Floor III
Floor III – What Are YOU Doing Here?
Since there was no one else to talk to here, Rarity decided to talk to Trixie. She was still surprised that Trixie was even here, and she still didn't fully trust her, but at least there was someone here not trying to hurt her, or telling her that her "life didn't belong to her".
"So what is an Avatar?" Rarity asked Trixie as they climbed the stairs.
"No questions of why you're here?" Trixie asked laughing a bit, apparently trying to lighten the mood.
"For now, I've given up on figuring that out. You said this would all make sense at the top, so I'm trusting you, which by the way, how many floors do we have left? This tower looked really big from the outside."
"Don't worry, we don't have to go up the whole tower," Trixie stated, "Our destination is on the tenth floor. To answer your first question, an Avatar is a special pony designed for a special purpose."
"You mean like a Cutie Mark?" Rarity asked, but Trixie shook her head.
"No, these ponies aren't normal ponies," Trixie explained further, "They're magical representations of ponies. These ponies can be made either in Elysium, Tartarus, or even by magical items. Unless they're given souls though, they aren't regular ponies."
"So, are you Trixie?" Rarity asked.
"Yes, I am Trixie. You see, I'm an Avatar made to facilitate this tower, but I was given the soul of the one you call Trixie Lulamoon, as such I am Trixie Lulamoon."
"Can Avatars exist in Equestria?"
Trixie looked away a bit before answering, "Yeah, it's possible. Rare, but possible."
Why did she look away? There were just too many things going on that she didn't know, and Trixie was starting to irritate her with that whole "not answering the important question" thing.
They reached the door, where the next memory fragment was.
"I can't join you until you defeat the opponent behind this door," Trixie said. Rarity stopped and turned to Trixie.
"Wait, why not?" Rarity asked.
"It's not my place to help you in this fight, nor the fights before. Defeat the opponent inside and you'll get the memory fragment."
Rarity groaned in frustration, "Why do I have to fight anyway? Can't this "All Mother" just give me the memories?"
"The fights are important for another reason entirely," Trixie explained. Rarity sighed and then gave Trixie a deadpanned expression.
"Let me guess, you can't tell me why though?" Rarity asked.
"I'm... sorry," Trixie said looking down. Rarity sighed and turned to the door.
"Well, there's no point in worrying about it. You said you'd explain everything upon getting to the top, so I'm holding you to that."
Rarity opened the door going inside. It was another dome like room, just like where she fought the angel and met Trixie on the lower floors. In the center she saw the last pony she wanted to see though.
She saw Fluttershy.
"Fluttershy...?" Rarity asked, "What are you..."
Fluttershy looked so wrong though. Her expression was so serious, not "the stare" serious, but definitely not normal for her.
"You need to give that life back to who it belongs to," Fluttershy said, the wind picking up around her. A second later she was engulfed in a small tornado, and when it vanished she was in her Element of Harmony armor.
Wait a second, was she about to fight Rarity?!
"Fluttershy, what is the meaning of-"
"The All Mother would prefer it if she didn't have to destroy you, but should you still resist, I have no choice but to destroy you."
This was sick! Fluttershy was her best friend! She couldn't fight her! But why was she even here? And why did she look so weird. She didn't even look like a pony anymore, more like a...
An Avatar.
"This is a sick joke, All Mother," Rarity said stomping her foot and preparing to fight, "I hope you didn't think I would keel over."
Fluttershy charged forward and began punching and kicking Rarity, who mainly blocked the assaults. Being a pegasus Fluttershy was more nimble than Rarity, but Rarity surprised Fluttershy by firing a blast of ice at Fluttershy.
Fluttershy fell back, but then flipped to her feet and flapped her wings hard, sending a huge gust of wind at Rarity. Rarity hit the back wall, but when she caught herself she saw Fluttershy sending more gusts of wind at her. Rarity circled around the Avatar of Fluttershy, trying to avoid her attacks.
Eventually Fluttershy flew over to Rarity, who ran to the side causing the Avatar to hit her head on a wall. Rarity then shot a barrage of icicles at Fluttershy, who this time flew around the field.
"Return the life you stole!" Fluttershy shouted.
Rarity didn't even grace the Avatar with an answer. As she saw it, the only thing she could do now was focus on the fight. Rarity charged at Fluttershy and began using her horn to impale the Avatar.
Fluttershy and Rarity locked hooves, glaring at each other. This felt so wrong to Rarity. Why was she fighting Fluttershy? Why was this Avatar made to look like her friend?
"Delete it!" Trixie called out from the door, "You have to delete that Avatar!"
"But she's-" Rarity started before Fluttershy pushed her to the ground. She looked up and saw Fluttershy staring down at her. If looks could kill...
A blast of electricity hit the Avatar, paralyzing her. Rarity looked and saw Trixie poised to fire another bolt of electricity.
"That's not your friend!" Trixie said, "That's an empty Avatar without a soul! It doesn't have your friend's memories or feelings! The only way to proceed forward is to delete it!"
She was right. The only direction she could go was forward, and that meant she had to delete this Avatar. It wasn't like Trixie. It wasn't real. It was fake.
"Fine," Rarity said, calling on the power of the Element of Generosity again, "You're just another apparition made by the All Mother. That means I don't have to feel guilty about killing you!"
With that said, Rarity took a chance and trusted Trixie. She jumped up and surrounded her horn with ice to extend it. She then impaled the Avatar, who screamed out in pain. The Avatar fell to the ground, her body slowly fading away.
"You have no idea... what you have done..." Fluttershy said, "The more you... fight... the more you fall... into the All Mother's... plans for you..."
When she faded away, all that was left was a small light. Rarity assumed that was the memory fragment. She didn't even need Trixie to push her any more. She knelt down, and pointed her horn at the memory fagment. Instantly, images her forced into Rarity's mind. She was merging with that Alicorn again.
She was becoming... Vale...
The whole village decided to celebrate that night. Not just for the victory. According to Bayonet, they had a series of victories against them. This celebration was for the angel that descended to protect them.
This was for Vale.
Vale walked around the village, listening to the music playing. It warmed her heart seeing everyone so happy.
"There she is," a male voice called out. Vale turned around and saw the villager from earlier leading another guard to her, "Gatekeeper, this is Vale," he said in disbelief.
"Little Vale?" Gatekeeper asked, "Ha! I barely recognized you."
"Do I look that different?" Vale asked.
"Last time I saw you, you were only up to here," the other villager said raising a hoof about half his height, "To think you grw up to be so strong. I always knew you would do well."
"Thank you," Vale said laughing a bit.
"We better leave you alone," Gatekeeper said laughing. He and his friend trotted away, leaving Vale confused. Before she could question them though, somepony jumped on her back embracing her.
"Vale!" Bayonet said happily. Vale laughed.
"Bayonet! I don't know, are you happy to see me?"
"Thrilled!" Bayonet got off of Vale and ran in front of her still beaming, "It wasn't the same without you. Azure and I missed you so much."
"I'd say I missed you guys too, but I was actually asleep for most of my time in Elysium," Vale explained as they walked forward.
"So the last thing you remember was leaving Equestria for your conditioning?"
"Not exactly. I'm aware that I was asleep for so long, but most of my memory is filled with new information, like what Tartarus is, how to fight, and how to behave like a mature pony. So no, I'm not a seven year old in an adult's body."
"I... wasn't going to ask that," Bayonet asked, making Vale laugh.
"Of course you weren't," Vale taunted, "So, you did get that Cutie Mark, right? Last time I checked you were a late bloomer."
"Course I got it, God," Bayonet groaned stopping to pull up her skirt and show Vale. The Cutie Mark in question was a pick ax and a hammer in an X formation, "I'm a tool master."
"Huh, that makes sense," Vale said, "You were always good at using tools. How long did it take you to get it?"
"Only another month after you left," Bayonet said continuing their walk, "The old bridge broke, and I helped everypony rebuiled. During that time I did most of the major repairs, and I realized that I was supposed to be working with tools. Currently I'm working as a carpenter."
Vale nodded and looked around again. They were in the town square, where most of the celebration was. Dancing in the middle in front of a fire was Morgana, who surprisingly was standing on her hind legs as she danced.
"Morgana's dance is pretty, but unusual for a pony," Vale said.
"She learned how to dance from the dragons up north," Bayonet explained, "Her dances are extremely provocative, but everyone in the village loves them."
"How is she able to stand on her hind legs for so long?"
"Practice, I guess."
As Morgana spun around, she met eyes with Vale and gave her a seductive look and smile. Once agian, Vale felt her face turn red.
"She asked about you the most," Bayonet said, "Apparently she really liked you."
"Could have fooled me," Vale said walking off. Even after she stopped avoiding Vale, she always avoided eye contact with her. Now though, she couldn't stop looking at her.
Vale saw Azure Sky and Midnight sitting by the fire talking. She smiled and walked over to them, Bayonet following.
"I hope I'm not interrupting," Vale said, catching their attention.
"Not at all," Azure Sky said, "We were waiting for you to join us."
Vale and Bayonet sat down to join their friends, and for a while the four friends just took in each other's presence.
"We're finally together again," Midnight said, "All four of us."
"Feels nice," Azure said, "Like we never were apart."
"Will you be staying with us for a while?" Bayonet asked Vale.
"Yes. I do have a mission that I wish to share with you, but it looks like I might be here to stay," Vale explained.
"After Morgana's dance, let's all go to the castle," Azure suggested, "That way you can tell us what your directive is, and this mission."
"Yes, because I believe they all go hoof in hoof," Vale said looking down. Right now though, she didn't want to think about it. All she wanted to do was enjoy her friends, and the dance that was starting to seem more and more like it was for her.
After the dance, the five friends went to the castle. Here Vale shared with them the missions the All Mother gave her.
"So you did come in response to the demons," Azure Sky reasoned, getting a nod from Vale.
"Normally I would have been sent to act as a goddess to control the sun," Vale stated, "But as Midnight is already taking that job, I was sent instead as a knight of sorts."
"Sorry..." Midnight said sadly.
"Don't worry about it," Vale said, "My second mission was to find the pony with the code and ensure that they can be trusted. You helped me with the second mission, so that's good. All I need now is to find a means of fighting the demons," Vale walked over to Midnight, "I am curious though, how did you get the power to control the sun?"
Midnight looked away almost in shame, and was about to answer, but Morgana stepped up.
"Does it really matter how she attained the power?" Morgana asked, "At least it isn't in the hooves of the demons, right?"
"Actually, it does matter," Vale said, "If she gained the code for orbital control then anypony could attain it."
"I'm sorry..." Midnight said, now on the verge of tears, "I'm always causing trouble for everyone."
"Oh, Midnight..." Azure said walking over to her friend and nuzzling her, "Vale's just trying to do her job. It's not your fault," she then gave Vale a sharp glare that said "don't push it". She'd have to talk to Midnight about it in private.
"Um, in the meantime," Bayonet said after a second, "You think we could do something to help? I mean, we've been fighting the demons for a while ourselves, and it's obvious that they're after Midnight. This affects all of us."
"I agree," Azure Sky said, "I'm not going to let them get their hooves on Midnight."
"This is dangerous, you know," Vale said, "I have been conditioned specifically to destroy the demons. Not only are you four civilians, but you're my friends. If anything happened to you, I'd..."
"That's how we feel about you," Morgana said sauntering over to Vale, "Also, this is our world. We should be the ones to protect it, don't you think?"
"W-well..." Vale was looking for a reason to protest, but strangely with Morgana right there, so close to her that her sweet scent invaded Vale's nostrils, it became really hard to focus, or to find a reason to say no to them.
Truth was, she did want them to help her, but she had a mission to protect them.
"In that regard, I think I have a means to stopping them," Morgana continued, "Tell me Vale," she almost purred whenever she said her name, "Did the All Mother say anything about how the demons got out?"
"All she said what that the gate has cracked open," Vale explained softly.
"Then we need to lock the gate," Morgana explained, "I believe I know how it's possible, if you are interested."
Damn it. Now Vale had to ask them for help. At least she needed Morgana.
"How do we shut the door?" Bayonet asked for Vale. Morgana gave a sensual chuckle before speaking again.
"Follow me, all of you," Morgana said sauntering out of the castle, "I believe I have exactly what we need."
Bayonet skipped after Morgana without a second thought. Azure Sky looked at Vale for a second, and then trotted after them.
"Vale," Midnight said, "Are you mad at me?"
"No dear," Vale assured the dark Alicorn, "I'm just worried, that's all. You will tell me later though, won't you?" Vale asked. Midnight nodded and walked after her friends. Vale took a deep breath, thinking about what she was about to do.
"Mother forgive me," Vale said galloping after them. For now she had to believe that this was the right thing.
When Rarity came to, the pain in her head wasn't as bad. Maybe she was getting used to this.
"There's something about that Morgana," she said to herself, "Something not right."
"She was always really strange," Trixie said walking up to Rarity, "But for a time she meant well. At least I thought so."
That struck Rarity as odd. Did Morgana do something?
"Um, I have another question," Rarity said, "What was your relationship with Vale?"
Trixie looked away seriously, "She and I were friends, but whenever it came to Midnight she and I just couldn't agree."
"What happened?" Rarity asked.
"I'd tell you, but it'll make more sense if you learn the whole story," Trixie said turning to the door, "Come on. Let's go."
They walked forward a bit, but Rarity stopped and looked back at the room, "About the Avatar I just fought."
Trixie stopped and looked at Rarity, almost in fear, "Yeah?"
"Who was that?" Rarity asked, visibly surprising Trixie.
"You don't know her?" Trixie asked.
"I'd think I'd remember a pretty pony like her," Rarity said looking confused, "Why did the All Mother make me fight somepony like that?"
"I wish I knew..." Trixie said sadly, "Listen, right now let's just keep going. I think it'll make more sense further up."
Rarity nodded and walked off, heading further up, still wondering who the cream colored pegasus was. For a second her name was on the tip of her tongue, but eventually it faded. Oh well, couldn't be that important right?
"By the way," Rarity said, "I thought you couldn't join me in the fight. If you hadn't saved me, I would have been killed."
"W-well," Trixie said, "I can't let anything happen to you. The All Mother wants you to succeed, so..."
"Uh huh," Rarity said in a taunting manner, "Funny, because last time I checked, they didn't need me to be alive."
With that Rarity trotted off. As far as she saw it, Trixie proved that she could be trusted. At least she had one friend here, right? Also, as long as the All Mother kept sending Avatars that looked like other ponies and not like her friends, then it should be okay. She could do this.
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So... She is getting her memories replaced with new ones?
It is official, this is Inner Demons meets KH:CoM/KH:BBS. It is the only explanation for that exchange between Trixie and Rarity after the memory.
As for a guess as what might be going on with the memory scenes highlight below:
It seems to be that we are dealing with reincarnations. Rarity was Vale, Twilight was Midnight, Applebloom was Bayonet, Trixie was Azure Sky and if I am to guess Octavia was Morgan
Uh oh. Fighting Fluttershy has erased her from Rarity's memory. That's not good.
2369288 Yeah, that is actually where I got the idea for this for. I also drew from Valkyrie Profile a bit.
2369381
Two points for me then.
.....wow....a little cliche I guess, but it works...
very impressive.
2369288
And now I have an idea of what's going to happen. Fun.
So my guess is that every time Rarity destroys a Avatar that looks like some one she holds close to her heart then all memories of that pony will be destroyed with it, i am also going to guess that the reason for this is to make room for Vale's memories.
P.S. If i am not mistaken Vale also plays a major role in another story of yours called, "Tales of Equestria: Friendship is Magic"
2377967 Yes, this is an alternate version of Vale, essentially what she's like not as a silent protagonist. This does not have any impact on Vale's story in Tales of Equestria.
2378740
I thought so, and I know that the "Inner Demon" stories and "Tales of Equestria" are both different, I just thought I would be a good way to put out the title of another one of your great stories.
It all makes sense now. Vale attempted to kill midnight, which resulted in her needing to be defeated by Bayonet. Also, I theorize that as Rarity is fighting is fighting these avatars, she loses memory's of her friends, and she is intended to forget all about them so that by the end she is an empty shell, intended to be taken over by Vale, and fight Midnight or the next evil to return. I hope however, that Rarity realizes whats going on, and that Trixie is obviously incapable of being trusted. Who's to say that's not what was intended for her all along, for her to realize she's being played and fight back. Not enough information to conclude,continue writing
2369381They are starting to catch on, But they still have no clue......You truly are a genius Sapphire!
2417992
who?
2404278
Agreed. But as we all know from that little spoiler at the end of Inner Demons: 10 Years, Rarity isn't coming out of this; Vale is.
2369288
I also think sh'e using a bit of the stuff from Scarlet Blade, since each faction's creator/ leader is referred to as the "All-Mother"
All Mother, if you take Rarity, then give her back when you're done! She has a fiance waiting for her!
BOOM Still thinking Kingdom hearts.
Yep. All Mother ponynapping Rarity and Brainwashing her into thinking she Guardian Vale and then releasing her in the world. Obviously All Mother doesn't give 2 shits about Rarity's feeling for Spike or the Mane 6.