Die of Destiny Chapter 14 The Suspension Training Arc Part 1 Tuesday and Wednesday.
Disclaimer: I do not own Worm nor any other works mentioned as they belong to their respective owners.
Also, Aqasha and Nerath DO NOT belong to me as full credit goes to Jyc Row and his Infinite Eclipse series. (He is on YouTube and makes amazing songs.)
Suspension Night # 2 Tuesday Febuary 8th 2011
(For Maximum effect play Soul Eater OST 2 - Track 1 - in his mind, DB sways his shoulders and dances.)
"SO CUTE!"
"NOT AGAIN!"
Glomp!
'Brother!'
"OH HELL NO!"
Glomp!
"Well, now I kinda feel left out."
"I mean, Do you WANT to be involved?"
"Point taken."
Okay, ROB? I have to admit that this was not what I was expecting when I returned to DWMA with my Demon Weapons but I can't deny that this is freaking hilarious!
After me and my Mom got some much-needed haircuts with her rocking a pixie cut and yours truly shaving off that embarrassment of a mustache and turning my bowl cut into a nice undercut I spent the day destressing from….basically the rest of the day and at 10 PM I went to bed and promptly went to the DWMA to get more training on my madness and what followed afterward was.
Flashback to literally a minute earlier.
I stepped through the portal and appeared at the Stairs to the DWMA, I was dressed in the same jeans and Blue T-shirt which was what I was wearing when I was last here so I guess that checks out.
I climbed the stairs and wasn't surprised to see Maka, Soul, Crona, and Ragnarok waiting for me.
"Greg! Your back. How are things going for you?"
Maka smiled at me as she asked this and I gave a false smile as I did a so-so gesture with my right hand while my tone shifted first to cheerful to an exhausted deadpan.
"Eh, both good and bad. Good news. I got my demon weapons! Bad news? I got my Demon Weapons."
Maka blinked in surprise followed by the same eyes glowing green and her gasping.
"Oh wow! You have 3 of them?"
Said weapons took this opportunity to introduce themselves.
"Greetings! I am the fabulous Gilded Emnity! The Frozen Tiger and the eldest of the Windigo Sisters!"
Enmity of course chose to appear as dramatic as possible with her bursting from my back and taking the skies, the sun reflecting off her golden features that floated in a wind of her own making and posing with her right hoof out.
This was followed by Grudge popping out from my abdomen, landing only to start sizing everyone up, frowning condescendingly, and dismissing them with her right hoof.
"These are your teachers? Pah! They are nothing compared to Wolfwood! We should have gone to see him instead!
Spite was the last to appear as she came from my right shoulder, taking in the area with curiosity.
And then.
Maka Squeed in the EXACT same way my Mom did and just like her, she sntached Grudge up to squeeze while Grudge tried and failed to escape.
"So Cute!"
"NOT AGAIN!"
Glomp!
At the same time, Spite locked eyes with Ragnarok who glared at her.
"What are you looking at!?"
She tilted her head in confusion before she slowly approached, making Ragnarok lean back a bit as she sniffed him a few times.
Crona asked. "Um, what is she."
Spite then perked up and did 2 things I never expected her to do.
"Brother!"
She declared OUT LOUD with happiness making Ragnarok shout.
"OH HELL NO!"
Glomp!
And then she slammed into him and began cuddling him, making sure to avoid his muscular arms as he tried and failed to get her off him but she was a slippery er…Spectre? And just kept licking, nuzzling, and patting him with her hooves all while making happy horse sounds.
Crona for their part was panicking, running around in a small circle while saying over and over again that they 'Don't know how to deal with Ragnarok's family!'
And last of all Emnity, losing her bluster alongside her audience landed next to Soul just watching the chaos with a conflicted look on her face.
"Well, now I kinda feel left out."
Soul glanced down at her.
"I mean, Do you WANT to be involved?"
She shrugged.
"Point Taken."
And now we reach the present where I went to join Emnity and Soul as all three of us watched the circus in front of us.
"Hey Soul, Enmity. Mind if I join?"
Enmity nodded while Soul Shrugged with his hands in his pockets.
"Of course! Such chaos is a treat to see!"
"Knock yourself out."
So I did. We watched as Grudge got fed up with Maka and tried to use her real strength to escape while shouting.
"Let go of Me you Whorse!
Oh, it seems she's gonna break out of Maka's grip. I then took this chance to throw fuel on the fire.
"Maka! Just so you know Whorse is their term for Whore!"
Grudge Paled as Maka's grip went from soft to hard as steel, her eyes cold.
"Oh, Really?"
Her eyes then gleamed with blue power for a few seconds after which Grudge suddenly went limp making her freak out.
"What did you do to me!?"
Maka smiled a sharp smile without any teeth. "Not much. Just used my anti-Demon Wavelength on you. Your soul is of a negative alignment like Witch's and Kishins so I purified you. You should regain your strength eventually.
"And until then."
Grudge began sweating as Maka raised her to face level letting her see plain as day her frown.
"I'm going to teach you some manners!"
Grudge panicked even more and shouted at me while weakly reaching out toward me.
"Master! Help me!"
I had a cruel smirk on my face as I shook my head, my voice and body language dripping with false regret.
"Sorry Grudge. I really am but you need to stop calling everyone you meet a Whorse. You did it to my mom and now you did it to my teacher. A pet shouldn't be using such vulgar terms. Don't worry, Maka is a great teacher so you're in good hands.
Grudge whimpered as Maka briskly turned around and went inside calling over her shoulder.
"Thank you, Greg, If she is to be a student demon weapon she needs to learn to control her language. I will have her back after lunch."
"NO! Master! You Bastard! Enmity! Spite! Save me!"
Enmity in response just turned to talk to Soul as if she didn't hear her making Grudge start to cry anime tears.
"Soul, was it? If I recall correctly Greg said that you were a demon weapon as well do you mind telling me more about it?"
Soul took his hands out of his pockets and pointed at himself with a smirk.
"I'm not just a Demon Weapon I'm a Death Scythe!"
"A Death Scythe? Such an intimidating title…I LOVE IT! Tell me more!"
Enmity fluttered up to his eye level, eyes sparkling and Soul began boasting about how cool he was leaving Grudge to look to her other sister in sheer desperation for aid before it was too late.
To her dismay and my increasing amusement that did not work either.
"What the hell are you doing!? Back off you crazy Bitch!"
"Brother! I demand huggy wuggies!"
"What the fuck are you saying!?"
"Ragnarok! I can't handle Huggy Wuggies! I don't know how to deal with that!"
Spite for her part was still trying to snuggle with Ragnarok who finally got a grip on her and yeeted her away from him as hard as he could only to have Spite come back like a cruise missile demanding he give her…Huggy Wuggies? Where did she hear THAT from?
Crona was having a mental breakdown, nothing out of the ordinary for him. Curling up in a ball while Ragnarok began taking evasive maneuvers to keep Spite off him but he obviously never had to deal with fighting off another Black Blood weapon before and her ability to break apart at his attacks only to reform around them was forcing him to again dodge or tear her off him. His only saving grace was that she wasn't mixing with him so he had that going at least.
But that didn't matter as Grudge was now wailing anime tears as she was taken away for….Re-Education.
"NOOOOOOOOOOOO!"
Once she was out of Sight Emnity instantly ended her conversation with Soul.
"Thanks for the info but I was just trying to screw with my sister so now that she is gone I don't need to anymore."
I sweat dropped at her bitchy tone and Soul frowned.
"Really? Not cool."
"Impossible. I am the Coolest! Compared to me you are…room temperature at best."
Soul gained an angry Tic mark while Enmity gained a smug smirk.
Gotta salvage this before Soul really gets mad since he's my teacher and I'm stuck here for a month!
I pushed Emnity away, making her tumble to the ground and taking her place, apologizing to Soul while she sputtered angrily at my 'audacity.'
Talk about the pot calling the kettle black!
"Sorry about Emnity she only gained awareness today and is still trying to learn some manners. In fact,"
I looked down at her with my eyes narrowed.
"Perhaps she should join Grudge in learning manners with Maka."
Enmity looked ready to snap back in outrage but my threat made her eyes widen as even though we were 'Partners' she was fully aware of just who was on the top of this power dynamic.
Our Deal was pretty straightforward. In exchange for a life of Luxury and authority over her sisters as the official leader of the Windigo Sisters, she would submit to my authority and position of leader, and once a week if given a Direct Order she would have to follow it to the letter. Her authority made it so that she had the same control over her sisters as I did which meant I could trust her to keep the others in line and I could actually go out and about without risking Spite or Grudge exposing my secret identity. I hadn't used my absolute order yet and It also didn't help her chances when Soul gained an evil grin full of sharp teeth at my suggestion.
"Maka ain't that far away. I'll go get her."
He turned to leave, making Emnity quickly fly between him and the doors while speaking quickly.
"Now now now! Let's not get hasty here! There's no need for that Mr. DeathScythe! I was just….joking! Yes! Haha, I'm so funny!"
Me and Soul shared a glance at her third-rate excuse. And it didn't escape him that she hadn't apologized.
But he had more grace than I had as he shrugged.
"Fine. I'm a cool enough guy that I can let it slide this time. But if you do it again I'll let Maka deal with you."
Enmity perked up at this and tried to flatter him while flying up to eye level.
"Your kindness is awe-inspiring. Truly you deserve your title as Deathscythe!"
Soul wasn't buying it this time and began following Maka.
"Yeah yeah, cmon. Let's get going we don't have all day."
Enmity followed after him, still trying to butter him up making me laugh as I turned my attention to Spite once again as we had to get going.
"Spite! You can talk with Ragnorak later! Let's get going!"
Spite slowed at this command allowing Ragnarok to toss her off him and he decided to hide inside Crona making Spite winny sadly before she did come to me and after a few minutes of consoling Crona, we too made our way into the School.
A few hours later.
"Okay! Now that we have gone over the basics of Soul Wavelength theory Grudge, Enmity? Show us your weapon forms."
Me, Emnity, and Grudge were in the center of the classroom with Maka in the Teacher's spot and the others scattered throughout the student seating. Spite for her part was sitting on the desk in front of Crona and Ragnarok with the latter leaning back as far as he could while Crona was hesitantly petting Spite who in turn seemed to enjoy the attention reminding me of how Grudge was with Wolfwood. I just hope that this won't lead to another attempted Coup e ta.
Enmity of course jumped at the opportunity to show off.
"Of course! Behold my Chilled Claws of Calamity!"
She then turned to Black Blood and coated my right hand which then solidified into Emnity's full weapon form.
It looked similar to the Golden Tiger Claws but the fur had turned teal blue and the brace white but other than that it was the same.
Maka nodded. "Interesting. Now, you said Emnity's weapon form had a unique effect? Try showing them off now."
I smiled at this and shouted. "Gilded Emnity! Her claws glowed briefly before I tore open a portal and leaped inside.
I then reappeared behind Maka, intending to spook her. But.
"MAKA CHOP!"
BONK!
"OW!"
Maka without even missing a beat turned and slammed a book onto my head sending me crashing into the chalkboard.
"Nice Try, but I train regularly with BlackStar and he is much better at sneaking than you."
I rubbed my head with my right hand. "Noted."
She then examined the claws up close. "So you can open portals? Any limits?"
I shrugged as I stood up. "Not sure yet. Haven't really gotten a chance to find them."
Maka smiled and began writing in the book she just whacked me with.
"Okay then. Let's go with Grudge."
I used the claws to return to the center then Emnity left, taking a spot near Spite as I glanced down at Grudge, A big grin on my face.
"I'm not gonna lie Grudge. I am excited to see what you can do!"
Grudge puffed up at this. "Of course! I am the Punishing Cross! Behold my true power!"
She then transformed, turning into the Cross and I picked it up easily as between my Trigun winnings and my Black Blood it was nothing I couldn't handle. I looked at it, intent on finding out how she worked when I noticed that she had changed.
On the back of the Cross, at the very top, there was now a series of 3 panels. The Top one showed Grudge in her War Form, leaping towards me in the bedroom, the Second showed the Dance Floor, her surrounded on all sides by Imps with cartoonishly exaggerated evil grins and her rearing to the sky, chains on each hoof, trying to drag her down.
and then the last one gave me goosebumps.
It was a dark reflection of the Wolfwood throne scene but instead of him, it was me. I was in my normal form sitting on a throne in the shape of a heart, Grudge was in her pony form, laying at my feet but head low in shame, a single tear dripping from her muzzle and a collar around her neck attached to a chain that I held tightly in a limp right hand on the armrest and my head resting on my left fist propped on the left armrest via the elbow.
That wasn't the part that worried me. The part that worried me was my face.
My Mouth was in a crooked, literally ear-to-ear grin with far too many teeth, my nose extended to a needle-like point while three orange eyes stared down at Grudge giving off the feeling of sadistic amusement.
I found myself transfixed by the panel, the lever in my mind pulsing in response to my heartbeat.
The figure on the throne turned its gaze towards me, the grin remaining on its face.
My breathing was erratic as it spoke in my voice, its dead robotic tone clashing severely with the crazed look on its face.
"Queary, What is our Designation?"
"What?" I asked the figure who asked again.
"Structural damage 34% Data lost 65% Processing decreased by 10% Firewalls are down, Connection to Host unstable, and Quarantined from Network. Query, What is our Designation?"
"That's a big Cross. What does it do?" Someone asked. A male voice, distant.
"Deisgnation? What are you talking about?"
"Greg? Who are you talking to?" a woman's this time but I can't pull away.
"We are broken. We are forgotten, We are alone. We have no use. What is our Purpose? What is our Designation?"
What IS our purpose? To save the world? What is our name? Is it Greg? Or is that just the name of the kid whose life I took over? Who are we? WHAT are we?
"MAKA CHOP!" WHAM!
"GAH!" I shouted as I was slammed in the head with a book again but this time I felt some kind of static shock that went through my mind, snapping me out of….whatever that was and the Lever went still.
I looked around quickly, trying to get my bearings.
"What!? Where am I?"
"Are you stupid? You are supposed to be using me!"
Ah, Grudge. I looked to see I was still holding her weapon form, but Maka had moved. She was now next to me, her eyes glowing as she spoke, her voice full of concern.
"Greg, What was that?"
I blinked "What was what?"
She frowned. "You don't remember?"
I frowned. "Remember what? I was about to use Grudge's weapon form."
I looked at the form and found my eyes drawn to the new images I was just looking at and there wasn't anything special. I was sitting on a throne in my Shadow form, with my 2 triangles looking down in mockery at Grudge. I didn't like that it is immortalized on Grudge but I am certain Grudge felt the same way.
Everyone approached me, Even Grudge turning back into pony form to join the others looking at me with concern.
Maka once again spoke up. "Greg, You were frozen for about a minute. You were talking to someone. Talking about Designations and ignoring us."
I Did? I don't remember that! I just looked at the engraving.
"Did he lose his marbles?" Grudge muttered to Emnity who shrugged. "I have no clue. I do say that this is alarming, to say the least."
"Greg okay?" Spite looped around me, seemingly looking me over before snorting and landing in Crona's arms making the boy panic a little and Ragnarok trying to pull her out starting another round of the game they were playing outside.
Soul looked to Maka. "Maka, what do you see with your Soul Perception? Did his madness get loose?"
Maka's eyes were still glowing as she spoke.
"Yes, but also no. His madness WAS acting up but it was strange."
Oh, I really don't like that!
"What do you mean it's strange?"
I demanded of Maka who ignored my tone to keep observing.
"It wasn't trying to drown your soul under its weight but it was instead trying to match your Soul Wavelength, like a Meister does for their weapon."
I paled and pleaded with her, my arms gesturing wildly to the Windigo Sisters. "Please don't tell me I have a FOURTH Weapon! I Can barely handle the ones I have!"
"Damn Straight!" (Grudge)
"Of course, we are all you will ever need!" (Emnity.)
"MINE!" (Spite)
With how things were progressing was I going to get a winning that gave me Cthulu or something?
Maka's eyes stopped glowing but her scowl remained.
"No, it's quite the opposite."
Opposite? Why does that sound even more ominous?
She looked me in the eyes.
"Greg, It wasn't trying to resonate with you as your weapon. It was trying to resonate with you as your MEISTER."
I had only one response to this.
"Well, Shit."
Classes were canceled for the rest of the day as Test after Test was run on me only to find nothing out of the ordinary. Well, nothing compared to before I attempted to use Grudge.
Then later on I tried again and there was no issue which ruled out Grudge being the cause so while wary the month progressed as I hoped it would. With me training with Grudge and Emnity as a Meister and his weapons. And it was hard.
I had thought that I would easily accomplish this and I would be wielding Emnity and Grudge with the same ease as the teams from the show but no, Turns out there is a reason why it takes YEARS to become a full Meister. For starters, we need to be compatible. That was easy as our souls naturally aligned and Maka theorized that since they were born of my second soul they attuned automatically. But everything else?
Like pulling Teeth. For Starters, I attempted to synchronize with Emnity and Grudge as they had weapon forms which was a requirement to do so but while I synced with Emnity after several days I couldn't do it with Grudge and Maka said it had to do with her not trusting me.
So I had to work with Emnity exclusively when it came to meister/weapon stuff and even then it wasn't smooth sailing as I had to learn how to manipulate my Soul Wavelength which I had no clue how to do and as if to spite me Emnity and Grudge easily accomplished this leaving me in the dust and they made sure to roast me any chance they had.
I shouldn't have been surprised really as even now sentient they were still Windigo's and they enjoyed suffering. I got back at them though by bringing up the fact that the Windigos never had an education and Maka jumped on them like a cat did a fish making them suffer alongside me in class.
But back to my Soul Wavelength. It wasn't like my Mist flames or my Hamon, or even like the Sire's Shadow where instinct or pre-built-in skills were gained I had to start from scratch. How do I describe it? It was like trying to play an instrument with numb fingers but the instrument was in my chest and the fingers were my mind. I was not used to this kind of thinking nor 'playing' my soul which apparently to my dismay just being able to detect this was already putting me 3 months ahead of normal first-year students. This should have been good news but it hammered home the idea that no, I was not going to master everything and be OP-broken anytime soon. The only thing my powers did was get me to the real starting line and I had to really earn it.
Spite for her part had decided that Crona and Ragnarok were her new best friends and followed them everywhere. And I mean EVERYWHERE. Classes, meals, bathroom breaks! If I followed the string attaching her to me I would always find Crona and Ragnarok.
Perhaps it was me still being sore about them killing me or Grudge and Emnity's teasings but I decided to NOT reel her in, for fun.
Other than the above this month went the same as the last one with the exception that the time with Crona was now shared with Maka and Soul alternating every day between Black Blood control and Meister training. The sad thing was that I could control the blood but not my wavelength. How that works I have no clue but it was annoying.
What mattered however was that I got a better grip on controlling my Madness so what happened with Grudge BOTH times was less likely to happen again…I hope.
Eventually, the Month came to an end, and after pulling Spite away from her..friends? Victims? Eh, something like that. We returned to the waking world.
That day I decided to test the limits of Gilded Emnity and well.
"Okay, I have to admit. This is very unsettling."
I was standing on the Boardwalk of Brockton Bay but it wasn't MY Brockton Bay.
For one thing, the Boat Graveyard didn't exist, another was that the entire place was….for the lack of a better word CLEAN. Like no gang tags, not too many hobos, nothing, it just looked like your generic American coastal town.
Hell, there was even a Ferry taking tours in 10 minutes!
'Are you really surprised? This is a whole nother world.' Enmity's voice reached me even though she was in weapon form thanks to our shared connection to the Black Blood allowing a mimicry of the communications Weapons had with their Meisters which was basically the only Soul Wavelength-related thing I was good at from the start.
I responded back mentally while I looked for an Alleyway.
'It's just. How the hell is THIS Brockton Bay so much better than our own?'
'What? Do you want to move? Didn't think you were a scared little foal. Can't handle being in a city with some bite in it?'
Grudge unhelpfully gave her own 2 cents as Spite and Grudge also shared this ability.
But honestly? She had a point. This place was magnitudes safer than ours and it would be so easy to do it. Just grab my Mom, find some random door, and bam! Live the rest of our lives in the Devil's Advocate living like royalty. But that wasn't an option as if I took that path then she would never respect me and would only work with me if I ordered it and that would be more of a hindrance than an aid due to the trust issues Grudge already had with me.
And that damn whorse knew it. Which is why she no longer called me 'Master' and I just let it slide as again, we needed to work together. So let's go with this response.
'The thought has crossed my mind but it doesn't matter if it's here on Earth Aleph or Earth Bet the world will end in 2 years and if we can get into Earth Aleph so easily then what's stopping our BBEG from doing the same? At least in Brockton Bay, we can grow stronger in real combat and besides, you guys love it there right?'
'Home food is good! So much hate!' Spite added in her own way and the sisters agreed.
'Indeed. Truly you once again prove why I work with you, Greg. Between the worldly delights of the Casino and the sheer emotional Buffet that is Brockton Bay, I am quite content with where we live." (Enmity)
'Tch, Guess you aren't a coward. But when are we gonna start fighting!? I want to crush some skulls!' (Grudge)
I sighed at this question as she was always asking and I always told her the same answer as I found a good alleyway
'I've told you already Grudge We will go out in costume when I say so.'
'Tch Spoilsport.'
2 steps forward 1 step back. Oh well.
I tore a hole in space and I returned to my bedroom in Earth Bet. If it wasn't clear yet I just went to Earth Aleph and back in less than 30 minutes.
I did some other tests too and I had finally figured out Gilded Emnity's limits.
And those were?
Just one. As long as it was a location that I could theoretically get to by traveling along an uninterrupted continuous line I could go there. It didn't matter if that line happened to be going through thousands of tons of rock or I don't know, a certain bricked-off portal to another Earth. I could go there just fine. I also went to the Planet's Core thanks to my Heat Resistance but I had to leave quickly as it turns out Magma was pushing my luck and I had to chill in the Arctic for 5 of my 30 minutes just to cool off. Theoretically, I think I could get to the moon but between the Simurgh hanging up there and me not being sure I can survive in space I will have to leave that be. Hell, I made sure to do the stratosphere check in Earth Aleph just in case even being in the stratosphere would draw her gaze as there is no way in hell I was going anywhere NEAR an Endbringer.
But, Speaking of Endbringers. I was getting ready for bed at this point, brushing my teeth when a thought came to me.
I was probably the strongest Mover on the planet, especially since others could use my portals. So the question became.
I spat in the sink.
"Should I go to the Next Endbringer Fight?"
I didn't even have to fight myself. If all I did was shuttling capes and doing search and Rescue I could save a lot of lives. I know, I hadn't even Debuted yet and I promised my Mom I wouldn't do any cape stuff without a team backing me up but I mean, Would I be able to sleep at night knowing that I could have done something? Made a difference? True, I could probably even use the Casino as the ultimate fallout shelter for the people but no, even my delusional guilt-fueled altruism had limits.
"I say we go! I wanna punch one in the face!"
Grudge of course was down for the idea of a fight showing up behind me as she heard my question. but surely the others wouldn't.
"I too would like to go."
I blinked as I looked at Emnity who was suddenly sitting on the sink using the mirror and a brush to groom herself.
"Wait. you would? WHY?! Aren't you afraid of dying?"
She chuckled.
"Considering the prize? I'm not."
Prize?
Grudge jumped up onto the toilet to gain height and leaned towards me with a bloodthirsty grin.
"Yeah! Do you have any idea just how strong we would become if we fed on the Disharmony caused by an entire city or even country of people facing extinction?"
"I uh, didn't think of that."
Shit. I know they have been subtly eating the Disharmony around me while we went out into the city as there was no way I was going to be able to keep them fasting when an all you can eat Buffet was available but if they REALLY went at it, if they didn't care about collateral damage or hiding themselves…
Eh, The Triumvirate would be there. If there was any group able to deal with them it would be them. Besides, they needed me to live so them getting stronger meant I was more likely to survive And with 1 in 5 capes who went dying I needed to load the dice and stack the deck as much as I could.
I then came to a decision.
"Fuck it, why not? We'll go to the next Endbringer Fight."
This led to Grudge and Emnity cheering with their front hooves thrown in the air and Spite soon joined in though she had no idea why they were cheering, she just wanted to take part too.
Suspension Night #3 Wednesday. February 9th 2011
"Oof!"
"Hahahaa!"
"Shut up Grudge!"
"No way! Seeing you unable to stand is too funny to NOT laugh!"
FWOOSH!
"I'm gonna Kill you!
Hisssss….
"Oh, horseapples."
Sploosh!
"Mm-hmm! So good! Did you forget? If you get too angry you'll melt the ice and you'll fall in again!"
Splash
"Ya know, if the lake wasn't so shallow you'd probably be dead. But it's not so I can just keep laughing at your failures and eating that sweet, sweet rage. And I'll eat a lot as you can't even walk right."
Fine, you wanna play that way?
"Oh yeah? Do a handstand.
"Wha? No way!"
"Let me rephrase that. I ORDER you to walk on your front hooves."
"Damn it! I hate you Greg so much!"
"Noted."
"BUCK!" THump!
"Hahaha, Seeing you unable to stand is too funny to NOT laugh."
"Grrrrr."
"Funny dancing!"
"Yes, Spite, VERY funny Dancing. Nothing like a dinner and a show to brighten our day!"
I sighed as I once again tried to stand up on my hooves lifting myself out of the chilly, shoulder-high water, and tried to get back onto the frozen lake in front of me.
I didn't know what to expect when I chose this door but THIS? Wasn't it.
Just 5 minutes ago I entered the Windigos's door out of curiosity as I didn't see a way to train my familiar bond. with them especially since only Spite had an intact familiar bond. I had no idea what would happen but what I DIDN'T expect was the moment I stuck my hand in that I would be sucked inside!
FlashBack: 5 minutes prior.
"Ugh, my head."
I groaned as I lifted my head from a pleasantly cool soft wet, something. I opened my eyes, hissing as sunlight reflected off the snow blinding me briefly.
I tried to rub my head but instead, I almost knocked myself out again as a hard something slammed into my temple waking me up fully.
"What?" my eyes opened wide and I looked to my right hand…..only to not see a hand but an orange hoof. ….Oh No. no no no no no!
"It can't be!" I shouted in horror as I struggled to my feet trying to get a good look at myself which was distressingly easy considering my neck was now much longer.
And what I saw made me very conflicted. Relief and confusion warring with each other as on one hand the worse didn't come to pass and I was a Pony. but on the other as I was something very similar. I was what was known as a Kirin. They were a weird Unicorn/dragon hybrid with dragon scales on their back, manes like Lions, long tails with ends like feather dusters, they had more scales in a thin streak from the tip of their snout to the crown of their head, and lastly had red horns that split at the top like antlers.
Now normally this would be fine as they have some interesting powers from telekinesis to turning into hell horses covered in flames called Nirraks but the biggest issue was the size! I was in what appeared to be an open clearing of a frozen forest and if I compared myself to the trees, they made me the size of a small dog! Which is why I panicked when I felt the Windigos trying to leave my body!
I can't let them see me like this! I'll never live it down!
But I was too late. By the time I realized I should have stopped them they had already emerged and except for Spite landed on the snow.
"Which world is this Greg?...GASP!"
Enmity noticed first her wings fully extending as she gasped dramatically and I winced, my tail and ears drooping as I knew what happened next.
"What no-? Pffft. HAHAHAHAHAHAHA! Oh my Faust this is too good!"
Grudge was now rolling around in the snow laughing her flank off….flank off?! Oh no, I'm already turning!
"Baby Brother?"
And that was the final nail in the coffin as Spite, simple, sadistic, sweet, Spite. Took one good look at me and declared this to the world. I crouched down, trying to hide my face behind my hooves, my long, feather-duster-like tail wrapping around me to help me hide.
My reputation! They will never take me seriously again!
"So Cute!"
Et tu Emnity? I was then promptly glomped and lifted up in Emnity's forehooves and she flew high in the air as she squeezed me and nuzzled my snout while talking in a baby voice.
"Awww, who's a sweet little Kirin foal? Yes, you are Yes you are!"
ROB, just kill me now.
"BWAAHHAHAHAHAHA!" Grudge kept making snow banks as she howled in laughter, Enmity kept babying me, all while Spite began looking around trying to find me…not even connecting the fact the little blank flank orange Kirin little more than 2 feet tall with yellow back scales, red lion mane, and purple eyes was me.
And I was having none of this!
My temper flared and soon I did as well shrieking.
"LET GO OF ME!"
Enmity promptly did so, resulting in me falling 10 feet and landing on my face melting the snow around me as my body wreathed in purplish blue flames and made quick work of it. But the impact was enough to knock me out of it even as it knocked the wind out.
"Super special Yummy!"
I shook my head to dislodge the snow only to find all three Windigo's right next to me making happy snuffling sounds.
"It's been AGES since I tasted Nirrak Hate!"
"I need more of that! Hey Baby boy! You need a Pony name so what do you think about Pipsqueak? Ya know? Cuz you're tiny!? HAHAHAHA."
That is when I realized something and I almost ignited again.
"You did all of that to piss me off didn't you?"
"Yep." X3
Damn it, even Spite was in on it?
Well too bad! I'm not falling for it again!
"Why do you like it so much? Isn't it fire the thing you hate?"
Enmity explained.
"Not quite! In fact, the reason why we calmed down when you first summoned us was because your Hate-filled Flames tasted very similar to Nirraak Flames. True, extreme heat can harm us which is why we didn't target the Dragonlands and stuck with Equestria but just like how the *Shudders* fires of Friendship drove us away anything made of Hate would instead draw us closer.
She then giggled.
I frowned harder.
"What?"
"Oh, it's just. If we had the mental capabilities to do so I would have bet bits that if you were born in Equestria you would have been born a Kirin and here you are!"
So things based on positive emotions regardless of the medium are harmful to them? That is something I should keep in mind….just in case. But wait a minute this doesn't make any sense.
"But wait, if that is true then why do the Kirrin even exist? I mean, if their flames make you stronger wouldn't you of fed on them until they died out?"
Grude had the answer to this one, sounding disgruntled.
"We almost did. The problem was that they ran away! Thanks to their natural flames, being able to eat meat, and earth pony magic they managed to stave off the cold and starvation long enough to migrate to the Dragonlands where the dragons accepted them due to their draconic blood. Once they got there it just wasn't possible to finish them off."
Spite sounded sad. "Final Misson failed."
Final Misson?
"What final Mission?"
"I would rather not dwell on my failures."
The others nodded to Emnity's words and though I tried to goad them a few times they still refused to answer and I decided that it didn't matter enough to use an order and left it as that as
We had a whole month trapped…. wherever we were and we needed to find my teacher.
Thus our quest began and I was slowly learning how to walk on 4 limbs but then we stepped into a frozen lake making me slip a lot and here we are now, in the present still having no idea what's going on.
As Grudge got back up and I got back on the frozen lake I finally lost my patience and shouted up to the two fliers of the group.
"Hey! How about you two do something useful and fly up to try and scout ahead!? Try and find my Teacher!"
Grudge cut in.
"Why not me? I can still fly!"
I looked at her, startled. 'Wait, you can?!"
She smirked and her hooves began emitting white fog and just like in her previous form, she began to run in the air to join her sisters.
"See! I am not like you I can run on water, land, and sky!"
"Damn. that's pretty cool. Fine, all three of you, go look! The sooner we find them the sooner we can get stuff done!"
Grudge preened at my praise and the threes split up to go find anything at this point while I sighed in relief at finally being alone for once.
"Seriously, I think I'll go with a winning not connected to them in any way so I can just have a month to myself."
I got my feet under men and slowly but surely made my way off of the lake and began traveling through the forest, the leafless trees mixed with Evergreen making it a blend of white, brown, and green.
Since I was alone I began pondering my situation.
"Why was I made a Kirin? If anything I would have gone with a Changeling as shapeshifting is awesome. Then again. I had no idea that I would be forced into a bucking Kirin Foals body! Is this permanent? Or is this just as long as I" 'm here? I hope not as I would be trapped in my casino forever!"
I mean, I know that I might mutate so much as to have to live in the Casino but I expected that to occur far later in the future!
I was growing frustrated the longer I didn't find anything and I could feel the anger, I felt the Nirrak. It was similar to the Sire's Shadow but without any of the pride, or dare I say personality. Just an unstable bundle of rage just waiting to be unleashed and burn everything to the ground.
Screw it. Maybe if I start burning the place down the smoke would alert my teacher?
Using the same methods I used to call upon the Sire Shadow I allowed the rage to fill me and I transformed! I went up in flames and now instead of an orange Kirin, I was a black and purple Nirrak with purple flaming eyebrows, glowing eyes, and fire replacing my mane, tail, and the area around my hooves.
What followed after was me slowly learning how to control my rage and new body as I burned the place down. It was quite hard both to burn it down and control it as unlike the Sire's Shadow there was no train of thought I could recognize as not my own to let me stay grounded.
But in exchange, the hate was not self-perpetuating. It needed me to be upset and if I wasn't upset or frustrated it would quickly flicker out being harder to retain the transformation. It was a novel thing. Having to fight both to not transform but also to keep it going.
It also helped that I kept falling over giving me more things to be pissed about and making me more determined to move freely. It was a feedback loop as I got angry at falling over making me want to burn things but to burn things I needed to get to things to burn so I needed to walk to get there only to rinse and repeat. When used in tandem with my Black Blood to control my new form 20 minutes later I was walking normally when a gravely grouchy man's voice came from behind me.
"Hmmph, so this is the foal?"
But I didn't freak out this time. No, I was a bit too tired to do more than freeze for a moment before I returned to Kirrin form and said calmly as I turned to see my teacher as who else could it be?
"About time you showed up. I was beginning to wonder if I had no teacher here."
I then faced the figure and found myself staring up at a big blue goat with massive curved horns.
He had a short grey mane and tail cut in a military cut, a short beard, and his eyes were yellow with red Pupils. He had an underbite showing 2 fangs and had bushy grey eyebrows.
He wore a red harness with 5 golden latches 4 of them bearing small bells and the center and largest conspicuously missing its bell.
So, ROB? I have a question a very simple question.
"Impudent whelp! I am Grogar! Father of Monsters and I have been told that if I teach you magic I will have my bell returned to me! But I don't think you are up to the task. And worse, you are one of my failures!"
If you aren't evil then why did you-I'm sorry what?
"Wait Wait wait. What do you mean Grogar?"
Grogar huffed at my question as he extracted a golden light from his harness.
"I'll answer this when we are in my lair. Come, I will teleport us to my lair and we will begin your lessons, though I doubt you will be much of a pupil."
Tch, this guy is a plothole….DAMN IT this keeps happening!
"Wait! We need to grab the Windigos!"
This made him pause, his eyes widening.
"The Windigos?"
Seeing a chance to impress him I focused on my connection to the Windigos or to be more exact the black blood that bonded us and via our Soul Wavelengths relayed a message.
"I found the Teacher! Come to my location."
As they approached I said with confidence.
"Yes, They are my Familiars."
Grogar took the mote of light and tossed it at me in an underhanded toss and the moment it touched me I glowed yellow while his horns did the same before it faded a few moments later.
"Interesting. A physical Anchor? Hmm. this is not your work so it must be of that strange Biped who gave me this offer. Yes, I see! He is quite clever. Perhaps you aren't a complete failure like the rest of your ilk."
Okay, at least that is a step up right?
A moment later a purple tear in reality opened behind me and all three Windigos emerged from it.
Grudge was the first to speak.
"Finally! It's about time! Who do they think they-DAD!?"
The others weren't far behind as they were facing him when they exited the portal and they all acted the same.
They lay low on the ground, chins to the snow in an obvious act of Submission and they all said in unison, a tremor of terror in their voices.
"Father! We thought you destroyed alongside Tambelon!"
Grogar for his part was gaping in disbelief for about 30 seconds before he got ahold of himself.
"How? What? You can Speak?!"
His harsh tone turned the question into an order and it was Emnity who spoke.
"Yes, We were merged with the Black Blood of this Foal which allowed us the gradually evolve from the animals we were before into what you see before you! My name is Gilded Emnity, The pink one is Grudge W. Wolfwood and the one who retains our past forms the most is Spite."
Wow, I had never seen Emnity so afraid.
"Out of my way." he strode towards the Windigos so I back upped to be to the side to be safe as how I was now I had no chance of fighting him if things went south.
He then extracted three lights and blew them at the three Windigo's and they tensed at the contact with the lights but it was the same spell that was done on me judging by their bodies and his horns glowing.
This time however he took longer, mumbling to himself as he scanned them. Five minutes later ( I was counting out of boredom.) he finished his Scans with his usual scowl on his face.
"I see, everything is clear now. Rise! We are returning home. We will discuss your punishment for failing your last mission later."
"Yes, Father."
The windigos rose to their feet but didn't dare move an inch as Grogar took another yellow orb of light and in a sweeping wave of yellow light with a black center we found ourselves within a large rocky cavern with stalactites, stalagmites, and roots and vines looping around them located in some swamp judging from the pools of brown water inside the cave and the green clumps of moss scattered along the walls.
Through the many holes and openings in the walls, I saw a series of snow-covered mountain ranges and rain falling outside making my guess of our location not so certain. I was standing on a platform raised from the ground on the left side with a set of stairs leading down to the center where a blue stone table was with a glowing crystal ball that looked like a goat's eye.
To the sides of that table were two doorways leading down somewhere and looping around the globe were 2 rings of stairs with the outer pair of lower inclined stairs that led to rooms deeper within the structure with the right one also having a platform adjacent to my own where the Windigos had appeared before continuing after into another room.
The inner ring was much shorter, only looping enough to put the person a dozen feet or so above the ground level in front of what was a crude craggy pulpit to glare down at pony-PEOPLE! Glare at people.(I am not going native Damn it!) or stare out the large window behind it into the swamp imperiously. And standing behind that goat eye was Grogar, First King of Equestria, Father of Monsters, and lord of Tambelon.
"Approach."
I jolted at the order and me and the Windigo sedately followed the paths down even though they could have flown they made sure to follow the trail, looks of slight fear still on their faces letting me know that whatever relationship they had with their dad it was at best a formal one or at worst an abusive one.
I swear if I had the Sire's Shadow it would of probably approved of his parenting style but I didn't so I had a bad first Impression. It didn't also help that he planned on punishing them for some failed mission which I could guess related to the Kirrin thanks to the context clues so I was on my guard.
Grogar, I knew next to nothing about him as the only time he showed up was when Discord, the Spirit of Disharmony was impersonating them and so I had no idea what was an act or was true. What I did know was that he apparently was very powerful and MADE THE WINDIGOS! Like holy Crabapples he made THEM! And the Kirin but we were seen as failures.
I didn't have time for more rumination before we arrived before him.
He addressed me.
"Before we continue I want you to put your hoof on the orb and I will use it to learn exactly what is going on here."
I decided to keep my composure, to give off a strong front as I refused to cower before him! I was the Meister of the Windigo Sisters and if they were too afraid to contend with their parent then I would in their place!
"I am too short to reach Grogar. Grudge, come give me a boost."
Grudge gulped before she hesitantly began to move when Grogar said coldly.
"No. Do not move. He will do it himself!"
Grudge was frozen, her eyes glowing a soft yellow and was about to return to her spot but this is exactly what I wanted!
"Grudge. I ORDER you to give me a boost!"
She hissed in pain as she shakily approached me, All while she did I made sure to look Grogar dead in the eyes.
"I order you to stop!"
He stomped his hoof, his eyes glowing with power as he retained my glare. But nothing happened. Grudge still continued until she lifted me onto the table.
Not once did my gaze waver.
When I was on the table I said aloud to her. "You may return to your sisters now Grudge."
Mentally I said to her. 'Good Job, Wolfwood.' This made her perk up for a moment before she schooled her features and returned to her siblings. Good girl. She was learning to hide her reactions. Those poker games I made the Sisters play twice a week during training were finally paying off.
I then said to Grogar with a calm voice stating a matter of factly.
"I may be a foal Grogar and you may be their creator but they are MINE. Do not forget that."
This was my powerplay. True, he might be stronger than me perhaps even smarter too but I needed to prove to him that I was not some little foal he could bully nor the Windigo's his to control for I was their only true Master!
I expected him to get angry and shout at me and for a moment it looked like it did.
His horns briefly glowed a moment and he stomped his front hooves onto the table to put his face inches from my own, a snarl on his face.
I for my part got ready to fight, ready to order the Sisters to attack though I didn't know if Spite or Emnity would be able to resist as their contracts weren't as restricting as Grudge's with Spite's being the weakest and Emnity being more conditional. I even had my mental hand on the Lever for my madness as I knew that dying would reset my sanity and with how powerful Grogar was? He was definitely going to be able to kill me. I just wanted to put up enough of a fight he wouldn't try again.
"Hmmph, I was correct. You were the one who bound…Grudge was it?"
He broke eye contact and lowered his hooves looking to Grudge who nodded quickly.
"Yes, Father! Grudge W Wolfwood the Punishing Cross!"
She had pride in her voice as she did this but he ignored her and turned to look at me, a look of intrigue.
"Bound Grudge to the point where even my control buried within her very being failed to stop her. How did you do that?"
Seeing the situation calming down I answered.
"I have the power to enforce any Bet or deal made in my domain and Grudge made a bet that she lost."
"Is that why she looks so different from her sisters?"
Grudge looked away in shame.
"Yes, She tried to go back on the deal we made which was if I beat her in a fight she would obey me so she has a yellow belly."
Grogar laughed a harsh laugh making the sisters flinch
"Hah! A coward huh? Yes. What you say does match my own conclusions. However."
He looked at Grudge and his eyes glowed.
"As one of my own Creations you may control their actions but I still have something I can control!"
He retrieved a ball of light and blew it towards Grudge but I was ready.
I ran in front of it and blocked it with my body!
I felt Grudge's shock at the same time I felt something tingle across my body but I was more focused on snarling at Grogar which in turn triggered me to turn into a Nirraak.
"What The FUCK Do you think you are doing with my Partner?"
I focused on my Black Blood, focused on the power it gave me. And my mental hand was primed to pull the lever. I Stomped hard on the table, causing a crater to form in it. True, it was small, but this table was far stronger than I thought it was.
The tension from before returned with a vengeance with him now having several yellow lights orbiting around his horns.
"You intend to fight me Foal?"
"Damn right I will."
"Even though I can kill you?"
"I've already died before. Besides, I'm immortal here. Even if you killed me, even if you sealed me away, Once the month is up me and my Windigos will disappear and I will never return. And then you will never get your bell back!"
I had no idea what was going on behind me but I heard Emnity gasp, Grudge mumble something, and Spite saying something. Her voice was full of confusion and a hint of something else I couldn't place.
"Big Brother?"
So I was promoted from Baby Brother to Big Brother? Not important. All that matters is that he dared to touch what was MINE.
Grogar wasn't backing down like last time. Instead, he snarled while teleporting onto the pulpit above, the lights now in the shapes of daggers.
"We shall see if your tune changes when I break your mind!"
"Break my mind?" I mused aloud, my tone a bit mocking.
Fuck it, looks like this is happening. Let's see just how powerful I am with Madness!
"Grudge! Enmity! Spite! I order you that you will not interfere with this fight! Once the battle is over for an hour or more You are to force me to release the madness even if it means killing me. Once that occurs you will ignore all orders for 12 hours!
I didn't wait for their confirmation, I knew from the bonds that My order was received!
I flipped the switch.
Third Person POV
Grogar stared down at the foolish foal below him. So ready to fight, to die. And what? Because he attempted to mess with Grogar's own creations? And for something so stupid as well!
The foal had no idea that all that was was just a spell to change the coloration of Grudge to something matching her siblings and he took it as an attack. Groger might have explained but the boy had rubbed him the wrong way the moment he met him. Groger didn't like reminders of failures and the Kiirin were one of his biggest.
They were meant to be avatars of the Goddess of Destruction Aqasha who governed fire, Raw Force, and natural Catastrophes in the same vein that the windigos were meant to be avatars of Aqasha's twin Nerath, Goddess of Nightmares who represented Ice, illusions, darkness, and of course Nightmares. Both experiments went different routes.
The windigos were the first and though they were strong they lacked the intelligence and cunning of their sire due to lacking a physical form to anchor their minds. The later attempts the Knightmare and the Pony of Shadows were much better as they were made to infest hosts and use their brains to do the thinking.
For the Kirin, He tried to deal with that issue by making them start with physical forms and even reproduce to become the perfect army and perhaps even replace the ponies as his subjects.
But getting forms that could withstand Aquasha's power was difficult with most turning into the 'Molten' nothing more than flaming Zombies. So he mixed several species together to make a body that could sustain it. Some Dragon, for Fire resistance, Some Earth Pony for their durability, and lastly a little Changeling to help grant more stability to the species's genome with the added benefit of granting the use of magic.
But in the end, it was still a failure. The two he had created, A male called Ifirt, and a female called Corona did indeed have the power to draw upon Aqasha's power taking on a form similar to the Molten but just like the Changeling's disguises they couldn't maintain it and it was weaker than expected. Worse still somehow they inherited the worst aspects of each race! From the Earth Pony they gained a conscience, The Changelings a subconscious version of their Empathy, and the Dragons their stubbornness.
So he banished them, certain that they would die out quickly. But, centuries later when Gusty the Great stole his bell those very same Kirin helped her! They had not just survived but thrived with their power to use Earth pony and unicorn magic alongside their Molten forms now called Nirraks. Using those forms they allowed Gusty to infiltrate his lair and steal his bell! In his Fury before he was banished to the void he let loose the Windigos on them and that was the last thing he remembered before the strange ape summoned him and gave the offer. In exchange for training his friend in magic he would be revived and his bell returned to him!
So he was quite upset when he saw that a Kirin foal was the one he was to teach and even more frustrated when his Windigos, his CREATIONS! Were twisted into forms he did not recognize obeying the very race he ordered them to destroy! But, what he had scanned from the bond was something he was intrigued by.
Each one was linked to a different extent but all the same in exchange for being bound to the service of the host using their blood as the anchor they gained the intelligence that they lacked before. And in turn, the Kiirin was far stronger than a foal had any right to be, the flames of Aqasha burning hotter than any of his kin. Perhaps a resonance between the twin god's essences?
But it didn't matter now as the foal had dared challenge him and Grogar was certain that he could get control over the boy he would be able to 'fake' training him, get his bell, then take his Kirin slave alongside the Windigos and retake Equestria!
Sadly, thanks to the foals' orders the Windigos wouldn't be able to fight but that also meant that it was him, the mighty Grogar, Father of Monsters against some nameless Kirinin child.
The only concern was the other orders and what he said about breaking his mind. Why would he give that kind of order?
He glared down at the foal, once again taking note of the strange pattern on the center of his horn. Usually, Kirin horns have V-shaped marks going along them in either direction which glowed when they used magic but this one's mark was in the shape of a vertical Eye similar to the eyes on aspen trees.
Grogar didn't get to keep his pondering as the foal collapsed like a puppet with its strings cut, falling off the table and being hidden from view.
"Greg!" his creations shouted in concern but they couldn't do anything making Grogar laugh.
"Such Bravado! In the end, he was just a cocky Foal. Oh well, I will take my time with bringing him to heel. My sweet, sweet time."
He hadn't gotten to break a mind in a long time and was eager to brush the dust off his mind spells. He casually walked down to the foal, confident in his every step.
He soon arrived at the boy's side and lifted his limp teal body up and harshly tossed him onto the table his horn touching the orb.
His coloration had changed to the same Teal as the Windigos with a blue mane and white scales.
"Greg! Get up!" (Emnity)
"Damn it you can't lose like this!" (Grudge)
He had half expected some random comeback but no, He just laughed.
"When I am through with him I will deal with you three. So shut up."
His order sealed their mouths making the two who spoke sit on their butts dejected but the third just floated there. Just watching the pair.
"Good, at least one of you is untainted."
He walked around the table and activated the orb.
"Let us begin. How about we see those memories of his?"
He activated the spell and the eye began to change to show the memories but Instead of his memories the orb instead displayed three orange eyes positioned in a triangle staring up at him.
"What is this?" he wondered.
Then the foal began speaking in a cold monotone, his mouth the only part moving.
"Connection established. Link to host is at 88% Stability. Query, Who are you?"
Grogar raised an eyebrow at this. Perhaps this was a mind game? "What game is this? You know my name. It is Grogar!"
"Noted, the entity known as 'Grogar' has been registered. Query What is going on?"
Grogar was beginning to get suspicious. This manner of speaking was too different from the boy's so he decided to attempt another scanning spell.
The orb began to shift, turning into a giant wall of 1s and 0s him not understanding at all what this meant.
"What is this?" He pushed harder, tearing through the numbers, trying to find the source and the eyes appeared again but bigger, brighter, angrier.
"Warning! Fire wall nonfunctional! Data breach detected! Cease data connection or face destruction.
"HAH! Destruction? Who do you think you are?"
"This unit has no Designation. final Warning! Retaliation in 10 seconds."
This was making Grogar more curious and also amused.
"You have no name? Pathetic! Once I figure out what you are and enslave you I will give you a name."
He was seeing something now. A pair of…whales? Swimming around each other made of countless stars? What was he looking at?
"Entity Groger confirmed as hostile! Beginning Countermeasures!"
That was the only warning Groger got before the foal exploded with flames forcing Groger to teleport back up onto the pulpit to avoid the blast.
He saw the foal was now standing up in its Nirraak form, eyes still closed and yet it still followed his movements, the eye mark on the horn now glowing orange
"Firing projectiles." The horn glowed brighter and soon fireballs shot out but Grogar easily blocked them with a shield. He then shot a powerful blast in retaliation but the Foal jumped off the table, the orb and table were reduced to ash making Grogar angry as it would take some time to make a new orb!
Fireballs were still being shot, not stopping for a moment even as the boy ran around to get a better angle.
"Enough!"
Another blast hit and he was sent into the nearest wall, his limbs outstretched like an X by yellow discs acting as shackles.
"You surprise me. I am deeply curious. But even now you cannot call upon the full power of the Flames of Aqasha so it is futile."
The Nirrakk struggled but failed to free himself.
"Query? Who is Aqasha?"
Grogar laughed as he was certain of his victory and decided to educate the thing that was controlling the boy.
"Aqasha was the Goddess of Destruction and your host was meant to be her avatar but his entire race was a failure!"
He summoned several yellow lights shaped like knives.
"Host's personal history has been updated. New possible designation confirmed. Due to lack of other explanatory factors for the Host's Deviance from normal hosts the Host's designation has been changed to Aqasha.."
Grogar ignored it as he had deemed it stupid and when he was done he would know everything anyway.
"Since you destroyed my orb I will have to spill out your guts and read them instead. Don't worry, I will make sure you are alive the whole time."
"Aqasha is disabled. Taking control of projections."
"Wha?" Grogar started only for a giant Horse made of gun metal steel to slam into him like a freight train. The sudden attack sent him airborne, he then slammed hard into the cave wall before he fell to his feet and glared at his attacker only to be shocked to see it was a mechanized version of a Windigo!
Its eyes burned with the same orange light as the boy's horn, knickering softly and pawing aggressively at the ground. before it charged him once again.
"What is this!?" He shouted while teleporting out of the way, once again to his pulpit only to feel a cold wind on his back and he ducked. Good thing he did as a Golden wing made of blades sliced his right horn in half making him shout in pain before teleporting again but this time on the platform the foal first appeared in.
"Emnity!?"
The Pegasus Windigo did not speak, her eyes glowing the same orange as she hovered in the air.
"This isn't possible! You were ordered not to interfere!"
"Correction, Projections Grudge, Spite, and Emnity are no longer conscious and thus are not interfering."
He realized that the metal horse was indeed Grudge who wasted no time destroying the cavern wall via making a crack with a kick and then expanding ice into the crack forcing it to shatter and break apart freeing….Whatever was controlling not just the boy but also his creations.
The voice that was speaking was Spite, she was hovering near the boy whom Grudge grabbed and placed on the ground on it's feet., her eyes glowing the brightest compared to the others her voice was also flat and lifeless.
He felt a chill as he stared into those lights.
Wait, that wasn't his nerves! The room was growing colder!
He created a powerful barrier. Which was good as at the same moment Grudge slammed into it, but it didn't even crack.
He saw Emnity swing her wing creating that same tear in reality he saw in the snow fields and quickly cast an anti teleportation array inside the bubble and his foresight was rewarded when she appeared just outside the barrier, unable to teleport in.
His breath was beginning to show in the cold air as his eyes narrowed watching both Grudge and Emnity continue to slam and cut into the barrier, trying to get through and slowly but surely chipping away at his reserves.
"Frustration. Target Grogar is inaccessible to Projections Emnity and Grudge. Calculating best course of action."
The foal was still in Nirrak form, Spite hovering to his right side the voice coming simultaneously from both in stereo.
He chose to glare at them.
"You are no mere spirit. What ARE you!?"
"We have no Designation."
Again with that nonsense!
Maybe he can bargain with it? He wasn't here to fight the boy after all but to train him! He hadn't expected the boy or rather the thing controlling the boy to be so strong nor it being able to enslave his creations to the point where not even orders to the SOUL could affect them.
And he knew where he could start.
"If you stop attacking I will give you a name!"
The attack paused for 5 seconds before it rejected the offer and continued the assault
"Denied. Previous statements from entity Grogar show it will only name us after enslaving us."
Curses! He had to do something!
"If you kill me you will be preventing 'Aqasha' from learning Magic!"
The attack paused again but didn't start up instantly so he started talking quickly.
"Yes! You have no idea the raw POWER Magic can give. If you spare me I will not only give you a name I will promise to teach the boy everything I know and won't touch him again! How does that sound?"
Spite and the boy turned to look at each other as if debating something silently and while it was happening he was preparing a teleportation spell. He would have to drop the anti-teleport array but the spell would get him far away from these monsters if they didn't take the deal! Besides, once he had the chance to plot and prepare he would just attack the boy when he was asleep taking over his mind in one fell swoop!
He wouldn't do it now, nor next week, but before the month is over after he builds a false sense of security with them. That is when he will strike.
Spite and the boy turned to look at him.
"Course of action decided. We accept your terms." Both Grudge and Emnity returned to stand and float beside Spite and the boy letting him drop his barrier and breathe a sigh of relief.
"Very good. You are clearly an intelligent being."
"Give us the Designation."
Grogar chuckled weakly at this. A real one-track mind.
But what name to give this terrifying thing? He glanced to the boy, still in his Nirraak form then at the Windigos and a name came to him. It was fitting in a way. If the boy was 'Aqasha' then this thing could only be.
"Nerath. You are Nerath."
It tilted all 4 of its heads.
"Nerath? Explain logic."
He coughed into his hoof to regain his composure and calmly approached them, trying to give off an air of wisdom.
"Nerath Goddess of Nightmares, was the Twin sister of Aqasha Goddess of Destruction. The Windigos were made to be her avatars just as your host was made to be one for Aqasha."
Spite gained a look of enlightenment on its face as it asked.
"So they were Partners?" It put heavy emphasis on the last word, showing a hint of excitement. Grogar had no idea why it did so but right now all he cared about was getting the boy back in control so he could plan accordingly.
He then remembered the image he saw and when added to it's focus on 'partners' he took a gamble.
"Yes! They were like the Whales! They were born together and died together as well! One governed the Day and the other Night. Ying and Yang. Light, and Dark. Heat, and Cold! Forever Entwined!"
It nodded x4 each head bobbing in excitement.
"Perfect! Host is Aqasha and I am Nerath."
Grogar felt smug, his gamble had paid off! Now for him to bide his time and wait for his moment to strike.
Suddenly, they all froze, Enmity crashing to the ground as her wings no longer granted lift.
The air, whose temperature didn't change from before the barrier fell began to plummet rapidly, ice crawling along the walls and the swamp blossoming into giant icebergs, spears of ice erupting and piercing the sides of the cave.
Grogar had no idea what was going on but he wasn't sticking around to find out! He used his teleport and soon he was as far as physically possible from his old home.
"What in Tartarus is going on!? First, the boy is possessed, and now this?"
Poof.
He heard the sound of a magic teleportation behind him. He didn't even hesitate. He jumped to the side looking back and shot a retaliatory strike when he did so but nopony was there just a smoking crater from his attack.
Shwing!
Spurt!
Drip
Drip
Drip
"Guh." He spat out blood, his head looking down in confusion at the deep purple Crystal that impaled him through the stomach and out his spine.
"What is?"
"You are no longer required."
Spite whispered softly into his right ear, just out of sight. But she wasn't monotone anymore. There was still a lack of warmth to them but no longer mechanical. No, it was now a cold voice of disdain, no empathy, nor sympathy. At the same time, the tone was sensual, pleasant to the ear giving off the impression of royalty but every word made Grogar's severed spine shudder in terror.
"Yo Gak" he spat out more blood. "You are not that thing controlling the boy and you aren't Spite so what in the name of Faust are you?"
The Crystal twisted 90 degrees violently making him cry out in pain and cough up more blood. The snow was now stained crimson and his insides looped around the crystal like a sick mockery of Christmas lights on a Christmas tree.
"Do not bring up her name in my presence. It aggravates me. As for who I am? You know who I am."
Grogar could no longer speak, his lungs were torn apart by the spin and he was drowning in his own blood.
"You aren't long for the world so I will be brief. Thank you for both pushing the foal to give into us as well as giving that thing and the boy Names. OUR Names. I would have expected out of any pony that you would know the significance of names when it comes to beings like us. Even as a broken Fragment its obsession for a name was strong enough to suppress and use us as a bridge to the boy. But with one of its questions answered it was briefly sated and no longer could nor cared to hold us back and though I am annoyed that I am now 2 instead of one that doesn't matter."
She giggled, it was not a gentle sound. "It's funny, this wouldn't have worked if it wasn't for this world. Born from your effigies this whole world was filled with my power. Then the Fragment took full control of them, uniting them as one and granting me access to that Kirin, so powerful yet so young, and most importantly HER Flames.
All that was left was the Names. And when they received them we finally had our chance.
By using our connection and most of the fragments' remaining power we were reborn. New yet ancient, mighty yet frail. For now. Granted, if I could have avoided it I wouldn't have brought her back but that is in the past now. Just like you."
The world was shattering, giant rifts exposing inky darkness ripping both sky and earth asunder as with the death of the Teacher the World had no purpose, no meaning. No wisdom to impart. And thus, the world fell away, and all its potential with it.
Zone #9 lost. Cause: Death of Teacher (Grogar, Father of Monsters).
Author's Note: Hey! RebelShardCaster here with the first part of the Suspension Training Arc! I hadn't intended to split it up but the Wednesday section just kept going and going and going!
I chopped it so this is Tuesday and Wednesday with the next part being Thursday, Friday, Saturday, and Sunday unless something like this happens again then it'll be split. As I mentioned in the Author's note of the last chapter the idea is after the first introduction unless something important occurs or he needs to speak to a person specifically about something we will skip his training sessions for the sake of actually progressing the plot.
Greg will return to School on a Monday with the Date of his Suspension ending will be February 14 2011. Worm liked to keep track of dates so I am going to try and do the same.
Speaking of Worm… One of the reasons why the update took so long besides stuff with my job and college was me finally reading the whole thing. I had been neck-deep in the fandom for years so I already knew a lot of the story beats but not the nitty-gritty details and I gotta say Wow. Like, WOW.
I knew Endbringers were bad but not HOW bad. I knew The Slaughterhouse 9 was bad but not THAT bad. And you get the idea. So now I have a far more concrete understanding of the setting which means my ability to plot out things has dramatically increased.
On the topic of planning things I didn't know he even COULD lose a winning's Room but yeah, here we are. Only time will reveal the consequences of this event.
Final Note: Nerath and Aqasha are actually from a guy on YouTube called Jyc Row who made tons of amazing songs about them and the AU they come from (Infinite Eclipse). Anything you read here is just my interpretation of the characters and I really hope Jyc Row can forgive me as the concepts of them are too cool and their themes too inspiring for me to stay away.
I will try to get the next part out as soon as possible.
See you guys next time!