I can't believe after all this time, your breath still reeks. Didn't the Ars Goetia teach you anything about dental hygiene?"

"Glad to see you haven't changed a bit, Dr. Colgate," White Lie said sardonically.

"Oh, you can call me Minuette now," said Minuette. "I kinda dropped my pseudonym after the HUB was disbanded."

"Guys, is this really the right time for us to be shooting the breeze?!" Lyra asked nervously. "Shouldn't we, I don't know, come up with a plan to get away from the lunatic who's asking the voices in its head how to deal with us?!"

"Considering that these changelings are listening to our every word and will probably report our plans to escape, that may not be a wise move, Ms. Heartstrings," Fleur sighed. "Besides, those voices in its head are the Ars Goetia, remember? That's what our informant told us when we interrogated it."

"Yeah, well. That doesn't make the guy any less loony," Lyra countered.

"That may be true, but Lady de Lis has a point, Lyra," said Bon-Bon. "There's really not much we can do right now. D-don't worry, though. I'm sure we'll think of something."

"The council has made its decision."

All eyes turned upward as Snatcher flew down from above. It landed before the prisoners and began pacing, carrying the Lesser Key in its magical aura.

"I must say, this deliberation did take a bit longer than anticipated," it mused. "So many variables and contingencies to sort out. But in the end, the council feels the best course of action is to run a bit of a thought experiment. And the participant of this experiment will be, you."

It pointed its hoof at Bon-Bon, who was very much taken aback. "M-me?"

"Yes, you," said Snatcher. "You see, I don't know if you remember Marquis Andras, but he remembers you. He remembers praising your skepticism back when the hive dishonored White Lie."

White Lie let out a deep-thorated snarl before popping another chocolate into its mouth. Snatcher ignored this and continued.

"Anyway, because of the new data we gathered from White Lie, Marquis Andras has become quite interested in you. He believes you might've, changed. Or maybe you haven't. He can't quite figure it out. Thus why he proposed this thought experiment."

Bon-Bon snorted and stood her ground. "So what? I don't care what those demons think of me."

Snatcher snickered. "You should. Because you're indulging in the council's curiosity whether you like it or not."

With that, it powered up its horn. A split second later, Lyra shrieked. Bon-Bon turned to see what was wrong, only to find Lyra being pulled by a magical aura. Before Bon-Bon could react, Lyra was carried over to Snatcher's side.

"Duke Focalor! Prepare the experiment!" Snatcher ordered.

It suddenly shifted its form into that of what appeared to be a griffon made out of water. The griffon pointed at the snowy ground and raised a yell that echoed across the mountainside. From the ground, a large pillar of water burst forth, fully encapsulating Lyra. In a matter of moments, the water froze into a crystal prison. Lyra screamed and pounded on the ice with all her might, all to no avail. The watery griffon disappeared, reverting back to Snatcher as it gave Lyra a chiding look.

"I wouldn't be so reckless if I were you," it warned. "After all, you only have so much oxygen at your disposal right now. It would be a shame if you wasted it all before we could start this experiment properly."

Fleur snorted angrily. "You monster," she seethed, illuminating her horn. "You let her out this instant, or I'll—"

She was cut off by several changeling drone pointing their own horns right at her.

"The council would prefer it if there were no outside variables contaminating the results of this experiment," said Snatcher coldly.

Bon-Bon glared at Snatcher. Although she tried to stand tall, her lip quivered ever so slightly. "G-get to the point, Snatcher."

"Gladly," said Snatcher with a bow. "So, here's how this experiment works. I, along with my council, shall challenge you to a duel. A final epic battle with the Lesser Key as the prize. And if you win, I'll surrender myself and the council to Equestria." It then looked over at Lyra and sneered. "Mind you, I can't say for certain how long such a battle will last. Your friend here might die before you can overpower us."

Bon-Bon's breath hitched. "Th-then I'll just have to break her out of there before dealing with you."

"Oh, of course. By all means, feel free," said Snatcher, stepping to one side. "And my soldiers won't lift a hoof to stop you, either. However, while you're doing that, I might just decide to flee into the mountains and hide someplace where you'll never find me or the Lesser Key. And I don't make that claim lightly; I know these mountains far better than you do."

Bon-Bon gasped in horror. "Wh-what?"

"I see you're beginning to understand the stakes," said Snatcher with a toothy grin. "You can either fight me, or save your friend. Fulfill your duty and save all of Equestria, or follow your heart and rescue this one mare. Which will it be, Sweetie Drops? Or, perhaps I should call you Bon-Bon."

Bon-Bon started hyperventilating as she shifted her attention to Lyra. Lyra herself was in full panic mode, although her strength appeared to be waning. Her cries for help were muffled by her icy prison. All she managed to do was fog up the walls with her breath. She began coughing and gasping for air as tears welled up in her eyes. The very sight was almost too much for Bon-Bon to bear.

She then turned her attention to Snatcher, who adopted a battle position. It let out a smug chuckle as it pawed the ground and leered at Bon-Bon, waiting for her to strike. "Tick tock, Ms. Drops. Make your choice."

Bon-Bon tried to say something, but the words simply wouldn't come out. Like a puppy being summoned by two masters, she looked back and forth between Snatcher and Lyra. She bit down on her lip so hard that it started to bleed. Minuette stepped forward and cleared her throat.

"Question," she said, raising her hoof.

Snatcher glared at Minuette, and several other changelings did the same. "I thought I made it clear that the council wants no outside interference."

"I know, I know. Settle down, you guys," said Minuette calmly. "Still, you have to admit that this is a pretty big decision. Don't you think Bon-Bon deserves a little more time to suss this out?"

Snatcher's brow crinkled. "Hmm. Perhaps you're right. Gentlemen, your thoughts?"

There was a pause as Snatcher paced back and forth, nodding its head and muttering to itself all the while.

"Mmm. Yes, that is a good point, Duke Aim. We'd be granting them a significant advantage should we agree. Yes, I know the severity of our ultimatum, President Amy. We already voted on that, and we're following th— Now see, I don't understand how that's relevant to anything, Duke Eligos. White Lie clearly stated that the two appeared to be an item. That's not up for deb— Marquis Phenex, we've been over this. If you have a genuine grievance with my tactics, you have to discredit them with logic that isn't circular. No, I was not insulting his intelligence, Prince Seere. I was just—"

"Um, I do hate to interrupt, but can we speed this up a bit?" asked Minuette, tapping her ankle as if she were wearing a watch. "Our friend is kinda in danger of dying from asphyxiation."

Snatcher whipped around and snorted. "Do not dare interrupt the deliberations of this—" It suddenly paused mid-thought and nodded. "Oh. It appears Marquis Andrealphus agrees with you. Very well, we'll put it to a vote. All in favor of permitting Ms. Drops to have this handicap, say aye."

There was silence.

"All opposed?"

Bon-Bon took another nervous glance at Lyra. She could already see Lyra's consciousness fading. Her heart pounded a mile a minute, and sweat poured down her face. Finally, Snatcher let out a sigh.

"Motion passes. The ayes have it," it relented. "You may use your temporal magic to grant Ms. Drops more time."

"Yes!" Minuette cheered.

"But keep in mind that many members of this council are not affected by temporal distortions. Should you use your powers to help Ms. Drops cheat, there will be consequences."

Minuette's expression drooped. "Shoot." She then chuckled sheepishly. "Oh well. Can't blame a pony for trying."

"Yes, quite," said Snatcher, letting out a light cough. "Now, get on with it. My drones will not encumber you."

Minuette nodded. "Alright. Here goes."

In a matter of seconds, a golden shockwave rippled across the sky. All of the changelings were frozen in time, with the exception of White Lie. Lyra was also caught in the temporal field, her eyes half-lidded as she appeared close to passing out.

"Okay, Bon-Bon. I put a few more minutes on the clock, but I can't keep this spell up forever," said Minuette. "We need a plan, and we need it now."

"Honestly, this feels like a trap," White Lie said darkly. "Snatcher has something up its sleeve, though damned if I know what that something is."

"Is that a risk she should take, though?" inquired Moondancer, adjusting her glasses.

"I think it's all up to her," said Fleur, turning to Bon-Bon. "Well, Sweetie Drops?"

Bon-Bon folded her ears back and looked down at her hooves. "I-I don't know."

Minuette sucked in a sharp breath through her teeth. "Hoo boy. That ain't good."

Fleur nervously cleared her throat. "I-if I may be so bold in asking, Sweetie Drops. Why the hesitation? There's no guarantee that your battle with Snatcher will be that long and drawn-out. You could overpower it and still be able to rescue Ms. Heartstrings."

Bon-Bon heaved a great sigh. "It's a nice thought, Lady de Lis. But we've wasted too much time already. For all we know, Lyra could be at the brink of death right now."

She scrunched her eyes shut and sniffled, trying to hold the tears back. "I understand what you're saying, though. After all we've been through trying to get here, we shouldn't let the Lesser Key slip from our grasp again. It's too dangerous to be left alone." She looked up at Lyra, her lip quivering. "But, Lyra means so much to me. If I let her die, I-I'll never be able to live with myself."

Her attention shifted over to Snatcher. "On the other hoof, am I really that selfish? Am I going to jeopardize Equestria's safety just so one pony can live?" She turned back to Lyra. "I didn't want her to come here. I was afraid something like this might happen. I-I promised to protect her. I-I can't let her down."

She looked over at Snatcher again. "Still, the reason I agreed to this mission is so that I could put the past behind me. I need to tie up this loose end in order to move on." She hiccuped and brushed her nose as she turned to Lyra. "B-but, I was doing that for her. This victory would be meaningless if I let her go. And then, my life would be empty."

White Lie furrowed its brow. "I remember you saying that you didn't let personal feelings interfere with performing your duty, Ms. Drops. However, we can't really apply that logic here, can we?"

Bon-Bon shook her head and shed several tears. "Th-that's just it. It's not that simple for me anymore. As Sweetie Drops, I know I need to complete the mission and protect Equestria. But as Bon-Bon, I'd be crushed if anything happened to Lyra. And no matter what I choose, this'll determine who I am, forever."

She suddenly let out a wail and pounded her hoof into the snow. "Dammit! I feel like I'm going to crack! Wh-why does this have to be so damn hard?! Why can't I choose between a life of peace or living up to my responsibilities as an agent?! Why can't I decide between Sweetie Drops and Bon-Bon?!"

She then collapsed to the ground and buried her face in her hooves, sobbing all the while. Fleur bit her lip and sighed. "I somehow get the feeling that this is partially my fault," she murmured.

"You want me to talk to her?" asked Minuette.

Fleur shook her head. "No need, Dr. Colgate. This is my blunder; it's my responsibility to fix it."

She trotted over to Bon-Bon's weeping form and placed a hoof on her shoulder. "Sweetie Drops—" She paused. "No, I should call you what you want to be called. It's not like it matters either way."

Bon-Bon looked up. "Wh-what do you mean?"

Fleur took in a deep breath before saying her piece. "Well, I've had some time to think about a few things, and only now do I realize how insensitive I was to your dilemma. I'm very sorry that I put all this pressure on you." She then looked Bon-Bon right in the eye. "But at the same time, I feel that you're creating a false dichotomy by playing this silly game with your identity. Don't worry about what Sweetie Drops wants or what Bon-Bon wants. They're both you. What do you want?"

Bon-Bon sniffled and took a moment to let Fleur's words sink in. Finally, she nodded. "I-I think I understand. Thank you, Lady de Lis."

"Don't be so quick to sing my praises. I'm the one who put you in this position in the first place," said Fleur with a self-mocking chuckle.

Bon-Bon snickered herself as she dried her eyes. "Yeah, well. You had your reasons, and I don't hold it against you." She then turned to Minuette. "Alright, I know what to do."

"Good, 'cause I don't think I can keep this up for much longer," said Minuette in a strained tone. "Okay, time in!"

As soon as the temporal field dissipated, Bon-Bon rushed over to the ice crystal Lyra was imprisoned in. In one swift motion, she balanced herself on her front hooves, spun around, and kicked the crystal with all her might. With a deafening crack, the icy prison shuddered and fractured before shattering into a million pieces. She then rushed through the shards of ice and caught Lyra on her back.

"H-hang in there, Lyra," she panted, setting her on her back. "I-it's gonna be okay."

She immediately set to work pressing her hooves into Lyra's chest and breathing into her mouth. After a few cycles of this, Lyra gasped and sputtered.

"Phew! Wh-what happened?" she said breathlessly. "I-I kinda blacked there for a se— mmph!"

Lyra was interrupted by Bon-Bon giving her a big hug. After a few moments of stunned silence, Lyra returned the embrace. However, unbeknownst to either of them, Snatcher did not run away. Instead, it charged up its horn. Slowly, a glittering pink aura wafted from Lyra and Bon-Bon's bodies, and it was channeled right towards Snatcher. White Lie snorted.

"So that was your plan," it snarled. "Snatcher, you bastard."

"Yeah, that is pretty dirty," Minuette mused. She then shrugged her shoulders. "Well, if Snatcher's not playing by the rules of its own game, I don't see why we have to."

One of the changeling drones noticed her powering up her horn and gasped. "H-hey! We only allowed you to use your spell for the archdrone's experiment! You're going too far! Soldiers, counter—"

The drone was interrupted by a blast of gold sending it flying. There was the sound of clamoring hooves from behind. Everyone turned to see an entire herd of Minuette clones dashing up the mountainside.

"Gotta love..."

"...an army..."

"...of me!"

The Minuette clones quickly overwhelmed the changelings, beating them down one by one. The remaining forces were scared out of their wits and scattered into the mountains. During the commotion, White Lie looked over at Lyra, Bon-Bon, and Snatcher. It let out a deep sigh.

"Ms. Drops, please forgive me for this," it murmured.

White Lie then illuminated its own horn, and some of the love energy traveled towards it. Fleur did a double take.

"Wh-what are you doing?" she asked. "I thought you swore off of love."

"I-if this is Snatcher's game, mmm, the least I can, ah, do is, nngh, mitigate the damage." White Lie let out a pleasurable moan. "Mmm~! My word. It tastes just like her candies. Maybe they really are made with love."'

Luckily, Snatcher was oblivious to this development as it focused on absorbing every last bit of love energy it could drain. Lyra and Bon-Bon were also in their own little world. After what felt like an eternity, they released each other.

"Um, Bons? Why'd you do that?" Lyra asked.

Bon-Bon giggled and kissed her on the nose. "Because I love you, silly."

"Yeah, but, now the bad guy's gone," said Lyra sadly. "I-it ran off with the book and the demons. It won. I-I'm sorry, Bon-Bon. I-I got in the way."

"Don't be so sure about that, Ms. Heartstrings."

Lyra and Bon-Bon perked up as Fleur pointed with her hoof. When Bon-Bon saw that Snatcher was still around, she let out an angry snort.

"You said you were going to hide in the mountains where I couldn't find you," she growled. "You lied to me!"

"I said I might do that," Snatcher clarified. "I never said it was an actuality. Either way, thank you for your delicious love energy. Now, I have enough power to wield the full might of the Ars Goetia! Once they all make themselves known, not even the Elements of Harmony would be able to stand up to their brilliance!"

It then paused and knitted its brow. "Um, are you sure about that, Duke Crocell? Run those calculations again. No, I'm not questioning your methods! Just, run them again! We should have— Oh. We don't?" It shrugged. "Oh well. No matter. Perhaps their love just wasn't as strong as we anticipated."

"Hey, I take offense to that, buddy!" Lyra snapped.

"I'm sure you do," said Snatcher dismissively. "Anyway, in light of this new development, I have a different proposal. The council believes that it's not too late for a dialogue. I'd be more than happy to show you all why standing against them is illogical."

Bon-Bon let out a manic laugh as an angry fire ignited in her eyes. "Oh, sure! That sounds great!" she spat, her voice dripping with venom. "I would love to have a rational discussion with you after you just tried to rape my mind! Sure, Lyra almost died and I came this close to mentally snapping, but that's fine! That's okay! It's not as though your little experiment was going to end up scarring me for life or anything!"

Snatcher stood its ground. "I can see that you're upset, Ms. Drops. But I assure you, the council had very good reasons for conducting this thought experiment."

"What? What're you talking about? I'm not upset! What possible reason would I have to be upset?!" Bon-Bon shouted, advancing towards Snatcher. "I'm totally open to your little proposal! In fact, why don't we make this fun? It'll be terrific! Princess Celestia can come over, we'll have a nice big tea party, and then YOU AND YOUR ENTIRE SICK-MINDED COUNCIL CAN GO BUCK YOURSELVES!"

The last words of Bon-Bon's tirade echoed across the mountains. She took a moment to catch her breath, her eyes not leaving Snatcher. Lyra's jaw dropped in amazement.

"Damn," she muttered.

Bon-Bon turned to Lyra and inwardly rebuked herself. "T-too much?"

"N-no! Nonononono," said Lyra nervously, her face turning a bit red. "N-not enough, actually."

"Um, before you ask, I do believe Ms. Bon-Bon is speaking for all of us," said Moondancer, shuffling her hooves. "Though, some of us might elect to use less *ahem* colorful language."

Snatcher's eyes narrowed. "Alright then. If that's the way you want to play it, fine by me. Gentlemen, it's time for a vote. All in favor of using the power we have to destroy these ingrates, say aye."

There was silence.

"All opposed?"

After a pause, Snatcher's eyes went wide.

"Oh. I-it appears we have a tie. That's never happened before," it mused. "Well, as leader of this council, I'll cast the tie-breaking vote. And seeing as you all are a liability to our plans, I can't very well let you live. Motion passes. The ayes have it."

In a flash, its body was engulfed in green flames and grew in size. Bon-Bon quickly readied her grappling hook.

"I don't know what it's turning into, but it's not going to be pretty," she said. "White Lie. You still remember that spell to send the Ars Goetia back into the book?"

"I believe so," said White Lie.

Bon-Bon nodded. "Good. You and Lady de Lis will focus on that. Minuette, Moondancer. You provide support."

"You got it," said Minuette with a salute.

Moondancer merely nodded and pressed her glasses against her face.

"Lyra, you and I will distract this guy while White Lie and Lady de Lis bring it down with their spells," said Bon-Bon. "Sync?"

Lyra smiled and gave Bon-Bon a curt nod. "Sync. Oh, and one more thing." She then gave Bon-Bon a quick peck on the cheek. "For luck."

Bon-Bon smirked. "Thanks, Lyra. I think we're gonna need it."

At the moment, Snatcher finished its transformation. The creature that stood before them could only be described as a draconequus. Its head was that of a pony, which sported both a bull's horn and a unicorn horn. Its left arm was that of a frog, and its right arm was a leopard's paw holding a sword. Its feet were that of a dromedary and a crocodile. It had the wings of a crow and a dragon with a sea pony fin sticking out of the middle. The end of its serpentine tail was sharp and rigid like a stingray, and several peacock feathers draped over the base. It let out a harrowing roar as its peacock feathers fanned out and it waved its sword around.

"Looks like this big guy's ready to tussle," said Minuette, cracking her neck.

"Well, so are we," said Bon-Bon, a distinct twinkle in her eye. "C'mon, everypony! We're ending this, together!"

With that, both sides rushed at each other, with the Lesser Key laying abandoned in the snow.

Author's Note:

I understand not all of the Ars Goetia got to make an appearance, but trust me, it's better like this. There's no way I would be able to create a character using body parts of all seventy-two demons. I mean none. It'd be impossible to visualize, let alone describe.

Comments

[terrycloth]

Maybe some sort of randomly furry hecatonchieres?

[Metool Bard]

6417248 That actually would make a lot of sense, seeing as many of the Goetia demons take on a human form. Maybe if Snatcher was at full power, it would look something like the idea you proposed. But again, if I went that route, you'd have to slog through a wall of text just to get a solid description of the creature. I don't know many people who'd want to read that.