Story of a Stick

by Xinrick

Stick learns the truth

Twilight managed to lead me to the school basement. It was plenty dark in here. Perfect for using the shadow magic. With a deep breath I gently placed a hand onto Twilight’s back and called forth the darkness. Despite the pitch black environment I could sense the endless dark creep closer and circle us. The ancient dark gazing upon Twilight and hearing my requests.

The old darkness began wrapping itself around the mare, like a second skin it began to engulf her and soon took in the extent of her body’s damage. I could almost feel as the dark chuckled, as if expecting more before it began to get to work. Her false leg was removed and growing out of the stump was bone and inching new flesh. Her wings, what remained was removed entirely as something new, more durable and fleshy over feathers. Her new eye began to fill the hole the old one once resided in, it’s color a crimson red, contrasting her other eye’s normal purple. Lastly, her horn, or lack there of began to regrow, curving as it rose and becoming a dark purple color.

Her new wings, like the Thestrials were like bats, heavy, thick and covered in a thin layer of her purple fur.

Her new leg touched the ground, and with that the healing was done. Twilight’s body was reborn.

The shadows took their leave and I turned on the lights. Twilight taking a good look at her new form in the mirror. “Woah…”

“You look… epic…” I said.

“Heh, I kinda look like Sombra, sorta?” She said, looking her new horn, wings and eye over. “I’m actually surprised that worked.”

“Honestly…. So am I.” I sighed. “Okay, so now that you’re healed I need to get all my weapons and such repaired.”

“Well, that is gonna take a while.”

“Yes.” I sighed. “Don’t suppose you know a way to speed that up?”

“All the repair spells I know only work on minor issues. I get the feeling your gear is a bit beyond all that.”

“Sadly.” I huffed.

“Well, guess I just need to wait.”

The next two months were waiting for all my weapons to get repaired. I spent it all training with whatever, and when I got a weapon back I practiced with that until I got another one back and practiced with that until I got them all back.

Well, not all of them… Some required more rare materials that just were not available, so I kept them in my portal thing anyway in case I found the materials. Crystal has also been getting me a lot of business as a ‘Therapeutic escape’ and I made on average anywhere from two to four hundred bits a day. The people need an escape from all this and I ended up providing it.

Today though I was ready to get to work. I was off to hunt that earth bending stick figure near the borders here so I can help everyone make progress.

Thanks to some ice weapons of mine I was able to brave the cold without issue and once I crossed into Equestria I spotted all the rearranged landscape. Deep gorges and tall mountains, pillars of earth and such were everywhere.

This guy must be seriously packing some power.

I pulled out my Guia Gauntlets, they can mimic Earth Bending and offer a small passive defense bonus. I took a deep breath and began to walk down the dirt, whistling in hopes to get this guy's attention.

As I walked I looked around, noticing the lack of, well, plants and animals. I could feel like I was being watched however.

“Who dares?” A booming voice that seemed to come from the ground itself asked. The ground seemed to vibrate with the voice.

“I dare.” I said. “You’ve been fucking up the terrain and making travel a real pain in the ass.”

“Leave this place. My domain is my own. No one is allowed within my domain other than I.”

“And just who the hell are you?”

“I am Gravel, and you are trespassing.”

Gravel… I don’t recognize the name. A guy packing this much power should have been known. “Well I’m Simon, and I don’t give a shit!” I shouted. “Are you going to fight me like a man or hide like a coward!”

The ground school violently as suddenly the rock and dirt around me began to shift and I watched as one of the rock pillars grew fingers, then flexed them. “Then perish.”

Oh fuck!

I ran, bolting and dodging the massive earth hand crashing down and sliding along behind me. I jumped and managed to slam my gauntlets into it, breaking it in two but got hit by a new pillar or earth slamming into me from behind. Cheap shot…

I got back up, jumping as the rock and earth flew and charged me. This guy has to be viewing me from somewhere. But where?

As I dodged and jumped I looked around and noticed there was a pillar or rock in the distance of all this, standing tall and unmoving.

Bingo.

With great effort I managed to jump and dodge my way near it, eventually tricking the big oaf into slamming one of their own earth limbs into the pillar. It broke in half and then I spotted them.

My eyes widened and I rushed up, grabbing them and landing carefully.

“No!” Gravel screamed as he moved and tried to escape to no avail… he… he has no limbs. No arms, legs, just his torso and head. “Put me down! Return me to the earth!”

“Dude what the fuck happened to you?!”

“Nothing happened to me!” He shouted. “I was born this freak of nature, coddled and treated as a burden. From a young age I knew I could control the earth and I felt freedom! But my family, they feared my powers! Locked me in a hospital, many floors above the ground I could feel calling! Faust brought me here and I will not go back to that or any prison!”

“Alright, so Antaeus but instead of being a Half Giant wrestling master, he’s a cripple…” I muttered. “Alright, so, gonna make a deal here my guy, cause currently you doing your ‘domain’ crap is hurting more people than it is doing good, and if you want the ‘freedom’ you rightly deserve, you’re going to help me and those that need it.” I said. “And before you say ‘what’s stopping me’, I can have a pegasi tie you up in a cloud and keep you as far away from the ground as possible, so please…don’t tempt me.” I told the cripple carefully, even after two months to get my bearings…it’s still two months too little for the six years of bullshit I had to endure.

“...Fine. But I just ask for solitude in return.”

“Eh, I can try but…the equines in this world are very social creatures and would sooner try and make you their friend, even with your disabilities and frankly stupidly strong attunement to Earth magic.”

“Ugh…”

“Better than being stuck in a hospital right?” I asked. “Cause you have a second chance here…also, I don’t think it was Faust that brought you here…I think it was something else.”

“She’s the one who shattered the barrier, if not her than who?”

“Either someone that’s impersonating her…or someone that’s stuck inside of her that’s taking control of her, because she’s the one that originally brought me to this world to stop this from happening…and then Blood happened and…ugh, that was a nightmare and a half.”

“Your life sounds complicated.”

“You have no idea.” I chuckled. “Now, I’ll put you down and…gonna ask for your help on finding some rare materials.”

“Like ores and such?”

“Yes, cause I am a Master of Arms and a lot of my more…’well made’ weapons need the materials.”

“Oh well there’s lots of that in the ground here.”

“Thank you.” I said, gently putting Gravel down and pulling out a pickaxe. “Welp, time for some mining.” I said readily, hoping this will help me at least get my head back into some shape instead of constantly trying to go back to the…horrors.

Once I put Gravel down he began fixing up the terrain. While it wasn’t perfect it was at least workable.

He then helped me by dropping a ton of various ores and such in front of me. I immediately pocketed them all and headed back to the Empire to get the rest of my weapons repaired. Once that was all done I went home to relax, finding Cadence sitting on the couch. “Hey Simon.” She waved a hoof at me.

“Hey Cadence.” I said, walking over and sitting down next to the princess of love. “How’s your day been going?”

“Oh, I did some shopping, some babysitting, and saw Twily today. I have to say Simon, I don’t know what you did to her in the dark but she is a whole new mare.”

I raised a brow.

“Her attitude, her walk, why she was fumbling all over herself.” I put a hand over my face. “What’s the matter?” She asked me with a grin.

“Woman, it’s not like that.” I said carefully, even as I felt my face start to burn in embarrassment at what she was insinuating.

She laughed. “I know… still, thank you for that. She looks different but she has her magic back and she hasn't been this happy in years.” Cadence sighed. “So, how was your mission?”

“Honestly, I’m surprised at how drastic her change was…I honestly was just trying to get her missing body parts back not…turn her into some hybrid queen of vampires.” I chuckled. “But my mission went surprisingly well, I met a rather strong stick named Gravel, his Earth powers are really strong and he’s helping me out in finding rare minerals and the like, but so far he just wants to be left alone cause of…stuff in his past.”

“Is he the one who was altering the land by the border?”

“Yeah.” I nodded.

“Well, as long as he doesn’t try and attack us anymore he can have his peace. So when are you gonna head back out?”

“Soon as I can. Lot of sticks causing problems… everywhere really. Though honestly we need more ally’s. Just wish I knew where they were keeping all the guild members prisoner. Free them and the battles become more fair and even.”

“Do you think they are still kept on your world?”

“That would make sense. Faust, or whatever is controlling her, has my world under their total control. Send the trouble makers here, keep the heroes captive there… it’s a sound strategy… but how can I get there?”

“I can think of one way, Discord can probably teleport you both there without much hassle. Where has he been anyway?”

“Helping here and there. Most stick people with magic and such don’t react to his magic, or if they do it seems to a lesser extent, which is why he could teleport me around everywhere. I don’t have any magic or abilities naturally.”

“Ah, well in that case he can definitely get you there… Will you be alright seeing your old world? From here it looks… in bad shape. Stars know how bad the surface is.”

“... Good or not, I gotta do it.” I sighed. “It will hurt but I can manage.”

Cadence leaned next to me, wrapping a wing around me in a half hug. “I hope you find your siblings too.”

“... Yeah… Me too.”

I spent the rest of the day relaxing and the next moring I went to find that old chaos spirit. Thankfully finding him was easy, listen for the screams of surprise, shock and laughter.

The chimera creature sat atop a large red sled, giving gifts from a bag in a makeshift santa costume. The gifts seemed to rage from toys, food, odds and ends, and whatever really.

“Hello Simon. Care for a not-christmas present?” He asked, handing me a gift.

I took it, looking inside and seeing a book inside. ‘How to bang Twilight Sparkle in- “Dude!”

He laughed, snapping his talons and the book, sled and such was all gone. “Sorry for the goof, couldn’t resist. So, what brings you here?”

“I need you to take me to my homeworld.” I stated. “I know I can free the heroes and guild members from whatever prison Faust has them in and turn the tide here.”

“Oh… Oh well that’s gonna be… tricky. Faust isn’t an easy person to get past without detection. Not even I can hide from her should she detect me…”

“Please Discord.”

“Relax, I’ll help, but I’m also saving my own tail.” He said, grabbing said tail and popping it off, then stuck a claw down it and rummaging around inside it like a bag. “I know I kept that old thing somewhere… Ah! There you are!” Raising their claws back out, Discord was gripping… Is that a Portal Gun? “Back in the old Stick War, some weird robot appeared and dropped this. I kept it for fun.”

“Holy hell, you found a Portal Gun? That’s…oh boy…” I said nervously. “Right, so how did you change this so it’ll take me to my world?” I asked, looking over the Portal Gun carefully to see how it would help me get from here to my world cause it would need two ‘portalable’ spots and Discord might not be able to see that far.

“Allow me.” Discord said, snapping his fingers as a sort of window appeared showing me a moon’s view of… home. I took a deep breath and fired into the window, the orange beam rushing down and the portal gun registered that it opened successfully. I then pointed to a nearby wall and shot off the blue one. The portal opened and through it I saw ruins and smelled smoke and dust.

“Yeah…smells like fighting there.” I said. “Thanks Discord…gonna be a hell of an adventure going through my world after all of this…”

“Just be careful. You have an advantage in your lack of natural magic. Faust can only detect when someone uses natural magic. Your magic weapons will make you mostly invisible to her, but she might still be able to detect you if you use too much of their magic in a fight, so be careful.”

“I will.” I nodded, handing him the portal gun back and running through the portal back home.

Once I was though I looked around, seeing I was in the ruins of a city… now where…

A loud guttural screech caught my attention and I immediately jumped, dodging and pulling out a broadsword and hacking through some three headed minotaur that charged at me. Yeesh… that’s new. Okay, need higher ground.

I put the sword back and pulled out a pair of fans that I used their wind abilities to boost myself up a tilting skyscraper… Okay, looks like I’m…

“Glad to see you came home, Simon.” I yelped and spun around, seeing Faust there. “Easy there, I won’t hurt you.”

“How did you… There’s no way that one use gave me away.”

“Ah, Discord told you about Faust’s little ability didn’t he?”

“I was right… you aren’t her…”

“No, but I did take her looks. My true form to you all is quite… different.”

“You… are possessing her, right?”

“Possess? No. Impersonate, easily. Especially after I gutted her and that annoying stick she showed up with. Then again it’s my own fault, should have found more competent help back then.”

“Back- what did you-”

“Start the tears that started the first Stick War, yes.” She said. “It wasn’t a real passion project, more of a… time killer. Your world was plenty chaotic so I figured I’d try and see if your ancestors could do my work for me. Almost did too. So impressive.”

“... Who are you?”

“I’ve gone by many names, been called many things, but the name I go by is Pain.”

“Fitting… you did all this… why restart the war? Why send me to Equis to stop the tears!?”

“Oh Simon, that was just an act. I didn’t send you to Equis to stop anything… I sent you to start the war.”

“You… you what?”

“The barriers were whole and healthy. I could have broken them easily myself but where is the fun in that? I needed someone who could make it interesting, entertaining. I needed a powerless, delusional sad little man with a hero complex and an unhealthy idealization of their role models to belive they were sent to stop something that their very presence started. The longer you were in Equis the more and more the barriers weakened and then when Blood captured you… check mate.”

I was… hyperventilating… I… no… no I… “Blood… you…”

“One of my soldiers.” She smirked. “He was never meant to fight amongst mortals though, he was built to kill gods and slaughter Afterlifes. The poor thing got captured though. Those pesky gods couldn’t kill him so they bound him to a mortal soul, several actually, and then put them all in a body bound in mortal flesh with an immortal fate and lifespan.”

“You… You’re the one who gave him all that time…”

“I considered it a welcome back gift. After all, I did make him so, I thought it would make him happy.”

“You… did all this… To kill time?”

“The first war was to kill time. This one was for fun. Trying out new tactics, new strategies. Gotta say, it’s been really entertaining.”

“Then why are you telling me this now?” I asked, tears pouring down my face.

“Why? Well, why not?” She responded. “I’ve had my fun, played my games. I could stick around and make sure Equis finishes burning just like your world did but, I have other more important passion projects to tend to.”

I…I was at a loss for words…a…a God just…wanted to do all of this…for fun!? To kill time!?! I…something in me started to burn, burn hotter and brighter than even a star…”Oh…oh you’ve done something that I never thought possible…” I said calmly, my sadness, my anguish at being some plaything, some catalyst to destroy my world and this world getting blown away by this…calming sense of pure rage. “And you know what? I have to applaud you…I thought Blood was enough to make thing’s go wrong…” I said, pulling out one of my more rarer and difficult weapons to make, the one weapon that managed to not break even when I went through Blood’s realm…a simple looking Zweihander that was etched with my own personal symbols from my time learning so much about magic, the blade being made out of a Wyrm’s talon and Orichalcum…”You’ve made me so…unabashedly pissed…alright, so you still owe me a fight…” I growled, grabbing the sword with both hands. “And I owe it to everyone that suffered because of you…” I said, even as I felt the ground crack underneath me and I vanished and swung my sword down as strong as I could against her.

The impact split the building, blasted up so much dust and debris… and when it cleared, Pain was holding my blade in her finger tips. “Cute trick.” She said, a twist and the blade snapped clean in half.

I growled, the blade immediately reattaching itself as it shined with special magic that I put into this thing, cause this one weapon was so much of a bitch and a half to make that I wanted to make sure it wouldn’t break even against the most bullshit of powers. ”I’m not going to fall over because you break my weapon.” I said, before swinging my blade again…but something weird happened, as I…thought I saw Sand swirling around the blade this time…like Dusters?

She raised her other hand, blocking the impact and looking at me unaffected by the attack. “Are you just realizing?” She asked, flicking her fingers and knocking my weapon, and me back some.

“Realize what?” I growled, grabbing my blade again as I tried to swing some debris towards them to get a distraction so I could swing at them…but somehow, extremely thick roots rose from the ground to try and attack Pain as well. “Okay…what the fuck…”

Pain chuckled, side stepping then hacking the roots apart in a single swing of her arm as she walked towards me. “You really thought you were born powerless. It’s so sad to, it’s what made you the perfect pawn to start this game off.”

“Assumed so, considering not everyone is born with powers.” I said honestly, now trying to think of what the hell is going on. “This is Wyrm’s Wrath, sure it’s indestructible but…I shouldn’t be doing half of this crap…” I thought to myself carefully, raising my blade as I saw…icicles form in the air…like one of the zombies from Blood’s domain…”Oh come on…” I muttered, before firing them all off towards Pain.

They bounced off her skin. “Oh you poor, poor fool.” She said, walking up to me and grabbing me by the neck. “You’ve had a power all your life. You’ve just never been angry enough to notice.”

“I’ve spent a lot of time doing a lot of shit that wasn’t being angry woman.” I stated, as I decided ‘fuck it’ and just tried out random shit, which when I swung my blade this time a torrent of wind shot out that held practically invisable swords just from the sound of the swing alone.

They too didn’t affect her. “Wrathful Impersonation.” Pain said simply. “A power that passively allows the owner to learn any and all magical abilities and attacks but can only make use of them while in a highly enraged state. I know this power well.” She pulled me in, leaning into my ear. “I made it.” She then threw me across the ruble.

“That’s impossible!” I snapped, getting out of the rubble. “And I can prove it, I was never wrathful when I fought against Kabu, I learned to use the Shadow’s and it was never used in wrath…plus, if that were the case, why in god’s name wouldn’t I have been able to do it when I was in Blood’s dimension when I was fighting for my life?” I asked, even though I was trying to fathom the fact that she ‘created’ a strong as hell power or how I magically obtained it. “And how are you not being hurt by any of this?” I frowned. “Shit…gotta think of something, she can’t be impervious to everything can she?”

“It’s cute that you think you can hurt me.” Pain chuckled. “Wrathful Impersonation only activates when the owner has fallen into a total pit of despair and anger. You fought for your life against Blood’s armies but you never felt lost, never gave up hope and were driven by your ideals and goals. Now that you know the truth… you have nothing. Why else would it activate than when you have nothing left to lose, when all you thought you knew was a lie.”

“There’s still hope for a new life, my family is still alive, and there’s still so much to lose…” I growled, gripping my sword tighter as I used some of the power that I witnessed Blood use when he kept reviving all his zombies or even murdered one of them cause he was bored. “Crismon Wrath!” I snapped, as my sword turned blood red as I swiped down at her with her ‘soldiers’ power mixed with my own that grew from those six years of battle.

She snapped her fingers, the soldiers and attack vanishing into… dust… “You know you aren’t gonna damage me right? I built Blood and their attacks to slaughter gods and afterlifes… So, doesn’t it stand to reason I’m stronger than some annoying gods?”

“Just because your stronger doesn’t mean you can’t be hurt…I…I just haven’t tried hard enough…” I said, trying in some vain hope that I can actually hurt this whore.

She sighed, vanishing. I felt a hard hit across my neck…

I fell to the ground… immobile. “Not as you are, you can’t.” She said, kneeling down. “Simon, I am in a whole different class compared to anything you could fight in your lifetime. The only beings that can hurt me, I call Family.” She said, pushing me over and onto my back, making me look up at the sky above as she did too. “You are persistent. I’ll give you that… but this was a fight you never had a chance at.”

I felt tears fall down my face again…the constellations…”Is…is my family alive?” I asked weakly, just…hoping for something to go right at this moment…

Pain was quiet for a moment. “Do you know the Temple of Demons on this world?” I nodded. “They’re there. Rough shape but alive. You sticks were always resilient.”

I let out a shaky breath…their…they're alive. “Thank god…they're safe…just…need to feel things again and I’ll get to rescuing them…”

“They’re all that’s left on this planet.” She said, making me look over at her. “Looks like everyone else died off already. Just you, them, and the Sticks over on Equis.”

“That…that shouldn’t be right…there’s so many from the guilds that could…what the hell did you bring here?”

“... Little of everything.” She said. Faust’s skin seemed to be… melting off. My eyes widened. She wasn’t a Stick at all… she looked like… A corpse of a human… “That’s my job. I bring forth calamity and destruction. Armageddon and genocide, from planet to planet, galaxy and universe. I am All Maker Pain. Mother of Monsters, and harbinger of the Endings.”

“Wh-why?” I asked weakly. “There was still so much…why do this for fun?”

“...Someone has to.” She said, looking down at me. “Even infinity has to end. Even infinity has limitations when confined to a finite space. The other All Makers are always bringing life and adding to it. Someone has to subtract it. Make room for all they create. That’s my Job. I make space for more of what’s new can come into the finite space you all foolishly call infinity. Ironic, isn’t it. To hold infinity in a finite space.”

I sighed, knowing she had a point but…”So why me? Was I just some test dummy for a strong power or did you do it because of what you said? That I’m just some sad sack that could be strung along to end the world?”

“I never bestowed that power to you.” She chuckled. “Just the pocket dimension. A favor to an in law. That power, I did make it, but that was an eternity before your solar systems star even came into being. You were just born with it.” Pain said simply. She raised a hand to the sky, moving it across as… the stars began vanishing. “This world and the reality it’s connected to will vanish soon. The barriers will be repaired and Equis will be safe. But your home reality, world, will soon cease to exist.”

“How…how long do I have before it all goes away?” I asked, now thinking I have a time limit to save my family and get back to Equis before this place ceases to exist.

“... Not enough time.” She said, snapping her fingers. “There. They’re at the Crystal Empire now. Consider that my favor to you. One of the few beings I’ve met ballsy enough to charge at me and keep going when nothing they did worked.”

“Well…one thing about us Stick Figures, is that we’re very stubborn when it comes to fighting…” I said, trying to get some feeling back in me so I can get back home…god, mom and dad are gonna kill me if they learn what nonsense I’ve been up to.

Pain smirked. “Ya know, It’s actually been kinda nice to get to know you Simon…” Pain said, leaning down and over me now. “The pocket dimension holds the answers. Find the right door.” Before I could ask, everything went black.

To be continued...