Hello my people! How are we doing today? I come with another chapter, which I hope you will like! This one is probably the longest so far in terms of words. But it should be rather fine, it's barely 9K :) Tell me what you think of it!
I'll leave you to it! R&R if you feel like it :)
Yours truly, Circle of J.
Disclaimer: I do not own the characters from the Kid Icarus series. The deities mentioned are taken from Greek Mythology, remastered the way I imagine them. What I own, on the other hand, is the plot.
Kid Icarus: Heirs of the Light
Chapter 21: Worthy sacrifice
The skies had grown noticeably darker by the time they had made it to Magnus' city. It was not a natural dark, it was an eerie, threatening dark, that could only be the result of Medusa overtaking the Light. The sun had gone from its dazzling glow to a pitiful shimmer, constantly covered with heavy clouds. Its rays were quickly captured before they could ever reach the surface of the Overworld. The skies themselves were becoming purple with how deep their original blue had turned over time.
Dark Pit knew that whatever they decided to do against the darkness' rise, it would be too late; his journey alongside Aphrodite had persuaded him that he'd never make it back to Viridi's Sanctum, plus they hadn't found the forest in which Pit had fallen on the way. So, it was safe to assume that all hope had been lost for them: Pit was probably dead, hopefully from the fall and not because he had been devoured by some forest monsters, and Dark Pit had managed to break his right wing when he slipped all the way down to the foot of a mountain. He was lucky that it was the only thing he'd broken; his descent had been rather impressive. Aphrodite thought he would be dead when she arrived next to him, but much to her relief he felt okay enough to keep walking. And that was what they did for the past two weeks: they kept walking towards Magnus' city, since the dark angel had wanted to tell him that they had lost. He deserved to know what was about to happen to his world.
Dark Pit took a deep breath, closed his empty, soulless eyes, and knocked at the wooden door. The streets were deserted, since the looming threat of Medusa scared the humans enough for them to hide all-day long. Even cats and dogs were too shy to walk out of their hiding holes. It appeared as though the city itself was dead. Dark Pit looked around, depressed, and soon the door opened on Magnus. From the look on his face and the redness of his gray eyes, he knew exactly what was going on. Without a word, he allowed Dark Pit and the Goddess of Love to walk in. The dark angel teared up and said nothing, walking inside and sitting on the couch—or more so collapsing on it, since his legs couldn't hold his weight any longer.
Aphrodite sat next to him, a hand on his shoulder, and the dark angel eyed at the human who was slowly closing the door. Magnus looked so heartbroken, Dark Pit admitted that he loathed to see him that way: his eyes were dry and his whole body was shaking. Since he hadn't seen Pit with them, he had probably assumed that the angel of light was dead, and rightfully so. Their last ray of light… He was the one person they were supposed to save at all costs, for he represented Hope and incarnated their only chance of survival. What was there left, now that he was gone? Dark Pit bit his lower lip and sniffed, a sob passing through his closed lips. His little sunshine, he had disappeared just as quickly as the sun itself. He remembered him, with his wonderful hazel locks, his beaming attitude, his wide, blue oceans that always seemed so full of live, of joy. He could also remember the taste of his lips, the feeling of his skin under his fingers. Dark Pit sobbed harder at the memories: why did it have to end so soon?
"Do you think fate is written?" he could hear Pit say. The dark angel shuddered at the sound of his voice and shook his head vehemently: no, he couldn't believe that fate, whether it existed or not, had been written this way. He could not believe that the Gods had decided to torture him and kill the sweetest angel the whole Universe had ever known. What did they gain from it? This dimension was falling in Medusa's hands, just like all of the others before it, and soon the Universe would be plunged in perpetual darkness, in slumber, away from the warm light of the sun. Away from dreams, away from hopes, away from faith… Hatred would fill Love's heart through Aphrodite, Darkness would lure and seduce Light by imprisoning Palutena. It would end this way, everyone would fall and the Universe would end. All because he couldn't help but snap at his precious little Pit when he was on the brink of death.
Dark Pit sighed, feeling empty inside, as though he had been torn apart physically and emotionally. "We lost…" he whispered, then tears blurred his vision. Aphrodite hugged him close, crying as well, while Magnus looked at them with broken eyes. The human didn't know what to say, grieving the loss of his friend and also their blatant defeat.
"I will… I will go back to my temple. Now there's nothing that can be done…" Aphrodite stood up, brushing her fingers against Dark Pit's broken wing, and earned a cry of pain from that swift touch. She glanced at Magnus and smiled in an apologetic way before walking out, going back to her temple and waiting for the end of Time to strike them down. They all knew that Medusa would make it feel terribly long, so that everyone would suffer and lose their minds in the process, but what was there to do? Pit was dead, and with him gone Palutena would succumb in no time.
While Aphrodite made her way out, Dark Pit, on the other hand, didn't find the strength to move, crying his heart out with his face hidden behind his hands. The room was silent around them, only the heartrending sounds of the dark angel's whimpers bounced against the walls.
Magnus decided to sit down next to him as they waited for Light to die out, for the sun to vanish. "Dark angel, do you not have a bit of hope left in your heart?"
"No, it's all dead," Dark Pit answered honestly, slowly raising his head to look at the human in the eyes. "It died when my Pit fell from the Lightning Chariot and it was my fault for not helping him out. I know he's gone now, because of me, and it… it wrecks me, Magnus."
Magnus nodded, absent-minded, and stared at the ceiling, whereas the angel was back to his mourning. He thought about what he could've said, what he could've done to help his dark angelic friend, but nothing came to his mind. Pit was dead, he had been ejected from the Lightning Chariot, according to Dark Pit's words. He supposed that it had been high up in the sky, otherwise he wouldn't claim so vehemently that he was gone. Unless he saw his corpse on the ground? Somehow, he hoped that he hadn't… Magnus didn't want Dark Pit to go through what he had to go through, when he witnessed Gaol's death. Knowing that someone was dead was already bad enough, but seeing them in front of your very eyes was even worse: it forced your brain into accepting it, without giving you the time to think about the events.
Dark Pit looked up at Magnus after a while and brandished his staff, which he had put down on the couch just next to him. The human glanced at it, scanned it with his eyes, and eventually eyed back at the dark angel. He seemed so enraged, completely out of his mind, and Magnus could only guess that the darkness was starting to nibble at his soul. "Dark angel, don't do something you will regret," he tried to warn him, but his advice fell in deaf ears.
Dark Pit sprung to his feet, tears drowning his entire face, and swiftly pushed his bangs off of his eyes. He turned towards Magnus, a frightening fire blazing in his ruby orbs. "I will take my revenge on this monster—"
"No, dark angel—"
"I must, and I will! She can't hide from me!"
Magnus stood up and pulled Dark Pit by the shoulders, thus ensuring that he could not run off. "Don't do it, you will di—"
"LOOK WHAT SHE DID TO MY PIT!" the dark angel cried out to interrupt him, wiggling around and breaking free from the human's hold. He spun around, clenching his fists and glaring at the sky that he could see through the window. No matter where Medusa was hiding, he was going to find her, and he'd die trying to take her down. For Pit's sake. He would never give up, he couldn't, he refused to sit there and wait for this dimension to turn dark. He didn't care how much it would cost him, he was going to find Medusa. And he was going to fight her, for he didn't care how strong she could be anymore. He didn't fear her, he loathed her: his hatred could overcome any powers that she might have. His burning rage, his undying wrath, he would use it against her and make her burn in it. Dark Pit held onto his staff, tightening his grip around it, and growled: "I promised her that no matter where she would be hiding, I'd kill her. And that's what I'm going to do."
Magnus sighed sadly, knowing that the angel would never make it on his own, and rubbed the back of his head. "Nothing I can say to make you change your mind, I presume… I wish you luck then. I saw a few regiments of Underlings in the woods, maybe you… maybe you can find her there. Please, just don't get yourself killed: I have enough with Pit to mourn."
"She can't kill me," Dark Pit claimed, laughing humorlessly. "Fate doesn't have it that way. But she can die, and I'll show her just how painful death can be."
The human didn't say anything and watched as the dark angel ran out of his house, slamming the door shut. He was concerned, obviously, but what could he say to deter him? He had the same rage boiling in his stomach when Gaol had been killed, he had sworn that he would kill Medusa for what she had done to her. Could he really stop Dark Pit if he was determined to act? No, of course he couldn't, for he yearned to see the Goddess of Darkness die as well. Though it was worrying: the dark angel was so small, so short compared to that monstrous woman. How could he stand a chance? It didn't matter how anymore, since he had run out, looking straight for her. All that was left to do was hope that he would make it out alive. He was their last chance of stopping Medusa, after that all would be lost.
.oOo.
Dark Pit ran for around ten minutes before he found the forest surrounding the city. He grasped his staff, ready for battle, and stepped in, searching for a sign of the Goddess of Darkness in midst of the heavy fog. The air was suffocating, but that wasn't enough to dishearten the angel. His eyes scanned his surroundings as he stepped deeper into the woods, cringing at the lack of luminosity; he could've thought that he was in his own dimension. Underlings were mumbling in all corners, behind every tree, but didn't care for his presence. After all, he was quite insignificant now that Medusa had killed Pit. They barely looked at him as he passed by, seeking the Goddess of Darkness.
Dark Pit heard footsteps behind him and turned around as fast as he could, only to meet the familiar eyes of Pandora in her Amazon form. Medusa's commander looked at him and pulled him by the arm, leading him towards a cave, away from the Underlings flooding the woods. Dark Pit protested, fought back with all his strength, even tried to shoot her with his staff, but quickly understood that she was not intending to hurt him. So he followed her, trying not to look at the troops of Underlings crawling around, and eventually turned to face her once they had reached their retreat.
Pandora eyed at him and snapped her fingers: a wall of dark red energy closed the opening of the cave, thus ensuring that nobody would be able to spy on their conversation. The dark angel gritted his teeth, thinking that he had been captured, but the Goddess of Calamity raised her hands in the air to prove that she didn't want to harm him. "I only want to talk," she said in a low voice, though he could feel the urge behind her tone.
Dark Pit folded his arms, tapping his foot on the ground. He was already pissed off at the sight of her. What could she want to tell him? She was working under Medusa's orders, was she there to mock him? To laugh at his defeat? He was going to hate that conversation, he already felt it. "What the fuck do you want? We're enemies."
"Not this time," Pandora told him, then she turned around, listening closely. When she was reassured since she hadn't heard anyone, she looked back at Dark Pit and took a deep breath. "Listen to me, Pit is at Viridi's Sanctum—"
"What?!"
"—with the Mirror of Truth," the Goddess continued despite being interrupted, then her pink eyes seemed to fill with tears. She fidgeted with her hands, uneasy, and bit her lower lip. She knew how much she was risking… But she couldn't let Medusa take control of the Universe. That was the reason why she had opened that portal in the first place, she had needed Dark Pit to help Pit in his mission… Pandora shook her head to focus on the current situation, since she felt Medusa's presence growing stronger. She grabbed Dark Pit by the shoulders and dived into his furious ruby eyes. "You need to go there, now."
Dark Pit snorted and abruptly pushed her off of him. "I can't fly, dumbass. My wing is broken."
Pandora rolled eyes. "I'll warp you there. But you need to hurry."
Right after she said that, a portal opened behind Dark Pit, leading to the Sanctum. It seemed deserted, the main hall was empty and there wasn't a sound in the facility. Before the dark angel could ask her if she was serious, the Goddess pushed him inside and snapped the portal out of existence. She heard Medusa's voice calling for her, screaming at the top of her lungs, and froze: she was standing right behind her. Pandora slowly turned to her, kneeling down to express her respect towards her mistress, but that didn't satisfy Medusa in the slightest. The Goddess of Darkness squinted her white eyes at her, knowing that she had been working with Pit and his little group behind her back; she could still feel energy in the air, sufficient to open a portal.
Medusa forced Pandora to stand up and pulled her up to her face. "What did you do, Pandora?" she asked, squeezing Pandora's jaw between her hands. Her commander moaned in pain and tried to maneuver away, but the grip that her superior had on her face tightened. "Answer."
Pandora cried out at the immense pain that she felt, before she was thrown to the ground by Medusa. She struggled to get back on her feet, her head still dizzy because of the sore feeling that lingered in her mouth, and gasped when Medusa outstretched her arm in her direction. Despite understanding fairly well what was going to happen, Pandora was too afraid to stand up. Medusa's hand started glowing, tiny sparkles running along her arm, and she narrowed her eyes at her commander. Pandora gulped and jumped out of the way when the Goddess of Darkness tried to hit her with lightning, springing to her feet. She extended her arm and her sword appeared between her fingers. "I can't let you take over this dimension, Medusa!"
"I can't let you get in my way," Medusa snickered, then she struck her former commander with a powerful bolt of lightning. Pandora screamed in pain, falling on her knees, and the Goddess of Darkness walked up to her. The woman was already starting to transform, staring at her hands with a mix of fear and disbelief. Medusa knelt down to be at her level and gently stroke her hair. "Pandora, you were so promising. Why did you choose to help Palutena and her precious little Pit, hm? Why did you have to betray me? I have given you everything: you were a commander with amazing powers."
Pandora groaned, feeling her entire body turn into stone, and her eyes sweated with heavy tears. She attempted to push Medusa away from her, but soon discovered that her arms were already buried. She gritted her teeth and fought back however she could, trying to focus her powers to break through the stone, all to no avail. The Goddess of Darkness watched her slowly turn into a statue, and smirked. Pandora started panting, frightened, and challenged Medusa with a glare. "You will never win this war, Medusa! This Universe is not yours to rule!"
"Aw, Pandora…" Medusa chuckled, then she noticed that the stone was gaining ground: Pandora's throat was becoming gray and solid. Soon, it would be the end for the Goddess of Calamity, but before that she had several questions for her. Thus, she snapped her fingers, which stopped the progression of the transformation, and planted her white, snake eyes in those of her former commander. "Pandora, Pandora… You were the one to open that interdimensional portal for Dark Pit, weren't you?" Medusa couldn't help but laugh when she perceived the slight glimmer of passion in her victim's eyes, and thus decided to continue: "You were hopeful that he would stop me, along with Pit. That was why you asked him to come: you wanted me to believe that the Mirror of Truth had only replicated Pit, only darker. Now that was quite smart, I have to give it to you."
"I try to be sometimes…" Pandora moaned in pain, closing her eyes to focus on trying to break through the stone.
Medusa laughed and squinted her eyes at her. "Now, how did you open that portal, Pandora? I should warn you: I will only ask once."
"I will never tell you… You can kill me right away if you're… hoping for an answer." Pandora gasped for air, trying to harvest as much power as she could in order to escape her stone prison, but suddenly felt weakened.
"So be it." Medusa had grasped her hand, and even though it was covered with stone, she had managed to absorb her powers. The Goddess of Darkness sneered at the pained expression on her former commander's face and snapped her fingers again. The stone resumed its course, soon enveloping Pandora's entire body. Medusa turned away from her, satisfied, and looked at her hands. She felt so much more powerful with this energy flowing in her veins. She chuckled when Thanatos' eyes met her own and said: "What? I'm 'making sure Pandora's powers don't go to waste'. Does it remind you of someone?"
The God of Death laughed and nodded, ecstatic. "Dark Pit, Mistress Medusa!"
"Then you know who to find. Make sure that you kill him this time," the Goddess of Darkness said, then she held Thanatos' hand, transferring Pandora's powers into him. Thanatos' eyes turned red from the amount of power that gathered in his body, and he laughed hysterically before disappearing. Medusa turned to Pandora's statue, gazing at it with pride: "What a masterpiece you are, my sweet little Pandora. One more to my collection."
.oOo.
Dark Pit looked around the main hall, still surprised to find no one in the Sanctum. Pandora had said that Pit was there, right? Then where the fuck…
The dark angel sighed heavily, frustrated, and decided to retreat in the office. Maybe he'd come around at one point or another, or perhaps Pandora had just lied to him—which was a possibility that he couldn't exclude. He walked up the few stairs leading up to the office, and frowned when he noticed that he couldn't open the door. Was it locked? No, there was never a lock on this thing, which is why he had hated it so much in the past: no privacy. He tried to push it again, only to be met with the same response: the door was blocked off from the other side. It was both reassuring and worrying; it meant that someone was inside, and it could easily be Pit, but he didn't seem to hear him.
Dark Pit cursed and slammed his fists against the door, picking up the sound of a gasp on the other side of the door. Suddenly, he could decipher sniffs and sobs. What in the Underworld? Was he actually scared?
"Stay away!" Pit's voice erupted from inside.
Dark Pit felt his heart race in his chest and he slammed his fists against the door again, losing patience. In order to calm his nerves, he tapped his foot on the step that he was standing on. The dark angel folded his arms, waiting for Pit to come and open, since he certainly understood that a Reaper wouldn't bang at his door… right? "Open the fucking door, you dumb idiot!" Dark Pit snapped at his lighter half after a minute of standing still with no door opening. He rolled eyes and shook his head, before he hissed at the horrid loudness of wood creaking. He wondered what it was and hesitated to slam his fists against the door again, so as to scream at his stupid twin's face, when a trembling white angel opened. Oh, how he wished he could yell at him, but he couldn't find the strength to: Pit seemed so scared. Had something happened to him? Well, quite anything could've, since he had been gone for two weeks… But although his ruby eyes gleamed with worry, Dark Pit still played it off as if he was severely pissed off. "Took you some time, now didn't it?!"
"Sorry Pittoo, I—"
"Who the fuck could it have been, you senseless—" he started to scream, though he stopped himself and let out a long sigh. Dark Pit eyed at his twin, who stood in the way of the entrance, and gritted his teeth. His left wing tensed up as he said: "I feared for you. I missed you, Pit."
Pit blushed, slightly smiling after he heard those words that he had longed for, and quickly stepped back, thus making way for his darker half to come in. He shut the door behind him and pushed the desk back in front of the door, ensuring that it couldn't be opened. Then, he turned to face Dark Pit, though he still had a hard time believing his eyes: it had been two weeks of absence, of silence, of loneliness, and now his dark twin was sitting on the bed. Maybe he was asleep and dreaming? Pit blinked, as though to make sure that this was really happening. He walked up to Dark Pit and sat down next to him, still gazing at him as if he had seen a ghost. He had that slight flush on his cheeks, which made him all the more cuter in his darker version's opinion. The light angel reached out for his hand and caressed it with such softness that Dark Pit almost couldn't feel his fingers on his skin.
The dark angel looked at Pit in the eyes, his heart pounding at the sight of those two gorgeous diamonds, and pulled him by the scarf to seal their lips in a passionate kiss. He moaned at the taste, for he had missed it during those two weeks of constant concern. He forbid himself from thinking about the human, he forbid any image of him from coming back to his mind. Pit was delicious, and he wanted to enjoy this moment in his company. Pit's eyes widened when he felt the touch of their lips but he didn't show any resistance, melting into the kiss after a short moment of surprise.
Dark Pit pushed him off of him, blushing wildly, and examined the room, a little nostalgic. That was when his eyes noticed something in the corner, hidden under what looked like a cloak—yes, it was Pit's cloak that they had gotten him on the Overworld. The shape was rectangular, almost like a painting. "So that's the Mirror of Truth," he assumed, pointing to it so that Pit knew what he was talking about.
Pit nodded and looked at it. "Pandora gave it to me. She found me in the forest and brought me to the Labyrinth of Deceit, where she told me to protect it and to 'save the light'," he explained, though it was clear that he was confused about the matter. He expressed his bewilderment shortly after, once he was standing next to the Mirror of Truth: "I don't understand why she helped me, she's our enemy! Yet she saved my life. I was heavily wounded when I fell from the Lightning Chariot, so she used hot spring water to heal my injuries. If it wasn't for her, I'd be finished for sure."
"I'm sorry Pit," Dark Pit suddenly apologized, much to his lighter half's surprise. His ruby eyes looked dull, filled with tears, and he seemed to be remembering the events that took place that dreadful night. He eventually looked up to meet Pit's blue eyes and continued: "I'm sorry for yelling at you all the time. If I hadn't, you wouldn't have fallen. I lost precious seconds that could've cost you your life, even when you had been outdoing yourself to protect all of us. I was… Sometimes my anger gets the best of me, and that time it was almost fatal for you. So allow me to apologize for the danger that I put you in with my sudden outburst."
The light angel stared at him, moved by his apology, and simply nodded in acknowledgment. He had never believed that it was Dark Pit's fault if he had fallen. He would never believe that, since he had been the one deciding to face Medusa when he was well aware that he couldn't. Although he had been able to reflect most of the bolts, he should've known that he couldn't keep it up eternally. He should've listened when Dark Pit asked him to hide, but truth was: he couldn't resolve to do it. He had felt his heart pounding, his blood pumping, and he had truly felt scared at the idea of hiding, for it would allow Medusa to reach for Dark Pit. She could've aimed her lightning at him, she could've hurt him, and that was one thing that Pit definitely would stand against, no matter the circumstances. The stakes were too great, he didn't manage to convince himself to hide from fire. Instead, he had stood in its face, hoping that it would catch Medusa's whole attention and that she wouldn't try to target Aphrodite or Dark Pit. That almost killed him, but… if he had to do it again, he wouldn't hesitate one second. Pit looked at his twin with a loving gleam in his blue eyes and joined his hands together.
"You know, you really shouldn't apologize," Pit started, which caused Dark Pit to glance at him and frown. "What I did, I chose to do it. Nobody forced me to. I did it because I feared for you, your well-being has always been more important than my own. I did it because I love you."
The darker version of Pit's eyes widened and he couldn't hold back a smile. That was unexpected, but when he thought about it, he should've seen it coming a long way. Pit had always been such a romantic soul, which was why he took the necklace subject so seriously at the start. Over time, with the revelations, everyone had started to take it more seriously, since it was the key to their destiny, but at first it was Pit's determination that led the way. He had been the one to leave Skyworld behind to find the meaning of the necklace; perhaps he had felt how important it was. Dark Pit had a gut feeling when it came to important matters: he instinctively knew what he needed to do first. But he had never had this gut feeling before; he had taken it after Pit. Spending their time together had helped him to evolve, his personality itself had changed and his mind didn't think the same way as it did in the past. It could mean both good and bad things, but—
"Pittoo?" Pit called him out, slightly concerned, while he held the frame of the Mirror of Truth. Dark Pit blinked, leaving his thoughts aside for a moment, and looked up at his lighter half, who then shyly pointed towards his arm. Dark Pit furrowed his brows, perplexed, and eyed down, only to realize that the necklace around his wrist was violently glowing purple. Pit tilted his head to one side, curious. "Why's it doing that?"
"Maybe because it's reunited with the Mirror of Truth, but we can't let them be in contact," Dark Pit said, enveloping the stone with his fingers. The vivid glow was still visible through the gaps between his fingers.
Pit put down the Mirror of Truth and hid it back under the cloak, and his darker half immediately noticed the difference: the stone's glow had significantly lowered. Even though it was still bright as the sun, at least he could take a peek at it without being blinded on the spot. Dark Pit sighed in relief, but suddenly felt a dark presence closing in. Intrigued, he stood up and slowly, carefully pushed the desk out of the way. Pit asked him what was wrong but he kept silent: he knew that energy, it was Pandora. But… there seemed to be someone else with her. The angel of light also appeared to pick up the wavering energy in the air, since he had raised his head and looked over to the door.
The two angels eyed at one another and nodded in agreement, running out to rush to the armory. Dark Pit picked up his staff and what he called the Viridi Bow, attaching it to his back with his shoulder strap in case of emergency. Pit chose to stick with Dark Pit's Rose Blade and his Palutena Bow. The dark angel cursed, remembering that his Silver Bow had been stolen and that he still hadn't found it, but shook himself out of it in order to run to the main hall.
Pit wasted no time and pulled him back in by the wrist, seemingly serious. "Pittoo, the necklace," was all he said, and his darker version immediately understood what he had meant to say.
"Pit, we don't have time for this," Dark Pit replied, then he turned around and eyed at his lighter half. He had a smirk across the lips, and his eyes were glimmering mischievously. He briefly looked down at his twin and trailed his fingers along Pit's scarf, which he kept loose around his neck, before he said: "Though I recall that you like jewelry. Right?"
The light angel nodded and smiled widely: he knew exactly what was left for them to do. A short moment after, the two angels ran to the main hall in a hurry: they were there, they could feel them in the area. As they expected, they were both greeted by none other than Thanatos. Though something seemed unnatural about him: his energy had gotten substantially stronger. It seemed to be stirred with that of Pandora, but that was impossible, wasn't it? Unless Pandora had been killed and he inherited her powers… In which case, it was very bad news for the two angels.
The God of Death glanced at them, bouncing up and down on a spring, and stood on his feet with that same grim smile on his lips. It spread across his entire face, from his left ear to the right. Pit glanced over to Dark Pit, who was in position to fight already, aiming his staff at Medusa's commander. "Oh, does my eye spy on a jewel around your wrist, Dark Pit~?" Thanatos scoffed.
"Still better than having it around my neck," Dark Pit shrugged, looking bored.
Pit frowned and asked: "What's wrong with wearing a necklace around your actual neck?!"
"It's girly!" Thanatos and Dark Pit replied at the same exact time, until Thanatos laughed and tried to get closer to the dark angel. He was a few steps away when he received a fully charged arrow of light in the belly and stepped back, alarmed and a little hurt as well. The God of Death eyed at Pit, who still held out his bow since he had just fired it, and pouted. That wasn't very nice! Thanatos' eyes twinkled and he laughed at the serious, focused faces of his opponents. "Look at you two! You're quite the couple~!" he mocked them, before he was shot by another arrow of light, quickly followed by a purple blast in his toes. Thanatos bounced up and down because of the pain in his foot, and glared at the two angels. "Not my toes! Anyhow! In this case, I guess I will have to force you to give this beautiful necklace to me~!"
Pit furrowed his brows, determined, and separated his bow into two identical golden and blue blades in an instant. He grasped their hilt with intense vigor gleaming in his sapphire eyes. Dark Pit turned around and smiled at him, hands on his hips. "Pre-boss-battle rallying cry anyone?" he suggested, however the light angel just rolled eyes. Well, not today it seems. Amused by his twin's reaction, the darker version of Pit faced their enemy and held out his staff, charging a full shot. "You're longing for death, Thanatos?"
"Oh no~! This time, I came with a good friend of yours!" Thanatos snickered before he opened his right hand.
A red orb formed into it, soon landing on the ground next to him. It slowly took a very familiar shape that made the two angels gasp in horror: "Pandora!" Like a shadow of herself, she never switched to her normal color palette: instead, she remained covered in what appeared to be red slime, which made it difficult to spot her eyes, and quite everything on her face aside from her nose. "That's sooooo awesome!" Pit exclaimed and his blue eyes glimmered at the sight of her, which took everyone by surprise. However, the light angel kept gazing at the fake Pandora in awe. "She's like Shadow Mario from Super Mario Sunshine! Anyone played the GameCube?" he beamed, amazed, and Dark Pit groaned in annoyance.
"Are you fucking serious right now? Are you fucking serious, or are you kidding me?" Dark Pit retorted, looking daggers at the angel of light. Was it the time to be a nerd? Did all he ever think about was games? Even in times like this, on the verge of a fight that would be complicated for them? On the verge of a fight during which they could easily lose their lives?
Pit cleared his throat when he realized that he had bothered everyone with his commentary and tightened his grip on his weapons. "Uhm, yeah… Anywaaays… Let's get down to business!"
Dark Pit smirked and instantly launched himself towards Thanatos, whereas Pit was taking care of the fake Pandora. The God of Death evaded his attack and a spring appeared out of nowhere under the dark angel's feet, sending him in the air before he crashed to the floor. He winced at the pain but was quick on his feet, aiming his staff at his enemy. Thanatos disappeared from his sight, only to teleport behind him and turn into a big snake. That reminded Dark Pit of his last fight with him and Viridi, and thus filled him with rage and fearlessness. The snake slithered around the angel's legs, attempting to trip him, but Dark Pit shot a fully charged blast at its head. Thanatos yelped in pain and fell to the ground, giving just enough time to the angel to free himself before the snake rose again. He winded his long body around Dark Pit's arms, which he had kept at reach, and tried to bite him in the hand so that he let go of his weapon. Dark Pit fought back, did everything in his power in order to prevent the bite, and eventually a light blue arrow hit the snake in the head, sending it to the ground again.
The dark angel took advantage of Thanatos' faintness and slashed the snake's body with a blade that extended from the tip of his staff. It could come in handy at times like this. Thanatos swiftly dodged every one of his slashes, since his body was so flexible, and crawled onto the leg of the angel, his mouth wide open and showing his poisoned fangs. Dark Pit shook his leg in the air, slamming his staff in the head of the snake climbing up to his arm, and successfully repelled him. Thanatos sighed, annoyed, and his eyes glowed in red for a split second. Suddenly, the ground started shaking beneath their feet and the snake grew in size, that until he was big enough to reach the top of the Sanctum.
Dark Pit stared at him, unimpressed, and stabbed the snake's tail with his staff. Thanatos cried out in pain and immediately looked down, diving head first towards Dark Pit and ready to swallow him whole. The dark angel's left wing fluttered when he sensed danger above him and he jumped to the side, right before he could be engulfed by the giant snake. Although he had evaded it, it had been way too close for comfort.
Pandora extended her hands and red vines sprung from the ground beneath Dark Pit's feet. That ensured that he couldn't escape anymore, since they had winded around his arms and legs. Some vines even coiled around his chest and prevented any movement. Pit noticed that Thanatos was about to attack again and reunited his blades to form his trusty Palutena Bow. He fired a fully charged arrow at the monstrous snake, however it was deflected by one of Pandora's magical shields. The light angel groaned between his gritted teeth, pissed off, and made a run towards the snake, preparing another arrow of light.
Dark Pit wiggled in his restrains, growing more and more desperate as he watched the snake loom over him, and cried out in sheer terror when its mouth dived right for him. He closed his eyes, holding his breath, but felt the vines around his body weaken. He dared to dart a look at what was happening and noticed that he was surrounded by a halo of bright, heavenly light.
Pit was looking over to him with a gaping mouth, and his eyes gleamed with thousands of stars. "Lady Palutena!" he screamed, slightly shaking his head in disbelief.
Dark Pit frowned. Wasn't she supposed to be a statue in Skyworld? Or maybe Zeus had found a solution, since he had told them he'd be looking for one? He had been quite fast… Well, it had been two weeks, but… Anyways, Dark Pit looked in front of him, where he saw long, green hair and a glowing golden scepter. The Goddess of Light stood in the way of Thanatos, aiming her staff at him. "Hello, my dear little Pit. Did you miss me?"
"You know it!" Pit exclaimed, clasping his hands together to manifest his outburst of joy.
The snake facing the Goddess of Light went back to his original form, and the God of Death glanced at her, astonished. Medusa had told him that she had been taken care of by Hades! Thanatos didn't think that there was a way for those two worthless angels to be saved! With Pandora out of commission… Well, whatever! He would take care of Palutena, it represented no problem for him. The God of Death smirked and his eyes wandered off until they landed on Palutena's precious little angel. He knew exactly how he was going to bring her down: threatening to kill her beloved Pit! She would do anything to save him, he was well aware of that; why wouldn't he take advantage of her deepest, biggest weakness?
Palutena smiled at the discomfited faces of her enemies and slammed her staff against the wooden ground. "Well, let me take care of the problem, boys. Stay back."
The Goddess of Light was about to disintegrate Thanatos with a dazzling ray of light when, suddenly, she looked towards the office and realized that Medusa was there. She had the Mirror of Truth under the arm and smirked, her thin tongue snaking past her lips. Dark Pit instantly noticed the worry on Palutena's face and turned around, growling. "Medusa!" He ran towards her, overflown with his rage towards her. She had almost killed Pit, and she would die for that, right then and there. Aiming his fully charged staff at her heart, Dark Pit drew closer to her but the Goddess of Darkness snickered and nearly hit him with a bolt of lightning. He jumped over it, wrath boiling within his soul, and soon caught up to her, his staff directed right at her heart made of pure darkness. He was about to shoot but Medusa intercepted his weapon, snatching it from his hands, and threw it to the ground to make sure that he couldn't get back to it. Giving him no time to react, she punched the dark angel in the gut, sending him rolling down the stairs. Dark Pit cried out in agony when he landed on his back, on his broken wing.
"Pittoo!" Palutena rushed to his side, alarmed by the bloodcurdling scream, and left her precious jewel, Pit, to deal with Pandora and Thanatos on his own.
Of course, he wasn't able to fight off for very long, being the miserable, insignificant little thing that he was, and Thanatos got a hold of him. The God of Death punched him in the cheek, which dazed the light angel enough so that he let go of his bow, and pulled him by the scarf. He secured him against his body and threatened to slit his throat with a blade that he created with his newly gained powers. Pit grabbed onto his arm, pushing it off of him with all his strength, but that did little to nothing at all; he had been exhausted by the battle and couldn't find it in himself to fight back any longer. "Oh, you poor thing~! You're stuck~!"
"Let go of me, Thanatos!" Pit demanded, wiggling in his hold, before he received a powerful punch in the back of the head. He suddenly felt dizzy, and his vision became blurry and unsteady. His hands fell from Thanatos' arm, which brought joy to the face of his enemy.
Palutena glanced over to Pit, tears burning her green eyes at his sight, and aimed her staff at Thanatos. "Let him go and I won't have to kill you."
"Aw, dear sister, did we touch a nerve? Your precious little Pit… Seeing him so helpless must break your heart!" Medusa laughed behind her back, creeping up to her and snatching her staff from her hands. Palutena spun around and was greeted with a kick to the stomach. That seemed to be enough to incapacitate her, at least for a moment. Medusa could take advantage of her weakness to act, since she hadn't come to Viridi's old Sanctum for no reason; she wanted two things, and she would get them, no matter who dared to stand in her way. The Goddess of Darkness walked towards Thanatos, who held Pit captive, with the Mirror of Truth that she had stolen from them.
Dark Pit winced and panted because of the horrendous amount of pain that he felt in his back, but got back on his feet, clenching his fists. He had to keep an eye closed because of the sore feeling in his body; it was way too much to handle, his legs were too wiggly to keep him from falling. Though he forced himself to face the three Gods before him, since Pit's life was on the line and he couldn't afford to lose him another time—not after he had just reunited with him. Thanatos laughed at his pitiful state and glanced over to Pit. "Well well~! I guess we could trade: your necklace or this angel!"
"I don't… trade with assholes…" Dark Pit groaned in the midst of his deep moans of pain. He eyed at Pit and teared up. "Let him… go…"
Thanatos snickered and tightened his grip on the light angel. Pit's throat was pressed against the blade, which was just about to slice into it. "If you gave us your precious necklace, I'll let him go unharmed!" Thanatos proposed, before he looked at Pit, who was shaking his head negatively. "Oh, aren't you a party pooper~?"
"Pittoo-ngh! Don't!" Pit tried to say, though he had to cough because of the lack of air in his body.
Dark Pit glanced at him, then at the necklace fastened around his wrist. What was he supposed to do? The stone was the key to the Mirror of Truth… But he couldn't let Pit die, he wouldn't: he had lost him too many times. When he thought about it, if the stone was away from both of them, it would stop shining, right? So they wouldn't be able to use it either way. It probably needed at least one of the two angels in order to trigger it and, thus, allow them to open a portal. Though, why did they want to open an interdimensional portal? What was the point? What—"Hellooo~?" Thanatos scoffed, steering him away from the numerous questions that crippled his mind.
Dark Pit looked up and took his decision: he had nothing to lose. If he gave them the necklace, he had to make sure that they wouldn't leave with Pit, for that would compromise their entire mission. Determined, the dark angel rose back to his feet after another fall and glanced at Thanatos and Medusa. "I'll give it to you, let Pit go first."
Medusa laughed, deeply amused. What did he think, that they were stupid? "Nice try—"
"Look, you're in no position to ask for more," Dark Pit immediately countered, a lot more serious than he was previously. He looked at Pit, who was still shaking his head and begging him not to give the necklace, and shut his eyes. That was the only way. He couldn't let Pit die, he wouldn't: he had feared for his life for way too long. He couldn't bare the weight of his loss on his conscience, never. Dark Pit opened his eyes again, to meet those white of Medusa, and said: "That's my condition. Let him come to me, and I'll give it to you. You have my word."
"No, Pittoo! Don't do this!" Pit implored his darker twin, but he coughed again because Thanatos had squeezed his throat even more. His eyes filled with heavy tears, lack of oxygen starting to make him feel absent and awfully light, however he still shook his head in denial. "Pittoo, don't… do it… please… It's… too important…"
"Shut up and breathe, Pit," Dark Pit snarled, trying to keep his cool. "In case you haven't noticed, I'm trying to keep you alive here."
The Goddess of Darkness eyed at her commanders, thinking about Dark Pit's proposition. Could it be that he was duping her? He seemed too focused and desperate to be playing a trick on her. She knew how much he loved Pit, he wouldn't play around with his life. Dark Pit surely knew that, if she happened to find out that he had fooled her, she would kill Pit on the spot. So, Medusa was convinced that he would never take that risk: he wasn't insane. Thus, she demanded that Thanatos let go of Pit. The light angel ran towards Dark Pit, hugging him tight and telling him that he shouldn't have, that the necklace was more important than his own life, but the dark angel didn't listen. He gently detached the necklace, under Medusa's careful eyes, and threw it at her feet.
The Goddess of Darkness smiled widely and grasped it, opening a portal to head back to the Underworld, with the Mirror of the Truth and the key to open it. Now things could begin; they had all that they required to wreak havoc in this last dimension. That was the last straw: not even these two angels would be able to fight off the army that awaited her on the other side of that Mirror. Before Medusa followed her two commanders into the portal, she turned towards Dark Pit and grinned. "Thank you for your servitude, Dark Pit. I knew you would make the right decision." After she had said those words, she stepped in the portal and snapped it out of existence.
Palutena looked at Dark Pit in pure anger and was about to yell at him when she noticed the playful look in his eyes. Did he not understand what had just happened? He had given Medusa the key to the other dimensions! The Goddess of Light growled, outraged, and stood on her two feet. She still felt the pain from the kick she had received, but decided not to care about it at the moment. Dark Pit had been so irresponsible! How could he not understand the stakes behind his actions? The Goddess of Light focused her attention on the darker version of Pit, who held her little champion very close to him and gently kissed him. The light angel moved back after a moment, breathing heavily and his cheeks completely flushed, and trailed his fingers along his neck to make sure that he wasn't bleeding. He appeared to be reassured when he saw that his hand bore no blood.
Dark Pit, on the other hand, just stood up and was about to head for Viridi's infirmary when he felt Palutena's eyes fixated on him. "And where do you think you're going, Dark Pit?!"
The angel snorted, put his hands on his hips, and turned to face the Goddess of Light. He had a sharp expression in his ruby orbs when he looked back at her with a raised eyebrow. "What? To the infirmary, to fix my injuries. Pit should come along."
"Can we talk about what you just did?!" Palutena screamed.
Dark Pit raised an eyebrow and clicked his tongue, his wings stretching up to illustrate his frustration and, also, his growing anger. "What about it, hm? Was I supposed to let him die for a stupid necklace?!"
"We don't know what Medusa will do with what you call the 'stupid necklace' and the Mirror of Truth, it was foolish to give it to her!" Palutena exploded, her eyes looking daggers at the dark angel. She was about to strangle him; how could he smile at a time like this?! Everything was lost, they were supposed to protect that necklace with their very lives! Palutena growled, absolutely furious, and shook her head. "Don't you realize what you've just done?! What if she brings in all of her other incarnations from the other dimensions, hm?! Who is going to put up a fight against them?! She could do anything and everything, there are no limitations!"
"But she won't do anything, Lady Palutena!" Pit assured, spinning around to face his Goddess with a little smile across the lips. "They can't do anything with it, I promise you!"
"Pit, you have no idea—"
Palutena was interrupted when light angel groaned under his breath and rolled eyes. She glared at him for being rebellious, but then he took off his scarf, revealing a very familiar necklace with a glowing stone attached to it. The smirk that was plastered on Dark Pit's lips was enough to tell her that they had been the most clever angels a Goddess of Light could ask for.
To be continued…
Updated: 02/11/2019