Post by Kiernan on Mar 11, 2013 10:04:33 GMT -5
[Gonna wedge this right between A Friend in Need, and She Blinded Me With Science. Kai and Incubus only.]
It was very late by the time Kai got home from Canterlot, he was dead tired. the only thing keeping him awake as he opened and closed his bedroom door was the thought that his bed was only three steps away. As he collapsed onto his right side, he smiled. His bed was comfortable, yes, but it was even more comfortable if you entered it without any energy to spare.
Within seconds, Kai had fallen asleep, and was delightfully enraptured in the surreal void that made up his subconscious mind. But just as he started to enjoy himself, a familiar voice chimed in.
"Hello, Kai," said Incubus, waving as he approached.
"Incubus?" wondered Kai aloud. "I didn't call you here, which means you must be here to inform me of something," he reasoned.
"Indeed I am, my friend," assured Incubus, now close enough to Kai that he could see that Incubus hadn't his typical cocky smile, nor his aggravated 'you called me here for this?' look. His face was a serious one, leading Kai to suspect the worst.
"Well, let's hear it, then," said Kai, bracing himself for the worst.
"There will come a time, soon, when you will have to make a choice," said Incubus. With a wave of his hoof, the black and blue swirls that had made up their environment disappeared, replaced with a small meadow surrounded by a short stone wall. "If you cannot choose correctly, lives may be the cost."
Kai was a bit confused, undrstandably. "What choice? I can't make a choice when I have no options."
"You will see," smiled Incubus, as the sky turned a dark green color. Down from the clouds drifted six other ponies, all garbed in full plate mail. "These apparitions are here on my calling. They are figments of your imagination, nothing more. No matter what you do, you cannot harm them in any way. Likewise, they cannot harm you. And... BEGIN!!"
Without a moment's hesitation, the first gladiator jumped at Akaitora, , coming down on his chest. He could feel the wind being knocked out of him the instant contact was made, and he fell to the ground, coughing and gasping.
"Stop, stop stop," chuckled Inc, walking up to Kai.
"I thought you said they couldn't harm me?" he gasped, climbing back to his hooves.
"The pain you think you feel isn't real," said Incubus, circling his apparitions, which had fallen back into line. "You only think they harmed you, when in reality, you're safe and sound, lying peacefully in your bed. And as long as I hold this," he held up a pocketwatch that had stopped ticking, "You will stay there. Consider this involuntary express simulated combat training," he chuckled.
Kai knew there was no point in arguing with a dreamwalker in his own realm. The only way out of this was to play Incubus' game. He stared at each of the fully armored fighters in turn. All of their mail was black, save for the trim, which was unique to each of them. One green, one blue, one indigo, one violet, one turquoise, and the last magenta. "So you want me to destroy them?" he questioned, not letting his guard down after the last time.
"That's up to you," said Incubus, walking to a log he had just created, and sitting down. "Or at least, at this point, it is. I'm going to run you through a few different scenarios, I'm going to analyse what you do, and when you're ready to understand the lesson I'm trying to teach, I'll tell you the point behind this exercise." With that, he waved his hoof, and as a bag of popcorn materialized in his hoof, the magenta gladiator jumped into the air.
After a minute of doing naught but dodging swing after swing, the second warrior jumped into the fray, this the one with the green-lined mail. two hits landed, and Kai was once more on the ground, his opponents lined up. As soon as he was back on his hooves, Inc shouted, "Again!" and the conflict started all over again. This time, Kai struck back at the apparitions, even going so far as to land a few hits. He made it through the magenta, green, and indigo before the blue one got him from behind, knocking him on his face.
"Again!"
Counter attacking got him to the Purple one, right after the blue.
"Again!"
Fighting low to the ground only brought him to the indigo.
"Again!"
Parrying every blow brought him to the green fighter.
"Again!" shouted Incubus.
"No! shouted Kai back, annoyed at losing the fight. "One against six is never an even fight! Lower their count, or I shan't stand again!"
Incubus shook his head, stood up, and walked over to Kai. "Why do you fight?"
It was a silly question, with an obvious answer. "To protect myself, and those I love. Also, because if I don't play your stupid game, I may never wake."
"Focus on your second answer," said Incubus, laying his hoof on Kai's shoulder. "Who do you love?"
Immediately, a small group of ponies materialized behind Incubus. Kai was able to identify all of them: "My father, Admiral Sufferthorn. My mother, Red Maison. My brothers, Usutora and Almond Bark," he said, looking at each of them in turn.
"And who else?" asked Incubus, with a smile. Without any hesitation, Kai felt the warmth of hooves around his neck, and heated breath against his chin. As if on instinct, he gingerly brought his left hoof forward, and wrapped it around nothing. It was the idea that counted, though.
"Fight them as if you are doing it for her, and I will even the odds," smirked Incubus, returning to his seat, and his snack. "Now, begin!"
With renewed vigor, Kai had no trouble beating the odds, and taking down all six of the warriors with ease. This apparently warranted applause from Incubus, for he was giving as much.
"Well done, lad, well done," said Inc, waving his hoof, causing all but the turquoise one to disappear.
Kai was more than a little bit confused. "I've just proven that I can beat all six of them, and now you want me to tone it down to one? What's the catch?"
"The conditions of this one are easy," said Incubus, walking over to the final apparition. "This pony is responsible for causing the suffering and misery of countless other ponies. Her actions, along with those of her accomplices, have cracked the very fabric of reality, and they are, at least in part, responsible for all of the bizarre happenings and misfortune of late."
"Then why only her?" asked Kai, baffled. "Why not have me face all of her accomplices? Surely, they all should face justice?"
Incubus laughed. "You keep that thought in mind, young one."
"I'm fourteen years older than you are," grumbled Kai under his breath.
"I suppose you may face one of her accomplices," said Inc, summoning a completely new pony. This one also wore a full set of black plate mail, but the lining on this one was a very light blue, almost silver in appearance.
"This time, the rules are different. If you are knocked down, you keep fighting. Only by killing your opponents can you succeed, and if you die, you fail," explained Incubus, going back to his new favorite perch. "Aaaaand.. Go!"
The fight began with the newest accomplice jumping first, accompanied by the immediate reaction of the green gladiator. Kai was able to dodge most of the heavier hits, but he was also clipped a few times. The odds were against him, yes, as he was both unarmored and facing a force twice his size, but he somehow managed to keep up with both of them.
The silver one seemed to fight with such ferocity as Kai had never seen, launching several attacks in short bursts, followed by a short pause, then a more powerful strike. The turquoise one, on the other hoof, was quick to hit where Kai was vulnerable. It seemed as if she was trying to exploit his weakest points, but how could she possibly know where those were?
After a few minutes of nonstop action, Kai managed to kick to silver one in the neck hard enough that he heard the vertebrae snap. as the first of his foes lay on the grass, bleeding, slowly creating a small pool, Kai smiled. His only thoughts were that he was protecting his love, and that she was almost safe.
In a short moment of opportunity, the turquoise one fell back a few steps, then dove low at Kai's hind legs. She received a blow to the side of her head that knocked her backward, a corpse.
"I've won your game, Inc," said Kai, smiling at the dreamwalker. "Release me!"
"No," was Inc's response. "You haven't learned anything.
"I've played your game! I've won! I have the strength and drive to defeat those who bring suffering to others! What more do I need!?"
Without a word, Incubus stood, and trudged over to his apparition, with the turquoise trimmed armor. She had landed right next to the silver one, their lives both extinguished. As Kai approached, Incubus slid their helmets off. The resulting imagery caused the victor of the duel to lose his imaginary lunch over the imaginary flowers.
"Look, and see what you have done," commanded Incubus. When Kai continued to look away, Inc grabbed his ear and dragged his face next to the two cadavers at his hooves. He now understood why the silver one had been next to unyielding in his onslaught, and how the turquoise one had known his every weakness. From inside the silver suit, Kai looked up at himself, the shock of death written on his face permanently. from withing the turquoise armor, Fluttershy stared up at him, her entire face begging, 'why?'
"The repercussions of your choices affect everypony, Kai," said Incubus, placing his hoof on Kai's shoulder, only to have it shrugged off. "Just because Fluttershy is the kindest soul in existence, doesn't mean that she cannot cause hurt. She is part of the reason that everything is in chaos right now, no matter how she tries to fix it."
After a few minutes of watching Kai crying into the illusion of Fluttershy's neck, Incubus decided that it was time to continue on. "She is trying to fix the problem, you know. She may not regret her actions, but she wishes she could have been stronger when she and her friends were holding back the real cause of this disaster. It's only partially her fault because she was unable to keep the problem from occurring. My suggestion to you is to stop believing that she can do no wrong, because that's stupid. I want you to instead, try to believe that she means only the best, and she wants somepony to be with her when she needs them."
And with those words of sorrow, Incubus left, leaving Kai to the makings of his own mind. The entire world went black, and all but he and the last apparition remained. As a word formed in his mind, it was burned into the side of his environment. And then again, and again, and again. Over and over, as the word kept repeating in his head, it burned itself into the blackness. No change in the word occurred, and never did it stop. Opening his eyes, he saw, riddled everywhere along the walls, floor, and ceiling: Why?
[Complete!]
It was very late by the time Kai got home from Canterlot, he was dead tired. the only thing keeping him awake as he opened and closed his bedroom door was the thought that his bed was only three steps away. As he collapsed onto his right side, he smiled. His bed was comfortable, yes, but it was even more comfortable if you entered it without any energy to spare.
Within seconds, Kai had fallen asleep, and was delightfully enraptured in the surreal void that made up his subconscious mind. But just as he started to enjoy himself, a familiar voice chimed in.
"Hello, Kai," said Incubus, waving as he approached.
"Incubus?" wondered Kai aloud. "I didn't call you here, which means you must be here to inform me of something," he reasoned.
"Indeed I am, my friend," assured Incubus, now close enough to Kai that he could see that Incubus hadn't his typical cocky smile, nor his aggravated 'you called me here for this?' look. His face was a serious one, leading Kai to suspect the worst.
"Well, let's hear it, then," said Kai, bracing himself for the worst.
"There will come a time, soon, when you will have to make a choice," said Incubus. With a wave of his hoof, the black and blue swirls that had made up their environment disappeared, replaced with a small meadow surrounded by a short stone wall. "If you cannot choose correctly, lives may be the cost."
Kai was a bit confused, undrstandably. "What choice? I can't make a choice when I have no options."
"You will see," smiled Incubus, as the sky turned a dark green color. Down from the clouds drifted six other ponies, all garbed in full plate mail. "These apparitions are here on my calling. They are figments of your imagination, nothing more. No matter what you do, you cannot harm them in any way. Likewise, they cannot harm you. And... BEGIN!!"
Without a moment's hesitation, the first gladiator jumped at Akaitora, , coming down on his chest. He could feel the wind being knocked out of him the instant contact was made, and he fell to the ground, coughing and gasping.
"Stop, stop stop," chuckled Inc, walking up to Kai.
"I thought you said they couldn't harm me?" he gasped, climbing back to his hooves.
"The pain you think you feel isn't real," said Incubus, circling his apparitions, which had fallen back into line. "You only think they harmed you, when in reality, you're safe and sound, lying peacefully in your bed. And as long as I hold this," he held up a pocketwatch that had stopped ticking, "You will stay there. Consider this involuntary express simulated combat training," he chuckled.
Kai knew there was no point in arguing with a dreamwalker in his own realm. The only way out of this was to play Incubus' game. He stared at each of the fully armored fighters in turn. All of their mail was black, save for the trim, which was unique to each of them. One green, one blue, one indigo, one violet, one turquoise, and the last magenta. "So you want me to destroy them?" he questioned, not letting his guard down after the last time.
"That's up to you," said Incubus, walking to a log he had just created, and sitting down. "Or at least, at this point, it is. I'm going to run you through a few different scenarios, I'm going to analyse what you do, and when you're ready to understand the lesson I'm trying to teach, I'll tell you the point behind this exercise." With that, he waved his hoof, and as a bag of popcorn materialized in his hoof, the magenta gladiator jumped into the air.
After a minute of doing naught but dodging swing after swing, the second warrior jumped into the fray, this the one with the green-lined mail. two hits landed, and Kai was once more on the ground, his opponents lined up. As soon as he was back on his hooves, Inc shouted, "Again!" and the conflict started all over again. This time, Kai struck back at the apparitions, even going so far as to land a few hits. He made it through the magenta, green, and indigo before the blue one got him from behind, knocking him on his face.
"Again!"
Counter attacking got him to the Purple one, right after the blue.
"Again!"
Fighting low to the ground only brought him to the indigo.
"Again!"
Parrying every blow brought him to the green fighter.
"Again!" shouted Incubus.
"No! shouted Kai back, annoyed at losing the fight. "One against six is never an even fight! Lower their count, or I shan't stand again!"
Incubus shook his head, stood up, and walked over to Kai. "Why do you fight?"
It was a silly question, with an obvious answer. "To protect myself, and those I love. Also, because if I don't play your stupid game, I may never wake."
"Focus on your second answer," said Incubus, laying his hoof on Kai's shoulder. "Who do you love?"
Immediately, a small group of ponies materialized behind Incubus. Kai was able to identify all of them: "My father, Admiral Sufferthorn. My mother, Red Maison. My brothers, Usutora and Almond Bark," he said, looking at each of them in turn.
"And who else?" asked Incubus, with a smile. Without any hesitation, Kai felt the warmth of hooves around his neck, and heated breath against his chin. As if on instinct, he gingerly brought his left hoof forward, and wrapped it around nothing. It was the idea that counted, though.
"Fight them as if you are doing it for her, and I will even the odds," smirked Incubus, returning to his seat, and his snack. "Now, begin!"
With renewed vigor, Kai had no trouble beating the odds, and taking down all six of the warriors with ease. This apparently warranted applause from Incubus, for he was giving as much.
"Well done, lad, well done," said Inc, waving his hoof, causing all but the turquoise one to disappear.
Kai was more than a little bit confused. "I've just proven that I can beat all six of them, and now you want me to tone it down to one? What's the catch?"
"The conditions of this one are easy," said Incubus, walking over to the final apparition. "This pony is responsible for causing the suffering and misery of countless other ponies. Her actions, along with those of her accomplices, have cracked the very fabric of reality, and they are, at least in part, responsible for all of the bizarre happenings and misfortune of late."
"Then why only her?" asked Kai, baffled. "Why not have me face all of her accomplices? Surely, they all should face justice?"
Incubus laughed. "You keep that thought in mind, young one."
"I'm fourteen years older than you are," grumbled Kai under his breath.
"I suppose you may face one of her accomplices," said Inc, summoning a completely new pony. This one also wore a full set of black plate mail, but the lining on this one was a very light blue, almost silver in appearance.
"This time, the rules are different. If you are knocked down, you keep fighting. Only by killing your opponents can you succeed, and if you die, you fail," explained Incubus, going back to his new favorite perch. "Aaaaand.. Go!"
The fight began with the newest accomplice jumping first, accompanied by the immediate reaction of the green gladiator. Kai was able to dodge most of the heavier hits, but he was also clipped a few times. The odds were against him, yes, as he was both unarmored and facing a force twice his size, but he somehow managed to keep up with both of them.
The silver one seemed to fight with such ferocity as Kai had never seen, launching several attacks in short bursts, followed by a short pause, then a more powerful strike. The turquoise one, on the other hoof, was quick to hit where Kai was vulnerable. It seemed as if she was trying to exploit his weakest points, but how could she possibly know where those were?
After a few minutes of nonstop action, Kai managed to kick to silver one in the neck hard enough that he heard the vertebrae snap. as the first of his foes lay on the grass, bleeding, slowly creating a small pool, Kai smiled. His only thoughts were that he was protecting his love, and that she was almost safe.
In a short moment of opportunity, the turquoise one fell back a few steps, then dove low at Kai's hind legs. She received a blow to the side of her head that knocked her backward, a corpse.
"I've won your game, Inc," said Kai, smiling at the dreamwalker. "Release me!"
"No," was Inc's response. "You haven't learned anything.
"I've played your game! I've won! I have the strength and drive to defeat those who bring suffering to others! What more do I need!?"
Without a word, Incubus stood, and trudged over to his apparition, with the turquoise trimmed armor. She had landed right next to the silver one, their lives both extinguished. As Kai approached, Incubus slid their helmets off. The resulting imagery caused the victor of the duel to lose his imaginary lunch over the imaginary flowers.
"Look, and see what you have done," commanded Incubus. When Kai continued to look away, Inc grabbed his ear and dragged his face next to the two cadavers at his hooves. He now understood why the silver one had been next to unyielding in his onslaught, and how the turquoise one had known his every weakness. From inside the silver suit, Kai looked up at himself, the shock of death written on his face permanently. from withing the turquoise armor, Fluttershy stared up at him, her entire face begging, 'why?'
"The repercussions of your choices affect everypony, Kai," said Incubus, placing his hoof on Kai's shoulder, only to have it shrugged off. "Just because Fluttershy is the kindest soul in existence, doesn't mean that she cannot cause hurt. She is part of the reason that everything is in chaos right now, no matter how she tries to fix it."
After a few minutes of watching Kai crying into the illusion of Fluttershy's neck, Incubus decided that it was time to continue on. "She is trying to fix the problem, you know. She may not regret her actions, but she wishes she could have been stronger when she and her friends were holding back the real cause of this disaster. It's only partially her fault because she was unable to keep the problem from occurring. My suggestion to you is to stop believing that she can do no wrong, because that's stupid. I want you to instead, try to believe that she means only the best, and she wants somepony to be with her when she needs them."
And with those words of sorrow, Incubus left, leaving Kai to the makings of his own mind. The entire world went black, and all but he and the last apparition remained. As a word formed in his mind, it was burned into the side of his environment. And then again, and again, and again. Over and over, as the word kept repeating in his head, it burned itself into the blackness. No change in the word occurred, and never did it stop. Opening his eyes, he saw, riddled everywhere along the walls, floor, and ceiling: Why?
[Complete!]