Lateral Movement

by Alzrius

765 - Wake-Up Call

“What do you think you’re doing?”

The question earned a throaty chuckle from Sanguine Disposition, the leather wing continuing to advance on him. “Showing you just how much I’m going to enjoy working with you,” he purred. “And I promise, you’ll enjoy it too.”

He was close enough now that Lex could smell the remnants of their meal on the red-eyed stallion’s breath, the tartness of the food intermingling with the sweet scent of the wine. But there was another odor there as well. The metallic, almost coppery smell was one that struck him as intensely familiar, and it took him only a second to recognize it.

Blood.

Suddenly everything clicked.

One of the spells that he’d received from Kara was designed to transform a pony into a blood-sucking undead creature. Sanguine Disposition had mentioned, before they’d entered Eigengrau, that he had history with Kara. He was in possession of sharp, elongated canines, something the leather wing guards at the town’s gate hadn’t had. And now there was the smell of blood on his breath. It all added up to a single conclusion, one that was obvious in hindsight.

“You’re a vampire.”

Blinking, Sanguine Disposition stopped his advance, his ever-present smile falling away as it was replaced by a look of surprise. “Are you really just figuring that out now?”

The admission was enough to make Lex step back, revulsion coloring his features. No matter that vampires, in all the stories he’d heard back on Equestria, displayed no signs of rot or decay; they were still nothing more than animate corpses, akin to the ghouls that had infested Vanhoover. They even had the same method of reproducing, spreading their unnatural existence via biting the living. The only difference was that where the flesh-eaters had been ambush predators, vampires camouflaged themselves as still being alive in order to get close to their victims.

But to Lex, their appearance was immaterial; it was their nature which made them so reviled. It was one thing to be in a realm populated by souls that had lived out their mortal lives; those were still people, their intrinsic selves manifesting in familiar forms that echoed how they’d appeared before dying. They were who they’d always been, even if they were no longer alive.

The same couldn’t be said for the undead. The massive influx of negative energy that served to not only kill them, but reanimate them after death invariably warped them on a fundamental level. How could it not? If even minor alterations in body chemistry could affect major changes in personality and temperament, then it was impossible to conceive of a way that an inundation of necromancy – one sufficient to not only kill someone but also prevent their souls from moving on – wouldn’t change someone to the point where they were barely the same person anymore.

To Lex, such a fundamental change to someone’s sense of self was abhorrent in the extreme, and so it was that he found himself glaring at Sanguine Disposition, disgusted by how close the vampire had been to him. “Keep your distance, dead thing!”

The rebuke accomplished nothing except to make the leather wing pout, continuing to step closer to him. “Don’t be like that. I might be a vampire, but I underwent the transformation voluntarily, and I’m exactly the same pony now that I was before.”

“You’re a parasite,” spat Lex. “A corpse that can only sustain itself by feeding on others.”

“Actually, bloodfruit serves as a substitute for the real thing,” replied Sanguine Disposition, his impish grin returning. “Or did you think that the name was just for show?”

His stomach clenching at the thought of having eaten something a vampire found palatable, Lex’s lip curled. “Be that as it may, anyone who’d mutilate themselves the way you have-”

“Altering yourself in order to gain power is a virtue in the Night Mare’s religion,” cut in Sanguine Disposition, clucking his tongue. “I might have embraced vampirism during my time in Kara’s realm, but I did so in pursuit of the power necessary to accomplish my goals. If the Night Mare can respect that, surely you can too?”

“The results alone are not sufficient justification!” snarled Lex. “The manner in which you reach them is no less important, and the line you’ve crossed...”

But just like before, Lex found that he couldn’t continue spouting beliefs that he no longer found value in, with even his shock and disgust at Sanguine Disposition’s true nature being insufficient to maintain his vehemence. What the leather wing had done to himself was appalling, but Lex found it no less appalling than how he’d slaughtered so many other ponies during the Rite of Sublimation’s test. That they had been illusions had been irrelevant; at the time, the distinction had been lost on him.

What right did he have to criticize someone else for not living up to the standards that he himself no longer put any stock in?

As if sensing that the other stallion had lost the thread of the argument, Sanguine Disposition spoke up. “For what it’s worth, I wasn’t trying to hide what I was. I suppose I’ve simply gotten so used to everyone knowing that I’m a vampire that I just thought of it as common knowledge.”

Lex’s lip curled again, this time in incredulity as much as disgust. “You’re telling me that the ponies of Eigengrau accept you, despite knowing what you are?”

“Why wouldn’t they? I’ve worked hard to make this place what it is, and while I’ll admit it’s still a work in progress, I’ve done everything I can prove myself worthy of their trust. The same way I want to be worthy of yours.”

That last part was enough to earn a scornful laugh from Lex. “You’ve done nothing to earn my trust.”

“Then let me do so now.” Again, Sanguine Disposition had moved within hooves’ reach, and it was only then that Lex realized he’d backed into a corner of the dining room, giving him nowhere else to fall back to. “I promise, you won’t regret it.”

As the red-eyed stallion leaned in closer, Lex found himself hesitating. He’d already lost everything else he’d believed in; would it really make that much of a difference if he threw away his aversion to the vampire also? After all, he’d already been entertaining Sanguine Disposition’s offer to start over here in Eigengrau. Accepting the leather wing’s true nature was, in that sense, simply an extension of that idea; another remnant of his old life to be discarded, now that he knew how worthless that life had been.

And yet...

“I said-”

As Sanguine Disposition’s face came within an inch of his own, Lex raised a hoof.

“-KEEP YOUR DISTANCE!”

Even as the words left his mouth, Lex felt his resolve come surging back, a profound realization flashing across his consciousness.

Sanguine Disposition was a deplorable creature, but not because he was a vampire. Rather, it was because he was a pony who had no regrets about how far he’d fallen, to the point where he didn’t think that he’d fallen at all. Rather than having failed to live up to any sort of moral code that Lex could recognize, the leather wing’s inability to see that he’d desecrated himself in his pursuit of power was a sign of someone with no inner compass at all. He’d admitted it himself: “I’m exactly the same pony now that I was before,” he’d said, making it clear that he saw no difference between being alive and being undead.

Despite how far he’d fallen, that level of iniquity was something Lex couldn’t bring himself to accept.

He could still acknowledge that his failures had been failures, and in so doing, define what success was. And that was enough to show him the truth that he’d lost sight of. Even if the mares in his life had only loved him because of Kara’s manipulation, and despite the fact that he’d been pursuing a method of understanding others which would never bear fruit, neither of those changed the fundamental nature of the actions he’d undertaken. Feeding the hungry, healing the sick, and protecting the weak were virtuous undertakings, no matter the circumstances!

The Rite of Sublimation had showed him that he’d never have his heart’s desire.

The revelation about Kara’s blessing meant that he wasn’t truly loved by anyone.

But neither of those things undercut the moral code that he’d lived his life by. His ethical framework hadn’t been disproven by what he’d gone through; he’d simply lost faith in it, convinced that if he’d been so wrong about so much else, that must have been flawed also.

Now he knew better.

Seeing how corrupt Sanguine Disposition truly was, and realizing that he could recognize that, had shown Lex that there was still something worthwhile in himself. It wouldn’t make his life any less painful, but it did give it meaning.

Which is more than can be said for you, vampire! seethed Lex as he brought his hoof toward the leather wing’s ribs. He knew that the blow wouldn’t accomplish nothing; that while his magic items were enough to give him some modest proficiency in physical attacks, the myriad spells that Sanguine Disposition was wearing would doubtlessly protect him from the blow. But at the moment, he didn’t care.

No matter that fighting was the strategically unsound choice. Rejecting Sanguine Disposition meant reclaiming the last worthwhile part of himself. For that, Lex was prepared to put everything on the line.

I’m going to go back and finish what I started! I’ll find a way to save Thermal Draft, resurrect Solvei, defeat Sissel and her siblings, and return to Equestria! EVEN IF I HAVE TO GO THROUGH YOU!

Acknowledged.

Lex blinked as the vow he’d made in the privacy of his thoughts received an answer.

But it wasn’t Solvei who had given the clipped, single-word response. Nor was it the Night Mare.

Rather, the voiceless response came from his tulpa.

Nor was its answer given in isolation. Even as Lex’s hoof crossed the last few inches toward Sanguine Disposition’s torso, his shadow – stretched out on the floor beneath him, in defiance of the few remaining candles on the wall – suddenly reached up, the umbral outline corresponding to the hoof throwing the punch lifting itself off of the floor to make contact with his foreleg.

As it did, black crystals covered his hoof.

The gauntlet that formed around his foreleg then was similar to the one he’d made when he’d fought Starlight Glimmer. But even as Lex struggled to comprehend exactly how that was possible, he realized that it wasn’t the same as when he’d fought the madmare. That gauntlet had been nothing more than a blunt instrument, a collection of crystals designed to give his punches further weight.

But the one he was wearing now was deeply embedded with spellwork, the magic inside it registering brightly to his supernatural senses.

It apparently did the same for Sanguine Disposition, because Lex could already see the leather wing leaning back, his crimson eyes widening and mouth opening in a gasp as he saw what was happening. But he was too close and too surprised to do anything about it.

Then Lex’s punch connected.

Sanguine Disposition immediately let out a horrific screech of agony, the sound surpassing anything that could have come from a living pony’s throat.

He wrenched himself away from Lex so quickly that he was halfway across the room in the time it took to blink. But even as he threw himself backward, the effects of the gauntlet took hold. His flesh immediately began to desiccate, fur losing its color as his muscles deteriorated. Wing membranes dried up, turning into crinkly masses of old leather while his mane and tail turned a sickly grey.

Openmouthed, Lex could only stare as Sanguine Disposition continued to decompose, somehow managing to tear his eyes away from the grisly spectacle to look first at the magical weapon wrapped around his hoof, and then at his shadow.

That hadn’t been a spell. His tulpa might have had the power to use magic on its own, but it could only prepare spells that he himself knew, and he’d never even heard of a spell to create some sort of anti-undead weapon – or whatever this was – the way it just had. But if it wasn’t a spell, then what had just happened? The only times his tulpa had ever used something besides a misappropriated spell had been when it had summoned his nightmares into the real world.

But this wasn’t from any nightmare he’d ever had. If anything, it was the complete opposite; rather than a source of discomfort in his dreams, it was something he’d desperately needed now, while awake.

...or was that the answer? Bringing his nightmares into the real world was, essentially, giving concepts a material form, using magic to grant them a physical presence. How exactly his tulpa could do that, Lex still wasn’t sure, but at the moment that was less important than the fact that it had just done so in a manner radically different than anything previously displayed.

For that matter, it hadn’t even done so in response to the usual stimulus. The Night Mare herself had told him that it took action when he experienced intense fear for his sense of self. But what he’d felt just now hadn’t been fear, but righteous determination. If anything, the existential fear that she’d been alluding to had been completely absent; ever since he’d undergone the Rite of Sublimation, his worst fears had all come true, which would mean...

Would mean...

A shudder ran down Lex’s spine as he looked at his shadow again, and he let out a slow breath as he closed his eyes, concentrating.

When he opened them again, his shadow was up against the wall, rather than under his hooves...which put it directly opposite the candlelight, exactly where it was supposed to be.

The sight almost made Lex’s knees give out, having found the answer:

He had finally gained control over the rogue aspect of his consciousness.

After nearly two years of internal torment, of being castigated and berated whenever his anger or despair overwhelmed him, of horrific dreams that had made his every night an exercise in anguish and misery, he had finally mastered that piece of himself. It might not have been completely reintegrated into his greater consciousness – the fact that it was still capable of independent action proved that much – but it was no longer working against him.

Now that his worst fears had been realized, there was nothing left that his tulpa could torment him with. No more biting comments. No more nightmares. No more bending his shadow in unnatural directions.

And no more utilizing its goddess-given powers according to its own judgment. They were his to call upon now. And if what he’d just done to Sanguine Disposition was any indication, they were greater than he’d-

“Caught...me by...surprise...”

The rasping voice drew Lex out of his thoughts, tensing up as, across the room, the rotting form of Sanguine Disposition slowly straightened up. “The Secreta...didn’t tell me...about that...”

Even as he spoke, the damage that Lex had inflicted on him was repairing itself. His mane and tail regained their luster as his wings grew full and thick, muscles regrowing as the skin and fur covering them grew hale and hearty again.

In a matter of seconds, his appearance was completely restored, and even his smile was back in place as he casually brushed the dust from his vest.

“So, what else can you do?”

Author's Note:

Discovering Sanguine Disposition's true nature, Lex reconnects with his moral code, and in so doing realizes that he's gained control over his tulpa!

But with Sanguine Disposition having survived, is Lex going to have to put that new power to the test?

Comments

[Booster Spice]

I wonder if Sanguine and Lex ever saw, or heard of the combat between Merlin and Mim? After all, Sanguine already got Lex contaminated with a slow burn, what could Lex do in return to a high level vampire?

[Not so New Brony]

For a few good seconds, I thought Lex might have taken out Sanguine through some form of dumb luck but his continued existence is either tied to his vampiric nature or the inherent nature of the Darkest Night since it is technically the afterlife(one of many) though it would have made Lex's near death encounter with White Wraith pointless so probably not that. Or it's something more mundane(as mundane as one could be in a fantasy based afterlife that is) like the enchantments on his person or his home.

Regardless, Sanguine seems pretty nonchalant about what happened to him just now though it could also be him trying to get Lex to drop his guard by not being hostile. Still, with the tulpa acknowledging Lex's authority now, I wonder how different things will be for Lex with more power under his control now.

[TheAbsoluteRadiance]

As expected! Lex's moral code is the most powerful tool in his arsenal. It's one of his few redeeming qualities that actually attract people to him. Well... If they knew he have one that is.
Now that I think about it. Who actually knows about Lex having a moral code? I am assuming no one?

[Alzrius]

11394397 Somehow I doubt either know of that particular spellcasting duel (if for no other reason than because the latter character seems to be, from what I can find, original to the T. H. White novel).

As for what Lex could do to a vampire, well...even if he recovered quickly, it seems like he managed to score a telling blow on Sanguine Disposition there. More than that, the latter's admitting that the Secreta didn't prepare him for that seems like it might be notable. After all, he was the one who casually mentioned how not knowing the full extent of what someone else can do puts people on the defensive.

[Alzrius]

11394420 The exact nature of exactly what Lex just did is unclear, in that we know he used some sort of enchanted weapon, but what magic it used is as-yet uncertain. More than that, Sanguine Disposition's recovery is equally mysterious, though perhaps slightly less surprising. Between being a vampire, a powerful spellcaster, and having the home-field advantage, any one of those things could likely be the reason why he sprang back so fast.

Of course, his relaxed attitude suggests that he's not very concerned about what just happened, but it's hard to tell if that's him being genuine or if it's a bluff. There's no way to be sure, but his admission that he hadn't anticipated that was telling; clearly even the Secreta has limits. To that end, Lex might very well be able to keep the vampire at bay by that alone. That's presuming that neither decides to continue the fight, of course; that would be a break from how things usually go for Lex, if nothing else.

[Alzrius]

11395369 I'm fairly sure Lex has gone on about his particular iteration of deontological ethics many times, to many people; it's just that he tends to operate at a higher level than most can easily follow, so it's questionable how many people actually understand the principles that govern his behavior. That said, there is one notable exception: the Night Mare's Knights. For a while, back in Vanhoover, Lex went out of his way to teach the children, putting a heavy emphasis on the proper and responsible use of power. Feather Duster sat in on many of those classes also (she was concerned about what he was teaching her daughter), so it's likely that she understands him better than a lot of other ponies do.

[Firefoxino]

Time to bring out the crosses lex you need crosses stat!

[Alzrius]

11396354 Heh, somehow I doubt presenting a holy symbol will work against a vampire who has a major blessing from a deity.