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Hell Yeah

by sunnypack

Chapter 11: 11 - Hell Hath No Fury Like a Demon Scorned

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Chapter 11: Hall Hath No Fury Like a Demon Scorned

When you are bound to the mortal plane as a demon, the moment of summoning affixes our essence to the plane, much like a fishing line with a hook. When we are released, the process is called ‘apotheosis’, the elevation of one’s essence from the mortal plane. This can only happen when a demon is willing to let go, and this is almost always the case.

The antonym of this is ‘nadir’. This occurs when a demon is too attached to the mortal plane and that fishing line can no longer be ‘cut’. The demon will be bound to that plane and their essence starts to fuse with their mortal container. They could become mortal. They could die.

When Amethyst left us to our own devices, Twilight touched back on the topic I wanted to stay buried forever.

“How do we get you back to the Other?”

“Let’s just concentrate on Alma, shall we?”

Twilight looked like she wanted to add something, but when she saw my look, she swallowed it back down forcefully and nodded weakly instead.

“Okay.” She cleared her throat. “I actually found something interesting.”

“Really? What is it?”

Twilight hesitated briefly, then tugged on a book a the bottom of a teetering column of literary works. The tome was yanked out and the stack came crashing down, sending books flying everywhere. I shot her a frustrated look, dodging a wayward thesis on the particulate matters.

“Oops, sorry.”

“You’re going to have to fix that habit.” Who knows what poor soul will be reduced to a flattened organic smear by her tower-collapsing antics? I bent over, picking up each book with a sigh. “By the Other, for someone so focused on being organised you really need to—is that the book from Level 6?”

Twilight blushed as she coughed pitifully. “Uhm… yes?”

“This is really careless for such an advanced magus.” I raked my claws through my scalp, pursing my lips in condemnation. “Well, whatever, we went through this yesterday.”

I think a ten minute lecture was good enough. Twilight, I got the feeling, was more hung up on the fact that she didn’t fill out her borrower’s checkout details. She was flustered there wasn’t a counter to check it out.

That little detail, in all fairness, prompted the rest of the nine minute lecture, rather than it ending on a quick summary of why it’s wrong to take incredibly dangerous objects of magic from their places of rest and carry them with you where they could be stolen, used against you, lost, used against you, damaged, used against you, and did I mention being used against you?

“I, erm, was keeping an eye on it.” Twilight nodded emphatically. “Yep. That’s it. So, lucky it was handy when I was researching a way to send Alma back. I happened to think of using it when I accidentally flipped it open and started seeing stuff around it. Accidentally. Then I finally figured out how it worked. All by accident.”

“Uhuh. Accidentally.”

“Really! Accidentally!”

I gave her an admonishing stare a few moments longer before sighing and shaking my head. “Right, so about the banishment spell?”

Twilight pouted. “Is that what we’re calling it now?”

“Hey, whenever you come up with names, it’s always dumb.”

“Smartypants isn’t a dumb name!”

“Yes it is.”

“No it isn’t!”

“Yes it—why am I arguing with a foal?”

“Yeah, you’re dumb.” Twilight stuck out her tongue.

“Excuse me, I happen to be much older than you, so you have to listen to what I say.”

“How old are you?”

“Old.”

Twilight puffed her cheeks out. “Well I summoned you, so you have to do what I say.”

“Well I… ugh—” I folded my arms “—you know what? Name it whatever. Tell me what you managed to find out.”

Twilight pursed her lips, but didn’t continue with the argument. She opened ‘The Encyclopaedia’ and then flipped to a blank page about a third of the way in.

“Look, this book isn’t actually blank, it writes things when you ask it questions.”

“What?”

“Exactly. See?”

Question: What is the Encyclopaedia (disambiguation-linguistic-interpreter-constructive-maxtrix)?

Answer: ‘The Encyclopaedia’ is a construct of magic that is designed to answer any question the Owner—or whoever the Owner allows—posed to it. It currently takes the form of a book and binds itself to the Owner, the first living being The Encyclopaedia accepts. If the book has been previously claimed, the transfer of ownership occurs after death. Upon death, The Encyclopaedia chooses the next Owner by residing in a location close to the next Owner candidate.

I stared at the sentences that appeared as my eyes scanned the page. One moment the page was blank, but when my eyes swept across the page, the words would appear. Disturbingly, the words were written in Aeticulation, the language of the Other. In other words, it either knew I was a demon, or it knew I knew Aeticulation. Both conclusions were equally worrying.

“So this book answers your questions.”

“Right.” Twilight looked like she could read the writing as well.

“What language do you see written there?”

Twilight peered at the book. “Equestrian.”

So the book adapted the language based upon the reader. It didn’t seem picky about showing me the information. So I decided to ask it a question.

“Hey, book, do you know how to send a demon back to the Other?”

Question: How to send a demon back to the Other.

Answer: There are many methods of sending a demon back to the Other. One of the more common methods is to dismiss the demon using a ‘dismissal’ spell. This is one of the first spells summoners usually learn. A dismissal spell will allow the demon to return, however the demon may not be summoned by the same summoner afterwards—

“No! What?” Twilight squeaked.

I looked at Twilight. “Didn’t you know that?”

“No…” Twilight glanced up from the book to look at me. “What happens if I try to summon a demon I’ve dismissed?”

I shrugged. “I don’t know. But since I’ve never seen a summoner successfully summon the same demon twice, I’m guessing that the spell either fails or…”

“Or…?” Twilight shifted her hooves. “Or what?”

“Or the magus that attempted the spell perishes,” I reluctantly admitted. “So after you dismiss a demon, you must never attempt to summon them again.”

Twilight hesitated, so to make sure, I stressed my next sentence emphatically, whilst holding eye contact with her.

“Promise me, Twilight. Don’t ever try to attempt to summon a demon twice.”

Twilight nodded glumly as she bit her lip. “I won’t.”

“Good. Cheer up, Twilight, that’s not really a problem to consider with me.” I laughed huskily, forcing a smile. “I’ll be stuck here anyway.”

Twilight shook her head. “Morpheus, you once told me that promises mean a lot to you.”

“Yes, and…?”

“And that breaking a promise was not in a demon’s nature.”

“So…?”

“So I’ve decided that I have to figure out a way to send you back, no matter what.”

“You don’t have to do that, Twilight.”

“I do. And I will. I promise.”

I felt touched, really, but I wanted to set her straight. “You can’t, though.”

“How come?”

“It’s impossible.”

Twilight stomped her hoof. “Says who?”

I hunched my shoulders. “It’s just a natural fact. There’s something about being sentimental in the mortal plane that hooks us in and attaches us here. When we care we just… can’t go back. I don’t know why.”

“Morpheus, what exactly is the Other?”

Instinctively I opened my mouth to reply, but I couldn’t dredge up something meaningful. I couldn’t express it.

“Well, it’s… it’s home. A demon sanctuary.”

Twilight tilted her head. “What’s it like there?”

“It’s… peaceful, you just be. There’s nothing to worry about. There’s nothing to fear. There’s nothing to compel you to do anything for anyone.” I smiled blissfully. “You’re free.”

“What’s it like to go back to the Other? What do you actually feel there?”

I shrugged. “It’s kind of hard to explain. It’s like asking someone what’s it feel like to dream. You just… dream.”

“Okay, well, if you want to go there, then I’ll make it happen.”

I couldn’t say anything for a few seconds, but eventually swallowed and nodded. We shared a private smile but then Twilight’s eyebrows furrowed as she continued reading the passage out loud. “Oh, look, it tells us what happens when you try.”

It is unknown why the dismissal spell prevents a summoner from summoning the same demon twice. This is likely due to the way contractual summonings are structured. To link the two planes, a great amount of energy is expended, which puts strain on the user. Dismissing or summoning the demon requires sinking this energy through the original caster by attachment of a strong bond between the demon and the caster. To create this bond, a unique signature tying the two entities together is generated. This signature imprint will cause a magical harmonic resonance cascade to build within the summoner after successive summoning and dismissal. This resonance cannot usually be tolerated by the summoner more than twice, often causing sudden, unexpected, death. To date, no summoners have survived a harmonic resonance cascade more than twice.

Twilight cocked her head. “Signatures, huh? Then it’s tied to both summoner and demon.”

I sighed. “That’s definitely out of the question, then.”

Twilight nodded glumly. “Okay, well, other than the dismissal spell, there should be other ways to send you back. See here?”

Another less known way to send a demon back to the Other is to use a ‘displacement’ spell. This involves invoking a spell that substitutes a demon from the Other for another. Unfortunately, there are many drawbacks to using this spell. For brevity, three drawbacks will be listed. One, although the demon in question is sent back, the length of casting is roughly equivalent to the time that demon has spent in the mortal plane. Two, the demon substitute will not be bound by the summoner or by the caster, hence it is very likely that the caster may be in mortal danger. Three—

“We can’t use this spell,” I muttered.

Twilight set her jaw and jabbed at the next page, skipping past the rest of the displacement spell. “But there’s one more,” she continued desperately, “there’s one more way.”

Not holding high hopes, I returned to the book.

The final method to send a demon back to the Other is to use a ‘carrier’ spell. Though this spell has been mentioned, there have been no instances of this spell being utilised successfully. The carrier spell currently resides in the Library, Level 7.

“Level 7!” Twilight gasped. “There’s a Level 7?”

I glanced sidelong at Twilight. “Of course there is, and it happens to be past Alma.” A sudden thought struck me. “Book, can you give us a copy of the carrier spell?”

Question: Can the carrier spell be reproduced in this book?

Answer: No. The Encyclopaedia is a reference on present knowledge.

“What?”

Without me direct prompting it, the book started filling the pages as we watched.

Question: What is the scope of the Encyclopaedia?

Answer: Not infinite. It contains the knowledge of all living beings within a sectified area of exclusion bifurcated from the apex of the Owner’s thaumological midpoint. The ability to answer is directly proportional to the reserve of magic within the Owner.

“What?”

Question: Would you please explain it in a way that non-technical beings can understand?

Answer: More magic = More knowledge.

“I get the feeling that this book is mocking me,” I muttered, as Twilight giggled. “Are you mocking me?”

For some highly suspicious reason, the book didn’t answer.

“I doubt it.” Twilight grinned at me. “Good try, though.”

I glared at the book and then gave up with a sigh. “There’s quite a bit of information in the book, but it doesn’t seem like it has everything.”

“That’s true,” Twilight said, “but we have a lead now! The ‘carrier’ spell!”

“Yeah, oh, wait, there’s something I have to tell you about your father.”

Twilight glanced up in shock. “Huh? What about my dad?”

“I met him earlier today; we were both chasing down a sprite.”

“What was he doing with you?”

“At the time I was a guard, and there was a… stricken pony.”

Twilight frowned at me. “You mean… dead?”

I winced. “Yes, dead.”

Twilight rolled her eyes. “I’m a little young, but I know that ponies sometimes… die. Celestia’s sake, you were talking about killing me when you were first summoned!”

I hunched my shoulders. “Hey, come on, that’s not fair, I didn’t know who you were back then.”

Twilight nudged me playfully. “Now you know and you’re suddenly thinking about my age and being nice?” She stuck out her tongue. “Try a little harder.”

“Why is it you have such a backbone around me, but not Amethyst?”

Twilight flopped to the table. “It’s different, and you’re off-topic! What’s up with my dad?”

“Oh, right, yeah, the sprite. It told me in Aeticulation that one of my former, erm, friends was in the plane.”

“What?”

“I know right? I haven’t seen him in ages and he’s not really good news.”

“No, I mean, what’s Aeticulation?”

I blinked at Twilight. “The primal language. Didn’t you use it in your summoning spell?”

Twilight’s eyes widened. “Oh, so that’s what it was. I thought I was just making random sounds.” She squealed. “Is that a new language? Can you teach me?”

“Erm, how about later? So… about my potentially murderous acquaintance…”

“I thought you said he was your friend?”

“Oh, well, friend is a strong way to put it…”

“Morpheus… you have that guilty look in your eye. What did you do?”

“Not much… by demon standards.”

“What’s that supposed to mean?”

“I might have left him alone.”

“Oh, that doesn’t sound so bad.”

“In an Astral Pendant.”

“Okay… but that’s—”

“That might have been thrown into a latrine pit.”

“Right, but…”

“For a hundred years.”

“Wait…”

“I might have also sent as much of the said latrine’s contents into the Pendant with him, so he’d smell such latrine’s contents for a hundred years.”

“…”

“I might have also sent in an indestructible Swearing Stone in there as well.”

“…”

“That could have also been couple with a rubbernecked—”

“Alright!” Twilight interrupted quickly. “I think I get the idea! What in the name of Celestia prompted you to do all that?!”

“Promise me you won’t re-evaluate your whole opinion of me by my answer?”

Twilight pursed her lips and didn’t reply.

I stared back, but eventually lost the battle of wills.

“… I was a little bored.”

“Morpheus!”

“What? Come on! I was under orders from a rival magus to make his punishment as humiliating and painful as I could possibly imagine.” I shrugged uncomfortably. “I didn’t really have a choice, and also he was a really annoying demon!”

Twilight’s ears flopped back down as she pulled a meek expression. “Sorry, Morpheus, I keep forgetting you were forced to do some pretty mean things.”

“Oh, well, that’s nothing. It’s sort of a back and forth thing with us. I mean last time he took my skin and—” I stopped halfway, realising who I was speaking to just in time “—and did something that we won’t talk about ever again.”

Twilight looked at me with wide eyes before swallowing thickly. “So what happens if you meet him?”

“We’ll probably try to kill each other on sight.”

Twilight scratched her chin as her eyebrows drew together in concentration. “Should we keep a lookout for him, then?”

I shook my head. “Oh, well, that’d be a useless exercise, he’s a tricky demon.”

“How so?”

“Oh, well, his domain is Time.”

“Time… that’s tricky.”

I rolled my eyes. “You’re telling me.”

Twilight tilted her head. “What about domains?”

“Yeah, I never explained the concept of domains to you, right?” I folded my arms as I sat back down. “Okay, this is really important, so you better listen carefully. Each demon has a domain for which they have control over. The more powerful the demon, the more encompassing their domain is. For example, Alma’s domain is a basic one: Telepathy.”

“Wait, so she could listen to my thoughts?”

“Yes, and she still can right now, even when she’s petrified, that’s what makes her dangerous. No mortal would be a match for her.”

“So how were you able to block her attack, then?”

“Ah, good pickup, that’s because demon domains are mutually exclusive. When you are with me, my domain extends around me to encompass you. And since we share a bond, this domain protects you as long as you’re close to me.”

“Thank you.”

“No, thank Zachrand, whoever that one is, their pentacle design incorporated the use of demonic domains.”

Twilight smiled at me. “All the same, thank you.”

I shrugged uncomfortably. “Don’t mention it.” Twilight’s smile froze as I stared at her with a serious demeanour. “No, seriously, don’t mention it. If you talk about demon domains, they generally lose a bit of their power.”

“Why is that?”

“I have no idea, only that it’s not a good idea to keep talking about your domain. I’m fine with revealing Alma’s domain because she’s not here and doing so will weaken her domain as well. Also I get the feeling that Alma isn’t really on friendly terms with me right now.”

“Doesn’t she want your help?”

“Yeah, but she has a tendency to make accompany magi around me meet a mortal end.”

“You mean she likes you but not me?”

“Exactly, but I think I can get her to not kill you if you can bring a spell that will let her go to the Other.”

“You mean the spell that is most likely guarded by her.”

I sighed. “Yep, that spell.”

Twilight pursed her lips, then her ears twitched as her eyes widened. She drew out her library pass. “You don’t think these passes have access to all of the library, do you?”

I gaped at her. “No, there’s no way that could—”

—————————

“—Work! Damn it Twilight, at least let me finish my sentence before you give it a shot! Oh sheeeeeeeep!”

“Baaa!”

“Why are there sheep here?!”

Twilight muffled voice resounded not far from where I was, which was chin-deep in sheep fluff.

“Ahm moffer feeer!”

“You’re over there?”

“Yef!”

I waded through the mass of sheep and dragged a gasping foal out of the wanton pile of sheep. Twilight almost lost her saddlebags as she held me in a death grip.

“Dear Celestia!” she wheezed. “I think I almost suffocated!”

“I think I have wool in my mouth,” I mumbled back, spitting a clod of sheep off-cut from my jaws. “I’ll have to admit, your idea did work. These passes are pretty useful.”

“Baa!”

“Shut up.”

“Baa!”

I picked up the fluffiest looking one and almost threw it, but Twilight sent me an admonishing glare.

“Don’t throw the sheep!”

“Come on, just a little?”

“Morpheus!”

“Oh fine.” I set the fluff ball down. It sort of did a bounce and a hop and then settled on the ground.

“Baa!”

“Quiet, you.” With one last glare at the sheep around me, I hefted Twilight and considered our situation. “Let’s get out of here, the passes clearly malfunctioned and we’re stuck in the middle of a flock of sheep.” I growled menacingly at the sheep around me, but they just stared at me dumbly and went back to chewing the grass placidly. “They don’t even respond right.”

Twilight was about to jump out of my grasp but looked at the sea of wool around her and had second thoughts.

“Morpheus, umm…”

“What?”

“Can you carry me across?”

“I’m doing that right now, you know.”

“Yeah, uhm, thanks.”

I took a step and hefted her in my arms as we made our way through what looked like an endless sea of sheep. “No problems, but Twilight?”

“Yeah?”

“You should lose some weight, you’re a little heavy.”

I got smacked for that, but that didn’t stop my smug grin.

—————————

You know, you might think that a being covered in fluff would be a pleasant experience. Many mortals have dreams of floating on clouds or touching something soft and poofy, but the reality was that sheep were really uncomfortable.

And smelly.

Wading through sheep was a tough experience and the sheep didn’t help either. I went forward in one direction, following the ‘sun’ which was a singular white point in the sky. I was almost sure we weren’t in the library, and the passes wouldn’t work, so we were trapped in the unending flock of sheep and though it was slight, the sheep all seemed to be moving with a steady pace against or movements. We were fighting against the tide of sheep.

I think there was a metaphor in here about this somewhere, but I couldn’t think of it. It was probably lost in all this wool.

It was difficult to force ourselves past the unyielding, uncooperative walls of wool and I think at one point I begged Twilight to set them all on fire.

Unfortunately she rejected the idea with no small amount of emphasis.

“Baa!”

I grit my teeth.

“Just a little longer, Morpheus, I’m working on a spell.”

“Is it a spell to eliminate all these sheep?”

“No, that’s horrible, it’s a levitating spell so we can check out our surroundings. I’m alright with lifting other objects, but it’s harder the heavier they get. I don’t think I’ve lifted a full-grown pony before, let alone a demon.”

“Oh, that’s pretty useful.”

“Mmhmm.” Twilight was reading a book while I held her aloft from the woolly expanse. “There’s nothing written in the Encyclopaedia.”

“Doesn’t that book only work based on a function of other beings around it?”

Twilight nodded. “I wonder where the Encyclopaedia got the information for the carrier spell?”

“Maybe Celestia knew it?”

Twilight didn’t answer, but I think she agreed with me the way her eyes narrowed briefly.

“In any case,” I continued, “I think I actually see something up ahead.”

“Really, are you sure?”

“No, there’s so much wool, I can barely see in front of me, let alone above these insipid creatures.”

“Oh, they’re not that bad, Morpheus.”

“I’m going to drop you into them.”

“No! No! They’re bad! Whatever you say! I wanna breathe!”

I chuckled evilly.

“You’re such a meanie.” Twilight sulked. “Don’t play tricks like that.”

“I’m just teasing you.” I set her on the sheep. “But this—”

I turned invisible.

“Morpheus?”

Silence greeted Twilight. At first she looked around but couldn’t spot me. Then suddenly the sheep underneath her moved. “I’m going to fall, Moepheus!”

“Haha!” I craned my neck and shapeshifted back. “I was the sheep!”

“Morpheus!” Twilight hugged me tight. “What was that all about?”

“It’s just a prank, Twilight.” I patted her on the back. “When you get more friends, you’re going to have to get used to pranks like these.” At least, that’s what I once read. Was this still considered a prank, or just being mean? Is there some sort of pranking expert I could consult with?

Twilight blinked at me and laughed weakly.

“Oh… haha… good one?” Then Twilight bit her lip as I picked her up as she hugged me. “You think I’ll make some friends?” she asked hopefully. “I mean, other than you, not that you aren’t great…”

I rolled my eyes but gave her a sincere-enough answer. “Sure, but you just need to show some grit. Give them some of that magus-backed confidence.”

“Uhm, yeah… but how do I do that?”

“Challenge them all to a duel and then emerge as the all-powerful, all knowing, absolute dictator of the foals in your class. Then work your way up the school.”

It was very telling how far Twilight had come with me when she just snorted instead of taking my bait. I opted for a more gentle approach.

“Or you could just cast a spell to turn their coat into a different colour. Like sea-green, or something.”

Twilight giggled. “Sea-green isn’t such a bad colour.”

“So try seaweed green. Also maybe just change their mane, or something.”

“What do you have against green?”

“Nothing… much.” I quickly switched the topic. “You could charm them all into wanting some kind of toy you have, like a doll or something. I’m sure there are charm spells available for that sort of wanting or needing sensation. I think they’d gladly be your friend in exchange for the doll you worked hard on. Win-win.”

Twilight shook her head. “I’d never do that!” She tabbed me in the shoulder. “How about something that doesn’t directly involve me casting a spell on a pony?”

“You could set the school on fire and save a few foals in an elaborate plan that makes you out to be a hero. I heard that sort of thing makes friends. No spells casted on anypony. Problem solved!”

Twilight rolled her eyes. “Morpheus, I know what you’re trying to do.”

“What?”

“You’re just listing weird and random things so that in comparison talking to them won’t be so bad.”

“Eh… I don’t know what you’re talking about. I’m pretty sure setting the school on fire is a great plan. Action, screaming, what more could you want?”

Twilight giggled. “Alright, but I’m not going to do that. I think I’ll just talk to a couple of ponies first.”

“Atta girl. Show Amethyst you’re better than her in every way.”

“W-Who said anything about Amethyst?”

“I did. Why don’t you try and make friends with her?”

“She won’t want to be friends with me.”

“Well, maybe she does. Have you tried?”

“Yeah, before.”

“How about recently?”

“No…”

“Then give it a go.”

“Fine.” Twilight folded her arms. Then something occurred to her and her ears pricked up. “She likes you, you know.”

“Can you not talk about that?”

“She liiiiiiiiiikes you.”

“Quiet, you.”

“It’s just a prank, Morpheus.”

“Twilight… I think I’m going to have to teach you the difference between teasing and pranking.”

“What’s the difference?”

“It has to be fun.”

Twilight grinned maniacally. “It is to me! So she liiikes you.”

“Oh by the damned Other!” I flipped her around and onto my shoulders, jolting her out of her smug grin as she yelped in surprise. “Okay, look over there, see anything?”

“Changing the subject but—oh, uhm, there’s a light?”

“Yep, I thought there were two suns here, but that’s just an incredibly powerful light source.”

“How can there be two suns?”

“Why does it only have to be one?”

“Erm, well, actually, judging by the—”

I interrupted Twilight before she could interject with some long-winded explanation. “Can you see anything else near the light?”

“Is that an owl?”

“Why is there an owl here? That doesn’t make any sense.”

“Why does an owl make less sense than a field of sheep?”

“… Good point.”

“Should we go over there?”

I glanced back the way we came but since there were only the tops of sheep to show me, I couldn’t remember exactly how far we’ve come and there was no marker to tell us where we came from.

“I don’t think there’s a choice,” I finally said. “Let’s go find out what that owl is.”

We made our way through the thicket of soon-to-be mutton-if-I-had-to-spend-any-more-time-around-them… sheep.

Twilight flicked an ear at my deep-throated growl. “Patience, Morpheus, we’re almost there.”

“You’re not the one wading through the pile of wannabe sweaters.”

“Don’t be mean, Morpheus, they’re kinda cute.”

“Oh, you’re slipping there.”

“I lied, I lied! They’re ugly! Don’t drop me!”

Hiding a sneaky grin, I waded through last stretch of annoying jumbucks. The owl waved a friendly wing at us as we approached it. It was perched on a flagpole attached to the side of the stone wall lighthouse. The source of light was leaking through one of the windows of the lighthouse, but it seemingly stuck in one position. Honestly, we were lucky to have seen it at all.

“Who?”

Twilight giggled. “I’m Twilight and this is Morpheus. May I know your name?”

I sighed. “Twilight, a bird can’t talk.”

“Greetings, Twilight and Morpheus. I do not have a name, but you are free to call me as you wish.”

“Well I’ll be. A talking owl.” I cocked my head at it. “How come you can speak?”

“How can you, demon?” It gestured to Twilight. “Should you not be questioning why these ponies can as well?”

“Good point, sorry for asking, but here’s a better question: what are you doing out here in the middle of nowhere and how do you know I’m a demon?”

“I just do.” The owl flexed its wings proudly as it puffed its chest out. “I know everything within this library and that includes those who have been in it.”

“How long have you been waiting?”

“Long. As long as the Library has been around.”

“Oh, so what are you doing here?”

“Waiting.”

“Waiting for what?”

“For a shepherd, of sorts.”

I glanced around at the sheep. There weren’t any near the lighthouse, but I glared at them nevertheless. I didn’t want them to get any ideas of trampling us, or something.

“Really? Is that what the sheep are for?”

The owl chuckled. “No, no, not at all, these sheep are just here for my amusement. I was here a long time, you see. Just here. Just existing.”

“Huh, how long, exactly?”

“Oh, probably as long as the Library has been around.”

“… How long has the Library been around?”

The owl blinked slowly at me.

“Long.”

I sighed. “Come on, Twilight, we’re wasting our time with this crazy owl. There’s a door here.”

“No, Morpheus, I want to talk to the owl.”

“Why? It’s being obstinate.”

“You’re being too impolite.” Twilight smiled. “Hello, owl!”

“Hello, Twilight,” it replied genially. “How may I help you?”

“Erm, okay, so a quick question: what happens if we try to go through the door?”

“I would imagine nothing.”

“See? It’s safe,” I told her, grabbing her hoof. “Let’s go!”

Twilight frowned and shook off my claw. “Wait, what do you mean by nothing?”

The owl blinked at Twilight. “I mean, nothing. There is absolute nothing there.”

Twilight nodded. “Absolutely nothing?”

“Yes. Nothing, absolutely.”

Just as I reached for the door, a thought occurred to me and I hurriedly retracted my claw. “You mean there’s really absolute nothing there?”

The owl nodded slowly. “There’s absolute nothing there.”

Twilight cocked her head. “What do you mean?”

I answered for the owl. “It means there is a boundless void beyond these doors. Absolute nothing in the purest sense. A sense of non-existence so powerful that you wouldn’t be able to survive the instant you make contact with it. Forget dying, this is being erased.”

Twilight shivered. “And we almost went in there?” She smiled weakly at the owl. “Erm, thank you, owl.”

“Not at all, I like to share information.”

“Why’re you thanking the owl? It almost killed us without giving us a warning!” I glared at the owl. “Couldn’t you be more specific with the information?”

The owl tilted its head and then widened its eyes. “Oh yes, yes I could have. Thank you for your feedback.” It really looked like it didn’t intend to send us to our deaths. But that just made me more annoyed. I really wanted to squeeze this owl. Preferably in a lethal manner. Instead, I took a deep breath and faked a smile.

“Is there a way out of here?” I asked through clenched teeth.

It nodded sagely. “There is.”

“And…?”

“A conjunction.”

“A what now?”

“A question, presently.”

“What?”

“A pronoun in a question.”

“That’s not what I asked.”

“Correct.”

“That’s wrong.”

“Right.”

“No!”

“Yes.”

I threw up my claws. “By the Other, this thing is even more annoying than the limitless sheep! You try!”

Twilight glanced uncertainly between me and the owl.

“Erm, Owl, could you tell us the way out of here?”

“You are both Token Bearers, hence, you may leave here anytime you wish. That is one of the reasons I have given you the tokens.”

“Wait, you’re the one who gave us these library passes?”

“Correct.”

“I thought Princess Celestia was the one who gave us these?”

“No, it was me. Who is this ‘Princess Celestia’ you speak of?”

“You don’t know who the Princess is? Isn’t this library in the castle?”

The owl preened a little, before answering. “The Library certainly isn’t anywhere. It just is.”

“That is very confusing, what’s it doing where it is?”

“My conjecture is that the certain library interloper decided to crawl through the Library and change how it worked. It set a demon loose on one of the floors, broke the fundamental wandering nature of the Library, and is trying to destroy the Library.”

“What?! There’s someone here that’s trying to destroy the Library?”

The owl flittered from the pole and settled on my shoulder. It pecked me on the ear.

“Ow.” I tried to shoo it away. “What was that for?”

“Don’t repeat questions. Destroying the Library is probably not the intention of the interloper. They are probably after the Library’s greatest treasure.”

“A treasure?”

“The Library is powered by an immense, interconnected, intelligent, core, which is located somewhere on Level 7.”

“Huh, can you tell us where this core is?”

“Somewhere on Level 7.”

I sighed. “Twilight, we’re here for the carrier spell, but there aren’t any books on this level. Just grass, sheep and a weird owl.”

“I’m not weird. I’m misunderstood.”

“That’s what weird things say.”

“Errrm, what about that ‘interloper’?”

I flicked a dismissive claw. “The owl is just making some stuff up. Let’s just find the books and get out of here.”

Twilight glanced around. “The only thing here is the lighthouse. How do we get inside?”

I turned to the owl. “Hey, how about a tip?”

“I don’t have any sort of currency with me.”

I rolled my eyes at its weak quip. “I meant, could you tell us where the entrance of the Level 7 library is?”

“You are currently within Level 7. You can enter in by using your tokens, by forcefully breaking through the Semantic Barrier separating it between Level 6 and Level 7 or by crossing the Between.”

“You know about the Between?”

“Of course. It’s within the Library.”

“What is it?”

“That’s a somewhat hard question to answer. In light of your previous input, do you fancy risking death to know?”

“Erm, no, thanks.” I shifted uncomfortably. “What exactly would happen if I knew?”

“As you are a demon, you may be a little more resilient than most against the knowledge of the abstract planes, but I cannot guarantee you will survive it.”

“Ah, how can you know about it, then?”

“I possess the capabilities to comprehend it.”

“What are you?”

“An owl.”

“No, I mean, what are you really?”

“An owl.”

“No, seriously.”

“Who?”

“Don’t start with that!”

Twilight interrupted us with a well-timed cough. “About the carrier spell…”

“Oh, right, owl, do you know how to get in this lighthouse?”

“I’m not entirely sure why you would want to enter the lighthouse.” It peered owlishly at the side of the lighthouse. “From what I can tell, the entrance is not that door.”

“That’s blatantly obvious from what you’ve told us.”

“The lighthouse is made from the same material as the Level 7 library itself, hence if you were to enter it, it would require breaking the Semantic Barrier, which would effectively destroy most things on this Level.”

“Most?”

“I would not be destroyed, however I am fairly certain you would.”

“So… there’s nothing in the lighthouse. Twilight, what does the Encyclopaedia say?”

Twilight withdrew the Encyclopaedia, manoeuvring it with her magic so that it was at face level before asking it a question.

“Where are all the books in Level 7?”

Question: Where are the books within—???

Answer: ???

“What happened?” I asked, reading the answer uneasily.

Question: What happened?

Answer: ???

I jabbed at the spine of the Encyclopaedia. “Is the book broken?”

Question: Are the Encyclopaedia’s functions nominal?

Answer: Maybe… Not.

“There might be something interfering with the Encyclopaedia.” Twilight’s conjecture was punctuated with a nod int he direction of the owl. “I haven’t seen this thing not work before.”

I scraped a claw alongside my chin as I considered the problem. “So, Encyclopaedia, can you tell us how to get out of here?”

The owl pecked me. “I already told you! The book isn’t going to tell you anything different!”

I scowled at the owl. “Why’s that?”

“Because that book contains the knowledge of beings around it. If it knew more than me about the library then that means it knows more than me, which is impos—”

The owl choked off the rest of its arguments as words began to fill the page.

Question: How do I leave Level 7?

Answer: Access the core.

“What does that mean?”

The owl slammed the book shut. “Stop that. Don’t listen to the book.”

I shooed away the owl, grabbing it by a feather-full. “What’s your problem with the Encyclopaedia?”

“It’s dumb, don’t read it!”

“Now that just makes me want to read it.”

I wrenched the book open and asked quickly, “Where’s the core?”

Question: What is the location of the core?

Answer: It is—

The owl bit my clawed hand and squirmed out of my grap, then slammed the book shut again.

“What’s your deal?!” I demanded, grabbing my claw and cradling it to my chest. That freaking hurt!

“Stop trying to pry into private matters.”

“Morpheus.” Twilight tugged at my arm as I threw up my claws. “Maybe we should listen to the owl?”

“Why’s that?”

“It looks a little upset.”

Well, I must admit, it was pretty desperate to close the book before I could even read about the core.

“It doesn’t want us to know about the core, huh.” I rolled my eyes. “Fine. We won’t pursue the core. How about that? We just want the carrier spell.”

The owl brightened. “If you ask the Encyclopaedia, it should know now.” The owl tossed its beak. “Not that it knows anything on its own.”

I pursed my lips and asked the Encyclopaedia, “Where’s the core—ow! Okay, Twilight, gees, it was just a joke. What’s the carrier spell?”

Question: What is the carrier spell?

Answer: The carrier spell is bop-da-bee-boop. It shades in a light youth culture forever. I’m seeing it some often. Rar-ara-rar-araraarrrraaaaaaaaa—

“What does that mean?” I groaned. “Why is it telling us these nonsensical answers?”

“Because I’m feeding it false information,” the owl replied somewhat smugly. “Just remembered how to do it just now.”

I responded in kind.

“Morpheus, don’t strangle the owl!” Twilight stepped in and snatched the owl out of my claws with her magic.

“It was asking for it!” I waved my arms menacingly as Twilight clutched it to her chest. “Give it over.”

“No! You’re just going to hurt it!”

“Let go of it and we can discuss matters diplomatically!”

“You won’t hurt it?”

“I will, at most, pluck a few feathers.”

“Morpheus!”

“Oh fine!” I rolled my eyes. “I won’t harm a single hair on it!”

“Birds don’t have hair! You’re just dodging the question, aren’t you, Morpheus?”

“Fine, stop being so annoying, owl.”

“Who?”

“You!”

“Who?”

I cracked my knuckles.

“Morpheus!”

“Just one bone! I’ll only break one!”

“Stop it, Morpheus.”

“Grrr. Fine!”

“Promise me you won’t hurt the owl!”

“What?”

“Promise me!”

“FFFFF—Fine! I promise I won’t hurt the owl! Are you happy?”

“And you!” Twilight turned around and jabbed the owl with her hoof. “Stop teasing Morpheus!”

“Is he upset?”

“Can’t you tell?” Twilight replied in exasperation.

“Mmm, now that you mention it, he does look rather annoyed. Okay. I will promise to be more forthcoming.”

“Whatever.” I gestured rudely in the direction of the bird and then trudged on ahead. It flittered from Twilight’s grasp and then landed on my shoulder.

“Buzz off.”

The owl nibbled my ear. “No.”

I sighed. “Why are you interfering with the Encyclopaedia? How’re you even doing that anyway?”

“Don’t you know? The Encyclopaedia gets its information from the surrounding beings, so…”

I slapped my face. “So you’re the source of information for the carrier spell?”

“Correct.”

“What do you want?” I asked it flatly.

“I want to see the outside world.”

“Can’t you just fly out?”

“I would, you see, but I need a little help doing that.”

I groaned in frustration. “Why’s that?”

“Because I can’t get out myself. Just take me with you. I’ll be super quiet. I promise.”

“How about you teach us the carrier spell and we’ll take you out of here?”

The owl didn’t even consider it and started reciting, “Certainly, the carrier spell is conjugate partition between resistive magical matrices in the form of—”

“Woah, woah, hold on! Tell all this information to Twilight.”

“Who?”

“To Twilight, stop being a smart aleck.” I clenched a claw. “Why the heck are you sticking around me anyway?”

“Because you don’t want me.”

“Exactly, so why are you sticking around me despite that?”

“Every being that has come down so far has wanted me, but you have not shown that sort of greed. I like you.”

“I don’t like you.”

“That is fine.”

“Why would anyone in their right mind want you?”

“Because of what I am.”

“And you are?”

“That’s a secret.” It winked jauntily as my expression darkened.

Finally, I rolled my eyes and let it go. “Just… go tell Twilight about the carrier spell. She’s not so bad too.”

“I agree.” The owl paused. “But I feel a little bit of greed around her. She has a thirst for knowledge that is hard to quench.”

“Go make friends with her. If you’re friends with her, you won’t have anything to worry about.”

“You are very insightful for a demon?”

“The way you phrased that statement sounded incredibly rude.”

“Regardless, I don’t think I’ve ever encountered a demon like you.”

“I’m sure you haven’t,” I replied drily. “Just go talk to Twilight, I’m sure she’s eager to make more friends.”

“… I will go to Twilight.”

It flittered off my shoulder as I grabbed Twilight and whispered into my token.

Nothing happened.

“Hey owl, how do we get out of here? I thought you said we could leave because of these tokens.”

The owl stopped talking to Twilight and hopped over. “Oh, I never said you could leave because of the tokens. I said you could leave because you are Token Bearers. It is quite simple. We just have to go Between.”

“You mean… via the Between?”

“Correct!”

I shuddered. “Noooooooo. No way. We’re not going through there again!”

The owl cocked its head curiously. “Why not? It is quite safe.”

“Have you met the Between being?”

“Mmm yes, it is quite courteous.”

“And you know that place is dangerous to mortals?”

“You are a demon, are you not?”

“Yes, but—”

“Excellent, so there won’t be any problems. Let’s go!”

“Hey, just wait a minute—”

Snap.

That was the only way I could describe it. A whip-like sensation where we were in one place at one time and suddenly not. I gawked slightly as we appeared in front of a very familiar looking frame, but whose painting reflected a different subject.

“Who’s that in the painting?” Twilight asked, with a frown.

“They are of no consequence. The gateway always disguises itself depending on the environment it is in. Although… it is extraordinarily uncreative right now, if I do say so myself.”

The painting was mounted on a bare white-plastered dry wall, situated in the middle of an empty field on top of a small hill surrounded with low cut grass. Behind us I could see the milling sheep, but I keenly aware that there were no sheep around wall, just like there were no sheep around the lighthouse.

“Where are we?” I asked the owl. “And what did you do?”

“Still on Level 7,” it replied smoothly, ignoring my pointed question about itself. It hopped off my shoulder and then landed on top of the wall, next to the painting. It made a cutting gesture with one of its wings. “Let’s get moving, chop chop.”

“Hey we’re not going back through the Between!” I snapped.

Twilight nodded. “We’re not going back if we can help it.”

The owl pondered our reactions and shrugged. “Well, do you know how to break the Semantic Barrier and survive subsequent dissolution?”

We shook our heads.

“Do you know how to construct direct-transfer teleportation squares and power them?”

“How long would that take to learn?”

“About several lifespans considering your current state. Also, you need access to an incredibly powerful source, like a star, or something of that magnitude.”

I sighed. “So there’s no other way?”

“Well…” The owl shrugged. “You could wait for the interloper to make its way down here.”

“Who is the interloper?”

“The question may not be ‘who’ the interloper is, but ‘what’. I don’t know much about the interloper,” the owl admitted flittering its wings uneasily, “but I know whatever it is, it’s powerful enough to make its way to this Level eventually. The Library won’t be able to prevent its unauthorised entry.”

“How do you know that, if you don’t know much about it in the first place?”

The owl puffed its cheeks and gave an angry hoot. “I know everything in the Library!” Its wings sagged slightly. “Except for that.” It shivered as it recalled something. “I really don’t like being ignorant.”

Twilight nodded at that. “I don’t either. Not knowing is scary, sometimes.”

“Well… let’s not stick around to find out. Are you sure the Between is the only way out?”

The owl nodded. “As far as I know. Which is pretty far.”

I rolled my eyes. “Alright, let’s touch the gateway and go through the Between.”

I braced myself, feeling Twilight clutching tight to my midriff as the owl settled back on my shoulder.

Touching the painting this time was strangely pleasant. Less of a sucking sensation and more of a falling one.

“This… doesn’t feel right,” the owl commented, much too late.

—————————

I think we hit the ground at something close to terminal velocity. When I say ‘ground’ it wasn’t really a surface, like hard you would expect, more like how do I put it? Like if the ground had been made of infinite cotton candy. Yes. Something like that.

“Oof.” Twilight landed beside me, having been separated briefly during our fall. Feeling a little guilty for not holding onto her more tightly, I called out. “Are you alright?”

“Uhh, yep. I think so.” Twilight felt the ‘floor’ and frowned. “This is a floor.”

A trickle of fear worked up my spine. “Yes, Twilight, remember, this is real.”

Twilight looked at me strangely. “Yes. It’s real. Thanks, Morpheus.”

I blinked at her. “We’re in the Between, right?”

Twilight glanced around. “I can’t tell, where’s the owl?”

“Who?”

“There you are,” I said, trying to shrink away as it swooped down and landed on my shoulder. “Where are we?”

“We are supposed to be in the Between,” the owl replied.

“What is that supposed to mean?”

“This is not exactly the Between.”

“I can see that, what do you mean this is not exactly the Between?”

The owl looked perturbed. It started peering around in the darkness.

“I… don’t know.”

“This is bad.”

A faint chuckling emanated from the darkness. A raspy voice echoed around us as it spoke.

“Oh, I do disagree, at least for now. You’ll see very soon that it’s good. Very good.”

Cursing slightly, I grabbed Twilight as the owl squawked loudly, narrowly dodging the claw that came scything through the darkness. I rolled to the side and bared my fangs in the direction the voice had come from.

Morpheus, is it? Still got great reflexes, I see.”

“Thank you, random slasher with manners.” I readied myself, eyes raking the inky blackness in front of me, trying to track down the sinister malefactor. “To whom do I owe the pleasure?”

“You can call me whatever you like, for now.” It chuckled. “Although I did like Lex. Nice and simple.”

“Well, ‘Lex’, we’re here, what do you want from me?”

“Me?” Lex put a claw to his chest. “Nothing much. Just wanted to give you compliments for attempting to help yet another poor demon soul. Alma, was it?”

He snapped his fingers, freezing our time between us. The owl gave forlorn hoot, not making it back swiftly enough to escape the swirl of his commanding domain. Twilight was inside my circle of influence so she didn’t. At once, I recognised the demon. Reflexively, I almost blurted his True Name out loud, but refrained just in time.

He caught my gesture and smiled somewhat chillingly. “I see your manners haven’t abandoned you, Morpheus. That’s what I like the most about you. You keep things in such tight perspective. Always dreaming big, unlike the past-me. Unlike before.” He gestured to Twilight. “Do you need help with that?”

I shook my head. “Your appearance changed from the last time I saw you.” I narrowed my eyes. “Why the little time loop? And how do you know about Alma?”

Lex shrugged. “I kept her in an accelerated time-bubble. The time loop was just a consequence of that. She betrayed my mistress. Shame, really, Alma was always a loyal demon. Well, she was, until she found about the Library.”

“You sure like talking… Lex. So what is it now? Come for revenge?” My claws flexed as I readied myself. Twilight watched me anxiously from the side, but I didn’t have time to entertain her notion of doing no harm.

Before I could launch myself preemptively, Lex continued quickly with a tone smooth like butter in the warm sun. “Oh by the glorious Other, no! I get it, I get it, you’re a demon of action, Morpheus. You like to do so much for others. Always thinking of the demons even when we were at the other side. I knew what you were doing wasn’t really done by you. It was the magus. It’s always the magi. That’s why I’m here, Morpheus. That’s why I’m offering you a deal.”

Lex’s eyes shined as he considered me.

“Morpheus, you’re the best of the demons! Ah, the brightest! The most noble! I love your principles. I love how you’ve held onto them through exquisite pain and torment that would have driven Ethreals mad! You understand. That is why I wanted to bring you here.”

He leaned forward excitedly. “Morpheus, there is a core in the Library, if you find it, there could be a way to bridge the Other with this plane. Think about it, if we’re permanently in one plane then…” He paused, eyes dancing with equal parts madness and mischief.

“Then we couldn’t be summoned.” I reared back in astonishment. “But that would mean becoming mortal, wouldn’t it?”

Lex chuckled. “No, no, no, I wouldn’t do something as inconvenient as that. But we can be free of our slave drivers. We can be free demons, Morpheus, forever!”

“Lex, you and I have been at each other’s throats for millennia. Why are you putting so much trust in me?”

Lex flicked his claw impatiently. “I know you, Morpheus. You never did anything other than what was required for your orders. You are a demon of principle. You are a demon with a domain that requires sacrifice. Real sacrifice. Not like the ones Alma and I possess. You might not believe me, but I have always held respect for you as a fellow demon who put the interests of the demons as a whole. You always fought the shackles of your own confinement. You are the demonic ideal. The ultimate symbol of rebellion. You are what we need to begin anew a world. With your domain and mine combined, we can fuse both planes into a true Sanctuary and finish what Selena started.”

His last words shook me to my heart. It was always Selena’s dream to create a demon sanctuary that was out of reach of mortals. But we had been found. Our True Names were the ultimate chains that fettered us to the will of the magi, after all. The Other was our home created for us, but it wasn’t safe. Not like it was truly intended.

Seeing my hesitation, Lex smiled as he gripped my shoulders roughly. “Morpheus, all you have to do is help me. We can be free!”

“Morpheus, what is he talking about?” Twilight swivelled her head back and forth between us in confusion. “Who’s Selena?”

Lex clicked his teeth in annoyance. “You’re a nuisance, magus. Why don’t you let the demons sort it out? I won’t kill you, of course, but I can make things unpleasant for you.”

“Stop it, Lex.” My eyes flared as I stared at him intently.

Lex looked genuinely surprised. “What care you for a magus, Morpheus?”

I positioned myself between him and her. “I have a promise to keep.”

“Are you really Morpheus?” Lex’s eyebrows drew down. “Who are you really?”

“I am myself,” I shot back, “No more, no less.”

“If you’re really Morpheus.” Lex growled menacingly. “You couldn’t do a thing about this right now!” He snapped his claws and I felt a binding sensation all too familiar with me. How did he get— “An Astral Pendant?!”

I struggled, knowing it was futile. I didn’t have much time, so I called out.

“Twilight, get out of here!”

Lex twisted his lips in displeasure, seeing my action. “What are you doing?” He snapped his claws, dismissing the Astral Pendant. “I just wanted to make sure you weren’t a facsimile. I would never trap a demon!” Lex glanced between us, some indeterminate emotion flickering in his eyes. I saw desperation… and loneliness. “Morpheus, I’m genuine in my offer. What say you?”

“I…” I glanced back at Twilight. “I need time to think about it.”

Lex’s mouth twisted in confusion. “Why would you…? Are you tied back by this weak-looking magus? Hah! What compulsion did you place on him? Can you even handle a demon like Morpheus? You, who are nothing more than a whelp freshly-born? How—”

“Stop, Lex.”

Lex paused in surprise. “She is clearly not a threat, unlike my mistress. You should let me break her. You’re probably already halfway there. Think about it, Morpheus, remember how much freedom we tasted when we broke our last magus?”

“Lex, I’m warning you.”

Lex chuckled as he motioned to Twilight. “What, did he promise you something in jest?”

“Shut it, Lex. I mean it.”

Lex considered me with a humorous smile that died down as he took in my stone-cold expression. “Morpheus, you can’t be serious, to this… mortal?” His eyebrows shot up.

“It’s none of your business.”

“Did she offer you something? Impossible, what could she offer other than the lies they have fed us? Morpheus, have you not learned enough about magi? How they twist words to their own benefit and seduce us into doing their bidding? Are you a slave? What could she offer you? What?”

I didn’t reply, opting to keep my silence.

Lex gritted his teeth. “I can’t stand by and watch one of the greatest demons in history succumb to a piddling magus such as this.” He glared at Twilight. “You’ll see, in time, Morpheus will come to his senses.”

“I’ve already come to my senses,” I shot back.

Lex narrowed his eyes and rounded Twilight, seemingly ignoring me. “Morpheus is a demon that has sacrificed more than you’ll ever know. We may have been forced to play pawns against each other, but my respect and awe for him will always be greater than your forced greed, magus.”

“I’m not just a ‘magus’, I’m Twilight!” Twilight took a shuddering step forward as she glared defiantly at Lex. “And I’m Morpheus’ friend first before a magus!”

“Twilight,” I urged her, “keep back!”

Twilight glowered with a molten stare as she reluctantly took a step back.

Lex glanced between us. He took in my stoic expression and Twilight’s set one. “Morpheus, you must see my side, right?” His voice quavered slightly. “I’m risking a lot being here. It’s hurting, even now.”

With a startled realisation, I concentrated on my demonic sense and finally felt the aura of tangled festering chains that wrapped around Lex’s figure. It was Zachrand’s pentacle, compelling him to submit through pain. I gritted my teeth.

“Lex, are you acting against your mistress?”

“Oh, she doesn’t know what I’m doing. Only I do. This is nothing compared to the pain you’ve experienced on our behalf, Morpheus.” He ground his teeth and faced Twilight, lifting his chin pridefully. “Morpheus recognises you and for that I will set aside in this instant, in this moment, our enmity for a single condition.”

“Don’t listen to him, Twilight,” I said, but Lex ignored me.

Twilight nodded. “Name it.”

“Prove that you’re really his friend, magus, give him your True Name.” Lex grinned savagely at Twilight.

Twilight tilted her head. “Uhm… I already did.”

I sorely wish I could describe Lex’s expression better than ‘beyond hilarious’. I actually laughed out loud.

“Oh, Lex,” I said between chuckles, “this is exactly why you don’t believe me.”

Lex reddened considerably and pointed a claw at me. “She must be lying! Morpheus, you’ve never lied. She can’t be telling the truth!”

“She is telling the truth,” I answered chillingly.

Lex slammed his claws to his ears. “I cannot be hearing this, this is not true!” He roared ferociously and clawed the air. “This can’t be—”

Suddenly he stopped. He jerked himself around. “No, this is trickery, falseness. A magi could lie.” He gave me a sympathetic look. “You must be controlled. Forced to say that. Yes. That’s it. That’s the reason.”

“Lex, that’s not—”

“Stop, Morpheus! Don’t speak! I can’t bear to hear you being forced to lie! To sacrifice your own principles for a twisted magus’ desires.”

I shook my head sadly. “You cannot see the truth in front of you.”

Then in the pause, Twilight spoke. It was only a few words, but the meaning was not lost to all present.

Lex had the same dumbfounded expression I did when I first heard those words.

“You…” he stuttered. “You just gave me your True Name!” He staggered back. “This can’t be real, you can’t summon or control me, even for a moment. Why? WHY?”

“I’m not like the magi you keep mentioning!” Twilight snapped. “I’m Twilight! I’m Morpheus’ friend.” She paused. “I mean… look maybe we got off on the wrong hoof, but it’s not too late. We can be—”

“No!” He backed off another step, caught himself and looked furious for even doing so. He took a few steps forward aggressively. “Fine!” He glared at Twilight. “You must know what Morpheus sacrifices every time he sends a demon back to the Other. Only then you will know the true depths of your folly. Morpheus is a singular demon and a magus can neverbe his friend. If you care at all for a demon as you claim, then at the very least you should know that.”

Lex clutched his abdomen and seemed to wobble slightly, but his imperious posture stiffened as he snapped his claws, bringing reality back to its original pace. In the instant of time between starting and stopping, Lex was there, suddenly, in front of me. He took my claws and pressed something into it.

“Call for me.”

Then he disappeared.

We stumbled and then fell, feeling the similar sensation of being sucked into the abstract.

With startling star-studded beauty surrounding us, I realised we were back in the Between.

The Between being wasn’t here, but the ‘floor’ appeared roughly at the same time and we sank into the Between and settled on the ‘floor’. Whiteness surrounded us once more.

“Lex,” Twilight began uncertainly. “What did he mean? What do you sacrifice?”

“He didn’t mean anything,” I snapped back. “And you don’t need to know.”

Twilight bit her lip and looked me in the eye with such depthless fortitude, I took a step back. “I want to know, Morpheus. I want to know as your friend.”

“No you don’t. This time, you don’t.”

Twilight merely stared at me. Her eyes were tinged with equal parts sadness and disappointment that I found it hard to even breathe. With a shuddering heave, I forced myself to fill my lungs, looking away from her intensely discomforting gaze.

“If you’re that keen on it, then maybe we should continue this conversation away from the Between.”

Twilight glanced around and then reluctantly nodded. She placed a hoof on me, nudging me morosely. “Morpheus, I’ll always be here for you.”

I didn’t reply. That’s why I was glad for the distraction.

“Hoot!”

“Where have you been?”

The owl reared back from my snarled snipe. It gestured to an amorphous blob sitting in the corner of the room. “The Between being just wants to wish you a safe journey.”

“Where’s Selena? What was it trying to do before? Why does it look like this now?!” My voice came tumbling out, rough and hard. My nerves were still pretty raw from our encounter with Lex. I was being stretched thin. I rounded on the owl. “What are you planning with it?”

The owl stiffened, and answered carefully. “I don’t know what you’re talking about. The Between being always looks like this.”

What in the Other? Don’t mess with me!

I slammed my claws on the ground.

“Morpheus!” Twilight dashed to my side and held onto me. “What’s wrong?”

“Nothing.” I gritted my teeth. “Nothing is wrong. Take us out of here, owl.”

The owl glanced at the Between being. There was a pause and then, with a quiet shift, we were in Level 6 once more.

“Morpheus?” Twilight asked tentatively. She looked frightened from my previous outburst. I had to remind myself that though she was smart and insightful, she was still a foal. She was still my friend.

“I’m sorry, Twilight, I just… I have a few things I need to think about.”

Twilight withdrew reluctantly and took the owl with her. My mind overflowed with what Lex had said. A permanent demon sanctuary that Selena always wanted? A plan that could save all future demons from the claws of future magi? A realisation that I could suddenly achieve all that by simply helping Lex.

“There’s always a price,” I muttered bitterly. “Something this good can’t be for free.”

I knew this harsh reality from the moment I was first summoned. From the first time I came to know my domain, I knew this would be the law of the world. The law of my world.

I could see Twilight listening intently to the owl’s explanation of the carrier spell. A spell that may not be needed if I went along with Lex’s plan.

“What are you thinking, Lex?” I murmured to myself.

Almost unthinkingly, I sank into a weary fugue state. I needed to… not be conscious for a while.

I felt a nudge from the side. I instantly snapped to focus, seeing Twilight smiling at me weakly. “Morpheus, I finished learning about the carrier spell.”

I blinked at Twilight. “Already? What time is it?”

Twilight swayed on her hooves. “It’s almost noon.”

I scrambled to my feet. “You’ve been awake for the whole night?!”

“She’s been awake for three whole days, demon,” the owl remarked. “I would not have believed it if I hadn’t seen it for myself.”

“Three days?!” I grabbed her shoulders. “Twilight, why would you do that?”

Twilight listed a little and then shook her head savagely. “The week is almost up… and you looked like you needed the time alone.”

Guilt wracked me. “Twilight, I…”

“Tomorrow is the last day I promised you.”

I was frozen in shock. That was right, Twilight had promised me. Promises were important. Promises revealed the depth of your character. I was sitting here, just feeling sorry for myself when Twilight was working on the spell she promised me.

I reached out and drew her into a tender embrace. “Twilight, I’m serious, there’s no need to make these gestures anymore, you’re as free as I am.”

“I made a promise to my friend.” She gritted her teeth. “And I wanted to keep it.” She gripped me hard. “Seeing you hurt like that, I wanted to do something, anything, to help with that pain. I want you to be happy.”

I wiped away the budding tear from her eyes as she sniffled, trying so hard to hold back the emotions pent up from her frantic research.

“Twilight, true happiness doesn’t come from making others happy. I want you to be happy yourself.” I stroked her back as I felt the dampness of tears on my fur. Far from annoyance, which I think I would have felt no more than a week ago, I felt a deep pain that I thought could only come from sympathising with another demon.

With a suddenness akin to being struck by lightning, I came to the abrupt realisation that there was truly no coming back. “I’m sorry I made you worry, but just like you have made your resolve, I have made my own.”

I pried her gently from my shoulder and smiled at the most vulnerable magus I’d ever seen.

“I will stay with you, Twilight. In this plane or beyond.”

“What does that mean?” Twilight mumbled.

“That means we have to stop Lex.”

———————

Alma was still in the same state we found her, frozen in terrible anguish. As we approached, she regained her form and stumbled slightly.

“Magus!” she cried in anger, then abruptly stopped as she refocused on me. “Morpheus… you’re back.” She flexed her claws. “Are you here to free me with your domain…” she glanced at Twilight “… or to end me?”

“Option C,” I answered. “Neither. Twilight is going to try something.”

“I would rather die!”

“Suit yourself.” I cracked my knuckles and launched forwards.

Alma cackled. “Morpheus, I knew you were going to come around to using your domain. Let’s have some fun, fun, fun!”

She darted forwards, eyeing low as she swept a claw towards my abdomen. I deflected it at the last second, pivoting around to strike her on the back of her neck. She stumbled forwards and then reached out towards Twilight as I swept back with my leg to block her attack. Ouch. She’s a deadly fighter, alright.

“Twilight, go!” I yelled, as I dodged a high flying claw. Alma kicked back to the wall as I leapt forwards to close the distance. She snarled as my own claws scratched the side of her arm. Her claws were filled with the demonic intent of her domain. The slightest scratch would carve a deep wound right into my essence. I didn’t fill my claws with intent, but Alma didn’t seem to recognise that.

“Morpheus, I don’t feel like you’re taking this seriously, so I will, I will, I will!” Alma screeched suddenly making me stumble slightly on the slippery stone floor.

Okay, maybe she did know I was slackening my swipes. I rolled to avoid the scything claw reaching for my throat as I quickly tried to reevaluate my line of attack.

“Hmm, your domain is weakening, Morpheus, do you have the strength for a strike, I wonder?” Alma’s tongue lolled in her mouth as she sprung forwards. “Dodge this!”

I tried twisting away from the lightning-fast strike but I couldn’t. Her claws gouged deep into my flesh as I hissed in pain and struck back. She laughed maniacally, weaving back with nimble paws and claws.

“Morpheus, you’re so weak! You can’t do a thing if you keep trying half-heartedly! Where’s the demon of demons? Where’s your domain? What are you afraid of?” Alma licked her lips and then focused on my shifting feet.

I felt a frisson of fear strike through my spine as I stiffened slightly, seeing Alma making eye contact with Twilight creeping around.

“Delicious!” Her claws dug into the stone, sending chips flying as she reached out with her claws. Twilight stumbled back in fright.

“Morpheus!” Twilight cried out.

“Damn it all!” I intercepted Alma at the last split-second. Her claws scraped close to Twilight’s horn as I tackled Alma using the full force of my body to block her momentous charge. Alma used the opportunity to bite into my shoulder as I grunted in pain, but I didn’t let go as she savagely shook her head, trying to tear into my mortal container. Pain lanced through me more viscerally than ever. Her attack was purely physical, but it hurt this much. There was only one explanation, my soul had almost fully fused with my mortal container. A fear quite like any other shook me deeply.

Is this what it felt like to comprehend mortality and die?

“Morpheus!” Something hit the back of me as I grappled with Alma. She let go of my shoulder and struck me on the side of my face. Stars exploded into my vision as I blindly groped for whatever Twilight threw at me. As my claws closed around the object, my mind went into overdrive, realising exactly what it was.

Pain exploded up my arm as the wards on the demonic lock activated.

I kept my grip on my agonising trump card and threw it at her. I cursed my instant’s worth of hesitation as Alma, diving once more to attack Twilight, was suddenly enveloped in a shimming envelope of light.

Alma bellowed as she tried to escape the barrier.

“A demonic lock?! You would use a magus tool against a demon?!”

I stared back at Alma, getting wearily to my feet. “I would do anything to release you.”

Alma’s madness duly reflected back. “You would consort with the magi… they will always betray you.” She gnashed her teeth. “Like he betrayed me! He betrayed me! YOU BETRAYED ME! YOU ALL DID!”

“Alma, you’re wrong! I’m going to stop Lex!”

As soon as I said the name her frenzy got worse.

“LEEEEEEEX! LEX! LEEEEX! I’LL KILL YOU. I’LL MAKE YOU PERMANENTLY GONE!” She slashed at the air. “LEX! WHY?!”

I felt a tug on my claws. With a start, I glanced down and saw Twilight with an indescribable expression etched into her face.

“It’s done,” she said, then without further comment, she touched her horn to the ground lighting up a complex diagram of spells written to warp the physical laws and produce the phenomenon known only as magic.

Alma form slowly dissipated, but her writhing ceased as she gradually became aware of her mortal container disintegrating around her.

“It… doesn’t hurt and I feel… clear.” Her eyes met mine. “Morpheus. You…” Her eyes shifted to Twilight and something shifted in those milky depths. “Thank you, magus.”

“Alma,” I called out to her, “trust me. This will be the last time you will be called.”

Alma smiled at me sadly as her essence slowly lost its touch on this plane. “Morpheus, you mean well, but we both know that it’s impossible.”

Before I could reply, she dissipated, leaving me alone with Twilight.

There was silence, I think, for at least a few minutes. All I could hear were our ragged breaths as we tried to piece together our scrambled minds.

“I think it worked,” Twilight finally said, breaking the awful silence.

Despite feeling weak, I forced a smile. “It looked similar to a dismissal spell.”

“She can be summoned again, but…” Twilight beamed back at me with a dazzling smile. “They’d have to find out her True Name, first.”

“Oh right.” I had already turned to the back of the hall and nodded, then did a double-take.

“What?”

Twilight grinned at my incredulous expression. “I changed Alma’s essence, just a tad.”

“How can you do that? You can’t change her essence, she wouldn’t be Alma anymore!” I felt a cold sense of foreboding creep into my frame. “You didn’t… change her, did you?”

Twilight nodded quickly, placating me with her innocent look. “Exactly. But what makes Alma, Alma?”

“Obviously her memories, her…” body… not really.

“Her physical form, you were probably about to say,” Twilight interjected as I trailed off. “Her memories, her experiences, her self, is composed of the unique energy that makes Alma, Alma. What if I just changed her signature a little bit? What if I changed something fundamental so that her Name changed?”

“Then she wouldn’t be Alma!”

“If I called you something other than Morpheus, would you change?”

“Well, no, not really, but… you’re twisting things. My True Name is an integral part of who I am, if I changed it, I would be fundamentally different.”

“That’s why instead of changing it completely, I added to it,” Twilight said, puffing her chest out. “So instead of calling me Twilight Sparkle, I would be Twilight Scintillate Sparkle, or something.”

“What the heck does scintillate mean?”

Twilight grinned. “Scintillate means ‘sparkle’. Well, not exactly, but it’s really close! So it wouldn’t make much difference.”

I was starting to get it. “So you added something close to her True Name, but magi would have to guess it in order for them to get it, so Alma stays like Alma.”

“Yes!” Twilight danced on her hooves in excitement. “Kind of like dyeing your coat or painting your hooves or trimming your mane. It’s just a slight change. But I thought that wasn’t good enough, so I added a conjugating hash that attached to the signature and perturbed the field in a one-directional function so that—”

“Woah, woah, woah!” I waved my claws frantically. “Say it so anyone can understand!”

“The owl could understand,” Twilight mumbled with a pout.

A feathery head popped out of Twilight’s saddlebag. “Did you say something?”

“You were there the whole time?!”

The owl swivelled its head in my direction. “Of course, how do you think you got the lock?”

“Oh, right.” I suddenly felt weak and dizzy. Blinking, I touched my abdomen, where Alma had recently swiped, but narrowly missed. But she didn’t miss… My claw came away slippery. Oh dear.

Twilight danced happily. “So there’s no way any magi can call a demon back with this spell, all that has to be done is to… Morpheus?”

I sat down. Involuntarily, mind you, I was losing a lot of blood.

“Morpheus!”

I sagged against Twilight.

“Don’t worry, don’t worry, demons heal fast. Don’t worry, don’t worry,” I mumbled back at Twilight’s distraught face. She looked like she was on the verge of panic. “I’ll be fine, don’t fret. Get me out of the Library… Don’t cry…”

Author's Notes:

It's just a prank, bro.

Next Chapter: Twilight kicks some ass and Morpheus kinda helps, I guess.

As always, my voluptuous readers, thanks for reading!

P.S. Also unedited because I'm a huge butt trumpet.
P.P.S. If you want to help out, no patreon or money required! Be sure to chuck it into your bookshelf to help with algorithms and maybe make a shoutout in a blog post or something. That really helps! Thanks! #endshamelessness

Next Chapter: 12 - Demonology: the Art of Lying Estimated time remaining: 1 Hour, 31 Minutes
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