Light 'em Up

Chapters

A burning Light
Force of Nature
You have got to be kidding me
Quiet Interlude
Two meetings

A burning Light

Gather round, and listen to our tale of BIONICLE.

As many know, there is no such thing as a constant across all universes. Personalities, goals, dreams, all are changeable. A man who is considered the most evil and despicable in one universe can be a veritable saint in another. The reverse is also true. No man is so heroic that he is a constant. The branches of fate can change everything.

For instance, in the curiously entwined lives of the two mortals who gained Understanding, they are a pseudo-constant. Every alternate version of themselves has gained this gift, but there is a duality in their incarnations. Good and evil are perpetually balanced between them. And this is merely another tale... a possible path that could have been taken, by a man who is not good. Who is this man, I hear you ask? The name he has taken for himself is Teridax, a conqueror in one universe but a good-hearted and dutiful servant in another.

Why, I hear you ask? Well, it's simply because the balance of the multiverse must be maintained. Good and evil, light and dark, up and down, left and right- neither can exist without the other. To ignore either one in favour of focusing solely on one is the very height of arrogance and suicidal impulses. Without balance, the multiverse would tear itself apart in an attempt to recreate it.

What's really interesting is that neither man is, from the streams that we know, fully 'good' or 'evil.' Villainous Aurics are almost always polite and civil, even to their worst enemies, while heroic Teridax' are usually unscrupulous in dealing with threats. Though their forms and powers may vary across the multiverse, this is the tale of the Teridax who is closest to the 'mainstream' Teridax.

This Teridax remained calm and aloof, though he secretly loathed the alicorn sisters for telling him what to do. Eventually, he came to respect them for their power. He made peace with them, and though they still did not wholly trust him he remained calm and continued fighting for them. Eventually, they considered him amongst their most trusted confidates. And when he grew old, the Kraahkan on his face broken to his will and forced to reveal its secrets, he ascended to the position of Makuta.

With this incredible power came much responsibility in the human. He decided that he was too powerful for mundane squabbles between ponies and other races, and he vanished, to hone his skills. He told the alicorns that he would return only when he was needed the most. And when Discord struck, a mere decade after he'd left, he was there, fighting against the mad Spirit of Chaos with a ferocity normally only seen in wild animals. Eventually, Discord was sealed by the Elements of Harmony, Teridax notably wielding no Element. His fury and his power caused the world to grow terrified of his potential, and after Discord he freely agreed to vanish from the world of mortals yet again, and he travelled the world.

Discord looked up at the massive figure approaching. Armoured in dull grey, black and tarnished silver, the figure towered over all at ten feet. Cold yellow eyes burned out of a black, insectoid face. Clutched in a massive, clawed hand was a gargantuan two-headed spear. As it walked, the air around it seemed to darken. What was its name again? Oh yes, Teridax, the interloper. There were so many games he wanted to do with the mysterious stranger. "Ah, Teridax, how good of you to-"

He was cut off by Teridax unleashing a blast of blue energy right from the staff before charging. Ah yes, the energy that obliterated matter and turned it into nothing but dust. He hadn't expected Teridax to just attack him outright, but you didn't become a Spirit of Chaos by being easily destroyed. He split in two, watching as it carved a path through his domain. Discord frowned. "That was rather-"

Teridax jabbed two clawed fingers into his eyes while he was distracted. It didn't exactly matter or hurt, but the sheer audacity and ferocity behind the move caught him off-guard. As Discord was temporarily blinded, Teridax unleashed a blast of plasma that singed his fur. Barely rolling out of the way, he clicked his fingers and Teridax was teleported away. Discord brushed himself off, idly restoring the environment around him back to normal. "Well, that was annoying. I swear, if he interrupted me one more time, I was going to really get mad."

He heard the air behind him displace as something massive reappeared. "Good to hear."

Discord spun around, only for a massive fist to close around his throat, cutting off his breath. Another hand grabbed his talon, and squeezed. "No magic. No snapping of fingers. I've had enough of what you've done to this world, Spirit of Chaos." Eyes alternating wildly between pale yellow and blood red, Teridax slammed Discord hard on his back. The Spirit looked at Teridax impassively, before teleporting away. He hovered in front of Teridax, glowing with chaotic energy.

For the first time in millenia, Discord was furious. This... interloper had done nothing but attack, and it wasn't even fun. There was no real art of finesse behind the moves- just pure, brute, savagery. His brows furrowed and eyes glowing with power, Discord spoke. "Yo̕u ̡kn͠ow, ̨yo̡u͟'́v͏è ̨rea̡l̵ly̕ d̨on͞e ͞i͠t ͘no͏w.̀ I was ̸g͝o͏įng t̢o̢ b҉é mer̸c̶i͟ful, spa͢rè ỳo̸u͡r͜ life,͢ hav͠e ̸a̸ b͠it͟ o̶f FUN. ́But͡ ͘n͏o͝w͠,̶ ͡yo̴u͞'v̕e m̕a̕de the͏ rem͜a͞inde͝r̵ o͡f ̶your l̸if̢e hor͟ri̕b͞ly̶ ͞sho͏r̴t̕ and ̡pai̢nf͟ul͢.̀"

Teridax didn't appear concerned. In fact, the being seemed almost... amused, as if there was some joke that only he knew the punchline of. Discord frowned. "͘͢D̨̡̛͠͝o̡̧͜͡͠ ̴͢y̢͝͝҉o̷̴̕̕u͏̨̧̛ ̡̛͟͝͡ḩ́͞͠o͘ǹ͠͡ę͘͢͜͝ş̶̀͏t̢͢l̀͝y̡͘͞ ̷̨̢̧͏s̴͡͡t͘͟í̵̛ļ̕͟͢l̡̢̛͟ ͘҉͜͞t͝h̴͢͝ì̀͡͏n̸̢͜҉҉k̸͞҉ ̀͝͏y̨͠o̴̵͡u̷͞͏͘͡ ̢͞h͏͘͏à͘͟͠v̷͢͜͠͝e͏́͘͟ ̵̧̀̕͠a̸͟͢͡ ̡̢̛͞͞c̵̷̢̡̢h̵͞͠a̧̧͡͠n͘҉c͢͞e͢͏͜͟͠?̧͞ ̵Y̴̷͠o̶͝u̴̵͢͠ ̀́͡o̴̡͜͝b͏҉v̢̢́̕͞i̛͢͏̷ò̷̧͘͠u̧̕s̸̸̶̨͘ļ̵̀͏ý̛́͟͞ ̨͜͠ḑ̨o̵̵͠n͟͞҉'͘͏t̢͢͢ ̷͜k̸̵̨n̷̛̕͟͡o͠w̶͏̵͢͠ ̵͏̛ẁ̕͜͢ḩ̴̴̴͡o҉͜͝͞ ̴͝͞I҉̷̨ ̴̸̡́͝a̢̡͡m̴̨.̵͘ ̶̡̨͜͟I̴̧͢͝͝ ̵̡͡͡a̛m̶͝͝͠ ̷̵͜D̶̨͞į̵̶͟͡s͟҉̧̀c̴̴͘͜o͞r͜͜͝d́͜͏̀,̴̛͏ ̷̷̀͘͢S̸̸ṕ̴̶i̶r̷̵̶͝į̀t̷̵̷̕ ̶͡ơ̶̕͝f̀͏̸͏͝ ̧̕C̴͏͟͠҉h̸̛a̶̡̡͡ǫ͜͡ş̡̀͡͝.͘҉ ̴͟͡͝I̡̧ ̴̵̡̛ŕ̸̨͟e̸̡p̴͝r͜͝e̴͏͟s̸͘҉͝e҉̛n̨̛̕͜͞t͝͠ ̵͜͟͟͡ţ̛͞͡h̴̀͢͠e̷͞ ̵̸͘͟͞e̸̛͘͞v̵̵̧̧̧e̵̕͢r̢͝c̀͡͏҉h̢́a͏͏ń̴̵g̢̨͘͘͢i͏̨͢͞҉n̵͜͠g̶̨͘͟͠ ̨͞҉n̸̨̡̢͢a̷̡̢t͏̸ư̴r̶̢͝è̴ ̢̛͘͜o̕͝f̶ ̡͞t͟͞h̸e͏͏͟҉̡ ̴̢̀̕w͜͢o̕͏̧͢ŕ́l̶d̴̡.̸̛͝ ̷̨͞È́̕v͘͢͟e̢̡͘r̴͠͝͠͡y͏̛t̛͞h͏̵̧̀͜í̵ǹ̷̶̢͠g̢҉ ́͡҉͢͞I̵̶̡ ͡͞͞d̶͟ò͢ ̶͏̢͡ç͘ą̴̡͟͠u̸͟͟͟͞s͠͡é̷s̷̢̨̨͢ ̴̛͝҉̡d̸̡͜͠ì̸̶̧s̶͜c̡͟͝o̢҉̶͞r̶̵̨͘͠d̶̨͟͞ ̸̢́w̸҉͠i̵̡͠͞t͏̕h̛͢͞͠i͟n͘͏ ́͝t̷̶h̷e͢҉̢͞ ̀̀҉̡v̴̷̛͠͝ę̕͡͏̷r̷͟͡͝y͘͠͏҉ ̕͜͟f̵̴̶̧͢a̸̕͝b̛̕͝ŕ̨͝i̸͢c̶̵̨̨ ̴҉o̸҉̀f̧͘͞ ̴̨̀̕r͏́e̡͏̷̀͜ą̶͘͘͝ļ́i̷͘͜͢t͘y̷̵͠͏̸!̷́ ̡͝͞Y̸o̡͘͟͝͝u͢ ̴̢̀͢͢a̡̡͠͞͞r̕͜͞͞e̶̴̢ ̸̡̢́͢a̵̶̸ ̵̴̀͡t̴̷҉̷i̴̵n͏̢ ̴́p̸̧̕͝͝o̸͢͜t̴̡͠͞ ̛͟w̸̧͞ì̷͝t̷́h̶͘ ̷̛͟j̡u̵̧̢͟͞m͢҉̡͘p̷͘͜ȩ̶d̶́҉ ̡̨̨͟͟ú̷͘͠p̸̛͜ ̀҉̛d̸̨e̵̛̕͠͠l̵̡u͏͝s̴͟͟į̷̶̧͝o̶͡ǹ̶͟͜s҉̀͟͞,҉̶̧́͞ ̸́͞ą̵̨͏̧ǹ̡̛͘͢d̵̶̨ ҉̢̀Ì҉̸̛ ̶̀͏j́͟ų̛͢g҉҉g̷̕͢͟l͜͞ȩ͜͢ ̵̨͘͢͡ṕ̶̛̀͠l̶͠a̷̷͢͟n҉̵̧e̷̢̛͘͏t͏͟s͜͜ ̶̴̨̛̀a̕͟͞n̸̴̕͢d̡̛̛́ ̷́ļ͜i̷̛͘͞v̶̧́e̷̸͟s̷̵̛͜ ͟ĺ̴̢̨í̸̛͞k̀̀́͡ę̵̢͝ ͏̶͟á̶̧͞ ̶̡̧c̕͏l͞ó̴̶͡w̨͏n͢͜ ̛j͏̷͢͢u̴͜҉ģ̷̕g̶̀͘ĺ͟͢é͘͜͞s̨̢̀͢͜ ͏̡b̧́͜͞͞a̸͜ļ́҉̸͜l̴͢s҉̶̴̀.̡͢͡͡͏"̷̢͞

Teridax cracked his neck. "Spout all the drivel you want, Discord, I'll still kill you and make it look easy." Teridax looked Discord in the eyes, and suddenly this little being standing up to him didn't seem nearly as out of his depth as he seemed. It was the eyes, Discord thought. Eyes that had seen too much of everything, far more than ever should be seen by immortal or mortal. They conveyed an insanity that surpassed his own, and a tiredness and disconnect with life that made even him hesitate. Discord faltered as Teridax raised his spear.

Discord, for the first time in his life, was afraid. Teridax was not more powerful, but there was inside of him a sheer conviction that burned hotter than stars, hotter than anything Discord had seen. To face a being that wanted nothing more than his own destruction caused him to be too terrified to properly use his powers, and the bident smashed into his unarmoured body like a tidal wave on a beach.

Teridax spun the bident elegantly, and watched as Discord coughed up blood, or at least ichor. The draconeques tapped the stain of kaleidoscopic fluid in astonishment. "WHAT! Is this... is this my blood? How? I am immortal! I am Discord! I can't be killed or harmed!"

Teridax rolled his eyes. "A common misconception, it seems. Your bleeding proves it." He scratched the back of his head. "It's a good thing you actually can be harmed. For a moment, I was worried that I wouldn't be able to unleash all my rage on you. Now that I know I can hurt you..." Teridax's eyes turned fully red. "I can get some physical therapy in."

Discord tried to get up, but his legs had failed him. They skittered and trembled, but they lacked the strength to make him move. "What the... why can't I move?"

He watched as Teridax slowly advanced, bident in hand. Desperately, he tried to move, but his legs still refused to respond, whether out of terror or simply not being any use. "Come on, come on! Just let me move!" No use; his legs had failed. "How... did I take so much damage that I can't move?"

Again, he tried to move, clawing himself forwards a couple of inches, stopping for a bit. His face turned bright green and his cheeks temporarily bulged before he composed himself, clutching his head. "I've got a headache... and I feel... off. Like my stomach wants to get rid of its contents... is this nausea?!" Discord finally manage to wobble himself upright. "I, Discord, am feeling nauseous? How? I am immortal! I am-"

"Soon to be dead." Teridax walked up slowly, raising his bident above his head. Discord looked at him, saw the sheer murderous intent in his eyes, weighed his options, and teleported away. Teridax lowered his bident just as the alicorns came. Celestia smiled at him, hesitantly, still uneasy around the metallic giant.

"Teridax?" Teridax didn't turn around. She frowned, looking at him. The elements of Harmony floated in her telekinetic grip. "Why are you here?"

"...I almost had him." Teridax suddenly started, walking away. "He can be hurt, and he can be killed. Next time I see him, I'm going to tear his throat out."

Celestia watched him go, a small frown on her face, before turning away herself. Luna followed, not even looking back.

He built a castle, the City of Shadows, using nothing but his powers. He tore the ground apart in search of the protodermis with which he made his armour and weapons. And once safely ensconced, he did a thing that was both very brave and very foolish- he purged his soul of its Shadow, gaining new, different powers but losing others. But Teridax is always resourceful, and did it as a challenge. He threw away his bident, and replaced it with a mighty warhammer. His armour became gold and white, and the mask on his face became golden as well. Now, Teridax has heard of a new threat, that means to envelope the land of Equestria in shadow forever...

Celestia panted, sending a searing hot blast of plasma at her nemesis, who batted it aside with ease and a maniacal laugh. Sharp teeth flashed in the darkness of the imposed night. "Sister, you must stop this foalish course of action! This will cause nothing but death and destruction! By removing the sun, and only letting the moon's pale light sustain the land, eventually all will die without magical intervention!" She pleaded with Nightmare Moon, but to no avail. The mare was too insane and angry to listen to reason, and had been since the fight started. With a wordless roar of rage and pain, Nightmare Moon charged-

Only to get smacked in the face with a warhammer. She was sent flying back as a voice so disturbingly familiar boomed as the unseen assailant revealed himself.

"Celestia." He stood there, in shining gold and white armour, eyes formerly red now a pale icy blue. The warhammer in his fist seemed to glow with an inner light, and with a gesture Nightmare Moon was thrown back. "Luna, this is not really you. Would you so carelessly attack? This shadow has blinded you. Corrupted you!"

Nightmare Moon, previously confident of her victory, immediately tried to flee, but Teridax growled, "Oh, you're not getting away that easily," and summoned a claw made of brilliant white light to grab her. Though she tried to turn into smoke, Teridax seemed to anticipate this and beams of light eminated from his eyes, forcing her into the claw. He hoisted her in the air. "Luna, be free of this... this parasite. It will not gain you any admirers or supporters."

Nightmare Moon spat in his face defiantly. "Hmph! And since when were YOU able to talk of parasites, Teridax the Defiler? The monster who even Discord was terrified of? The being who the Tree of Harmony REFUSED an Element to bear?" She kicked him in the chest, leaving a small mark that healed almost instantly. "You talk of monsters and balance, but you are the worst of them all."

Teridax's eyes briefly flashed red. "Be clean, Luna. Remove this foul stain on your soul! It is naught but jealousy and black magic that blinds you to the truth. And as Teridax the Lightbringer, I WILL PURGE IT!"

With that, he shone with pale white light, and Nightmare Moon screamed, before the darkness surrounding her dispersed, revealing Luna, unscathed. Teridax nodded, satisfied, and turned to leave, only to get caught by Celestia. "Teridax. It has been a long time since you've deigned to interfere with Equestria."

"Hm." Teridax ceded.

Celestia pressed on. "I wanted to say... thank you. From the bottom of my heart." Beside her, Luna groaned.

"Sister? Did... did it go?" She sounded scared, and also afraid that it would come for her again. Celestia immediately went to comfort her,

Teridax nodded. "It got you once. It might get you again." He looked up at the night sky. "For what it's worth, Luna... it is a beautiful night."

Luna smiled tiredly. "I thank thee, Teridax. From the bottom of my heart."

Teridax gave the impression of smiling tiredly. "No problem. I'm just trying to do the right thing."

In a cave back in Teridax Prime's Equestria, there is a book. It's made of protosteel, and the pages are made of what appears to be very fine leather. Teridax made it out of the materials he had at hand. The cover has a small inscription on it:

Twilight Sparkle woke up, and stretched her new wings. Becoming an Alicorn was definitely the strangest thing that had ever happened to her. Nothing quite like it in the world. Bleary-eyed, she walked over to the mirror, and telekinetically gripped her hairbrush. Even as an alicorn, her hair was always messy in the morning. She dragged the comb through her hair, wincing as the brush dragged its way through a particularly difficult knot. A splash of water on her face fully woke her up. In her gut, something told her that this was abnormal, even for her new existence.

An apple falls in Ponyville, so slowly it looks like it's just staying in the air. A fly buzzes so quickly it lives for less than a second.

Celestia looked at the sky grimly. "Luna, something has gone dreadfully wrong in the grand scheme of things."

Luna simply nodded. "Is it not obvious?"

In front of them, the remains of the court either wheezed or burbled. Something had randomly affected their ages, apparently seeing no distinction between them. Some were only foals, while others were ancient, so senile they had lost control over their bladders or rectums. A stench of excrement filled the air.

Celestia shook her head. "Nopony deserves this. Something has happened to time itself, and there's only one answer I can think of."

Luna looked grim. "Discord."

When they arrived in Ponyville, it was to witness much the same as had happened in Canterlot. Time seemed... different, split up such that there was no coherence. Celestia watched the events unfold and shook her head. Whatever was happening, only Discord could possibly fix it. A small part of her hoped it wasn't Teridax. That monster had stayed out of the picture, avoiding all direct confrontation. How like the being that had once almost conquered Equestria in a matter of weeks.

Discord appeared, and sighed. "This is the fourth time you have come here, Celly. I can't help you."

Celestia looked at him in confusion. "...What?"

A vice and shattered pieces of dull orange metal.

One last middle finger to Umbra.

Teridax woke up, and immediately realised he had died. He let out a sigh, and turned to the figure who sat on the grass, seemingly waiting. He may have smiled, and then turned back.

"You are a Death, I presume."

The being in front of him nodded, lazily waving. "Sup." She dressed in black, with ivory white skin. Mascara and curling Egyptian-style designs on her face completed the look of a rather perky goth. An ankh glistened on her throat. She wore jeans and a ratty tank top, and her grin was infectious. When you saw her, you felt like you'd known her all your life.

Teridax may have been prideful and sure of his power, and that was exactly why he swept into a deep bow. Even a fragment of the very concept of ending life deserves the utmost respect, especially from a being that wishes to conquer all. The lady waved him up. "Come on, I'm not that kind of psychopomp. Besides, your soul isn't exactly accustomed to bowing."

Teridax' soul wasn't human. If he hadn't been human when alive, you would have thought his soul had ever been human to begin with. It was a coiling mass of scrap metal, inky black shadows, and a rusty Kraahkan. He was ever-changing, random and inscrutable. There was substance, an easily-seen shell, but the real Teridax never opened himself up except to those he trusted to be too stupid to ever betray him. Only the eyes in the mask were human, blue and piercing. Teridax was at once Nothing and Something, a true Makuta even in death. He coiled back up, and seemed relieved to observe himself again. "Hm. It is good to see that I abandoned my pathetic weakness to the extent of my soul."

Death smiled. "Who knows? You may be more human than you think." She grinned, and extended a hand. "Come on, you're going to be late."

Teridax extended a part of himself, and gently took it. As she led him off, he started talking. "Can I just say that it is a tremendous honour you have done me, appearing in even a fragment of your person."

"Death is the great equaliser, isn't it?" She laughed, and the laugh of Death is the best laugh you will ever hear in your life, except you'll only hear it once. "Normally, I appear for everybody. Long or short, everybody gets a life."

Teridax considered this, then nodded. "I suppose that's true."

For the first time in a very long time, Teridax knew nothing. It excited him, knowing nothing of the road ahead. He knew he was likely going to hell, and he had no regrets even now. He had been cruel, petty, vindictive, a murderer with no compassion for others. And he would do it again and again if he had the chance. He had even made it up with his unconscious mind, the torment inside him finally stilled. He asked one last question of Death. "Are my backup plans still there?"

Death nodded. "106 still possible. You were prepared."

Teridax felt the last bit of stress go away. "Excellent. My torch has been passed on."

And he went where all the dead go, Death leading him.

As I retreated back to my castle in the forest, I felt something abnormal. Something that shook me to the centre of my being. I steadied myself against a tree, trying to figure it out. What could have caused this sensation?

Then, I knew.

"It begins. Teridax's first plan has begun." Every self was on the move, waiting for the chance to strike. Even I was on tenterhooks for this moment.

That dramatically said, I went to my castle. I had plans of my own for this moment, and I had to ensure that this world would be safe in my absence.

Author's Note

Anybody who can translate the inscription is more than welcome to win a free Internet cookie.

108.

Force of Nature

I walked through the old forest, distracted with plans to leave in Equestria while I was left. The main problem that I had at this juncture was the fact that I only knew a couple of Teridax Prime's plans.

I suppose I should explain; I am not the original Teridax, but rather one of his infinitely possible selves. Teridax Prime was an awe-inspiring being. Just because he was completely evil doesn't mean that he did not do great things. For want of a better term, I suppose I would be considered one of his 'good' alternate selves. Nothing is constant, after all. If everything in the multiverse was the same, it would drive me mad from boredom. And every other traveller I suppose.

I watch as a rabbit runs through the clearing, pursued by a wolf. I can feel the fear of the rabbit, and the excitement and hunger of the wolf. I let them pass. It's not my place to interfere with nature. Should I be concerned over the fate of one rabbit? Besides, the wolf is hungry. If it does not eat the rabbit, it will likely starve. Carnivores are not evil; it is simply in their nature.

Teridax, on the other hand, was evil. Not evil in a childish sense, but simply so ruthless and uncaring that he swept all in his path away. A corruptor and schemer who wanted nothing more than to rule the multiverse. I resume the walk back, watching as the sky overhead transitions back to ordinary day. If I had not intervened... well, I had observed other realities of this time frame, and I knew there would only be problems if I did not stop Nightmare Moon.

But at the same time, I had to work on Teridax's known plans. When Teridax had called on all of our minds and communicated with us, it had been, I will not deny, an exhilarating experience. To feel the mind of somebody who was your main timeline, and to feel every other mind that you could have been was an experience that still sent shivers through me when I thought about it. But at the same time, I had known that Teridax was barely sharing any plans with his good alternate selves while sharing the lion's share with those Teridaxes that shared his views more closely. He even told us the exact number- 108.

Of course, Teridax, and by extension us, knew full well that revealing every single one of your plans to the enemy was the height of stupidity. I mean honestly, an intelligence that transcends any mortal without multiversal travel is not going to share his plans beyond the bare minimum with his good alternate selves. If I was in his situation, I would do the exact same thing.

Still, I only really knew of three plans: the first one, which I called Chaos, was quite simple: if Teridax Prime died, then we would all start rioting across the multiverse and trying to activate one of his plans. Simple but brilliant. A literal infinity of Teridaxes would either find one of his old plans and enact it or start their own. Of course, we could be shut down by the admins with ridiculous ease, but as long as we did not seek to break all of reality we would be fine.

The second was simply called 'Will;' that's all Teridax said to his good selves. I honestly wish I knew more about that one. The fact that Teridax even said that to me implied confidence that I would not foil it.

The third plan was called 'Meme;' That's enough to put me on edge. If Teridax somehow created something with a memetic effect great enough to be considered a multiversal conquerer, then any idiot with that in their hands was a threat. Still, that left slightly over a hundred plans that I did not know anything about, but my other selves did.

And the thought that Teridax had other plans that he did not list in his official tally was one I had to keep in mind.

I walked into my castle and strode in, the doors opening with a simple hand wave. Thanks to my foresight, I was watching other universes to find out whether I would need to interfere again with this world. I walked into my castle and strode in, the doors opening with a simple hand wave. Thanks to my foresight, I was watching other universes to find out whether I would need to interfere again with this world. So many threats I had already seen- Tirek returning, Discord returning, the mad king Sombra coming back after a thousand years... so many problems that I was going to have to solve. Oh, and new Elements of Harmony to find, but there would be some candidates getting chosen at the appropriate time.

Faust observed the heavily glitched mess that had been Teridax's universe and sighed. This was going to be a massive headache to sort out. First of all, Teridax had destroyed time so completely she was getting a minor migraine just looking at all the damage it had caused. Time loops, time acceleration/deceleration, areas where time had stopped completely, time periods being mashed together with no rhyme or reason... still barely salvageable, fortunately.

She grabbed a mass of the code and hauled it out, the voidstuff flowing and trying to scurry away. With a deft use of magic, she started repairing the damage to time that Teridax had wrought. It was a difficult job- the code seemed to fight every attempt to fix it, but this tiny suture would help her to ascertain the cause of this time destruction. Stabilisation before deletion, if at all possible.

Time was meaningless in the void, but Faust was still exhausted when she had finally sutured the timeline enough so that she could fix the source of the damage. She peered in, and looked at the fragments of broken orange mask, shadow code clinging to it. Her face hardened.

"Umbra, you have a lot of explaining to do."

4,000 years ago.

These were the first thoughts of the man who would become Teridax as he woke up on Equis. Thus, I record.

In Teridax Prime's universe

Celestia and Luna watched the scene in Ponyville with grim expressions. Time had warped in such an unpredictable fashion that-

They felt the teleport before they heard the all-too familiar voice. "Hello Luna. Good to see you."

Luna quickly spun around, but Teridax swung his hand onto her neck and squeezed. Blood oozed around the wound and he twisted. Luna's head came clean off, red ichor staining the ground beneath them. Teridax had killed her before she could even retaliate.

Celestia turned and stared at him. He kicked the body away, blood still spurting from the wound. He wore something bright orange on his head- a mask of some sort. Around them, time was coherent. It was so obvious that he had caused it now, especially with him right in front of her. "Hello Celestia. It's been a while."

Celestia almost collapsed, just looking at Teridax with nothing but hate and despair. "You... why..."

Teridax just stared at her in disgust. "Don't tell me that you're not going to retaliate. After all..." He pulled out an all-too familiar pony from behind him. Twilight struggled in an iron grip, horn smashed and wings torn from her body. Her breath came in ragged gasps.

Celestia gasped. "TWILIGHT!" She glared at Teridax. "If you harm her... I'll... I'll..." Magical energy surged around her.

Teridax appeared unconcerned. "If you try to kill me, she'll get in the crossfire. I know this intimately." There was the appearance of a smile in his stance. "But I'll let her live if you do one thing for me." He tightened his grip around her throat and Twilight gasped for air.

Celestia stared at him. Unfortunately, he spoke the truth. Teridax had changed from the tiny being he had originally been- now a giant made of steel. No heart in him at all. She knew that he would move her student into position in order . "What do you want?"

Teridax waved his other hand. "Just you saying that you couldn't ever beat me, that's all." His eyes glowed brighter as he continued. "That you were no match. That you deserve to be at my feet for all eternity. Just say that, and she'll be left alive and... whole." When she didn't respond, his voice turned mocking. "I give you my word, Celestia. Would I lie?"

Celestia glared at him, and his hand started moving closer and closer. Finally, she sighed. "You... I could never beat you, Teridax."

Teridax seemed to smile. "Good girl." Then, his hand turned into snaking tendrils, and he lashed out, quicker than the eye could see. Celestia's legs were sliced open, and she fell with a cry. Her horn was smashed a second later. He seemed to leer at her as she struggled to move, to do anything to stop what he intended. "The only pleasure I'm going to get out of this is seeing the look in your eyes as I do this."

He let up the pressure on Twilight's throat, enough for her to cry out. "Celes...tia? What's... what's..."

Teridax leered at her. "Tell her that she's going to be okay, Celestia. That she's not going to die."

Celestia tried to smile, in spite of the pain. "T-twilight... it's going to be okay-"

Teridax ripped Twilight's head off, and Celestia stopped thinking.

As she fell to the ground, Teridax dropped Twilight's headless corpse next to her. "Pathetic. It took me a long time, but I finally have my gratification." He kicked Celestia, but she had stopped moving. He looked in her eyes, clicked his fingers next to her ears. No response.

Teridax seemed to smile. "I was planning to do worse to her... but seeing you now, that would have just been overkill on my part. Use as much pain as necessary, that's my philosophy." He was about to walk off, but paused. "Four thousand years to break you, but I did it. Goodbye Celestia. It was enjoyable showing you your place in the world."

And he vanished.

Faust nearly vomited at the sight of the act. With a heavy sigh, she removed that piece of the code from existence. Not that it mattered- Teridax was dead and gone. He would face retribution in whatever hell he had been thrust into. But his appearance in that part of the timeline contradicted with the knowledge that Teridax had been in Umbra's universe at the exact moment that had happened.

The possibility that Teridax had somehow outmanouvered a Sys Admin was unsettling. How had he been in two universes at once? Faust reviewed the piece of code. Teridax had appeared, then he had disappeared as soon as he'd done the act. She had the result; now it was time to find out the means.

I had laid plans far ahead in advance. My Equestria would be safe. Thanks to Luna being present and not on the moon, I had good projections ahead in order to make society a much better place. Already, my machinations were making a better world. The Nightmare Force was gone, and would be gone for a long time. I was working on finding them with the help of Princess Luna, who wanted revenge on those beings who had tried to corrupt her.

I was still keeping a close eye on her. Didn't want her to relapse. With ponies coming to tell her how much they appreciated the rest her night gave them, there would be no need to worry. Except for Discord.

Discord... the name still bubbled up inside me like a well of hatred. I hated that creature so much my non-existant blood started boiling. My plans would go much smoother if he wasn't around. I'd already gone to the Tree and dug up those accursed Plunderseeds he'd slipped in there, like he thought nobody would notice. Everything about Discord repulsed me.

I paused. Why, exactly, did I hate Discord? I had not really given the matter thought; it had been a dark time for me back then. The answer came to me: he was a literal, physical embodiment of chaos. Chaos that overturned my delicately laid plans to keep this universe safe from the various beasts that existed outside. Plans that were put in place to keep the barriers of this world secure. An element of the unpredictable would ruin every single carefully laid plan and I could not have that.

The mortals had to keep their noses out of my business. I would deal with them on sufferance, but that was the limit of my tolerance. AS a former mortal, now ascended, I was all too aware of how... disgustingly sloppy mortals were. Raving on about eternity and empires that would last a thousand years. They needed a strong hand to guide them down the right path. To an immortal with Understanding, they were like children. Soft-minded and easily influenced, I had seen time and time again that mortals could not be trusted with their own safety.

I would protect them, if only because they couldn't be trusted with the job.

Author's Note

Teridax is only going to get worse from here on out.

Do you feel bad?

You probably should.

The level of sheer cruelty and sadism will rise.

You have got to be kidding me

I glared at Celestia. "You can not be serious."

Celestia just looked back at me evenly. "You know, for somebody who wishes to protect this world, you know as much about its people as a mollusc knows of Neighspeare."

I was honestly confused. "Why would I need to know about them? I'm here to protect them from big things. If I know who they are then I would have preferences."

Celestia just shook her head. "Now come on, Teridax. Be rational about this. If you do not know who you are supposedly protecting, you may do something foolish."

While I knew that she was giving me rational, level-headed advice as a friend to another, I still glared at her. Pride is a hard habit to shake off. "If you are trying to manipulate me for some ulterior motive-"

Celestia actually looked hurt at that. "We are friends, Teridax. And I believe that you shouldn't seclude yourself off. You don't even have to get involved. Just talk to them. Try and make friends."

For a moment, I just didn't say anything, instead preferring to look around at the Everfree, where I had agreed to meet Celestia. The forest really was quite beautiful at this time of spring. The flowers were blooming, great splashes of red and blue and pink dotting the green, grassy ground. Golden sunlight shone through the ancient trees. Birdsong was present throughout the forest. When I had come here, a long time ago, the forest had been unwelcoming and harsh. Now, I could not say whether there was any place I would rather be at this exact moment.

Still, I eventually had to say something. "There is no point to me interacting with the people of this world. What would I talk to them about?"

"Just talk. They may teach you something new about the world."

I snorted at that, and Celestia shot me a reproachful look. Still, Celestia didn't seem to be budging on the matter of her approval of my plans. I would have to do this... ridiculous farce of social interaction. "Very well. If I have to do this ridiculous request of yours, I will. This world's safety is paramount. Even if you don't know of the threats that exist outside your universe, I am well aware of the threats that may threaten this existence."

Celestia smiled. "Most excellent! It'll do you some good, getting out of that fortress of yours." She looked at me closely. "You are closer to the creatures of this forest than you are with civilisation. A king of the forest needs something to keep his mind sharp."

I just nodded and turned to leave. Now that I had confirmation that I had Celestia's approval to enact my plans, I was content to leave. Most of my defensive measures were there for hostile encounters, but I also would need allies. Through my own judgement, I would select allies that heard my call, and they would be available to call at a moment's notice.

I took the scenic route back. Though civilisation at this point in time leaves much to be desired, the beauty of the Everfree was uncorrupted and simple. Nature is a lot simpler and more understanding than civilisation. In nature, the only rules that really have to be there are the principles of survival. Why civilisation has to complicate that is beyond me.

I prefer nature because it is both beautiful in an aesthetic sense and also because it has a set of principles underlying it that I agree with. Civilisation is just messy.

The man who would become Teridax stood up, and looked around the barren wasteland he had been deposited in. He was an ordinary young man of about twenty- pale skinned, black-haired, thin as a rake. His eyes were black, and piercing, and behind his mask it was almost impossible to see that they were tearing up in the corners. They had seen too much- looking into those eyes you saw madness and loneliness and pain. All around him there was no life.

Matthew Bates looked around, and cried a wordless cry, born of sheer loneliness. His knowledge of the universe, of EVERYTHING, told him exactly how small he was. There was nothing here. Not even a tree. Nothing but the wind and the sand already working its way into his clothing.

Knowledge of the awesome power he now possessed still swam. He had the power of a Makuta now. With his power, he could do anything. He could change the world.

But his heart ached for companionship, and without a second thought he drove a hand into his gut. He grit his teeth, concentrating, focusing his essence. He pulled out a kraata, gold and red. As it blinked, looking around it at the world, Matthew hugged it. Already concentrating on the wound, trying to regenerate his body. He felt tired, and he was probably going to die. But he would not be alone now. Even though this tiny creature didn't know- would never know- his exact plight, he would still be proud to call it his child.

Teridax waded through the scrim of the three massive armies vying for dominance. He had tracked down a universe where he could start laying the seeds of one plan. He needed a piece of the Tree of Harmony. In order to get it, he had specifically searched for universes where his powers were the only thing that could really help.

In this universe, the Fire of Friendship had only kindled a long-lasting friendship in the original three leaders and their aides. The other ponies, not willing to take the possible hallucinations of six ponies frozen into a cave by the long winter, had started warring with each other even more fiercely than before. Thus, they have gathered their forces and are making a massive three-way clash for the area known as Equestria. The leaders are trying for peace but to no avail. Teridax then stepped in, and offered them a chance for peace- to create a common enemy that they would have to defeat through teamwork.

To watch him fight, you wouldn't think he was doing anything at all except walking. A gallant if foolish earth pony tries to charge his legs, only to be reduced to ash by a precise blast of heat from his eyes. Another tries to sneak behind him, only for his head to implode as a tiny black hole is temporarily created in his brain pan.

Teridax is here to create peace through devastation. The point of the brutal, cruel deaths is to impress on the ponies that he cannot be beaten alone, but only through teamwork. As he cuts a swathe through the armies, he spots the leaders readying themselves. He gets his thespian attitude right and he steps before them.

"You are the leaders of this pathetic people, are you not?" he roars, loud enough for the three armies to hear.

Platinum, still terrified of him but smart enough to put the dots together of his plan, manages to say, "Yes, you great lout, and you shall be rendered scrap through our combined power!" Thunderhoof and Puddinghead nod in agreement.

Teridax hams it up. "Pathetic. Not a single ONE of your soldiers could ever harm me. What can YOU three do, that they can't" Inside, Teridax is bored, and checking his watch. He has safeguards set up- he knows that the Fire of Friendship could very well kill him.

That's why it won't get the chance.

As they ready themselves, and the fire takes form, he wills his Vahi to his side, invisible. As they unleash the fires on him, he slows time for them to the point that it seems to almost be stopped. Then, he makes his move.

He dumps a heap of scrap metal in front of the blast, holding it together with magnetism. Then, he teleports away to watch the fireworks, turning invisible and rendering himself entirely silent.

As it impacts, he can feel the relief and the newfound friendship of the ponies in the land as this common threat is vanquished. As the leaders deliver a speech on the values of friendship and social equality, he disappears into the Everfree with teleportation.

He finds the Tree of Harmony, and he talks to it. "My payment for services rendered." The tree seems to look at him, then it feels like an accord is made. A tiny granule comes off.

it is never more than that, but Teridax can understand. It is literally a piece of an artifact of immense good, and it knows what he's like, and he knows it knows, and it knows he knows it knows, and he knows it knows he knows it knows he knows it knows. Teridax takes it and leaves for the universe he calls base.

If it had not been for me taking the long route back to my fortress, I would not have found it. It was a puzzle ring, made of a brilliant silvery metal. The tiny, silvery rings were delicately interlocked, and made for a rather large hand. I stopped, intrigued as to what such a thing was doing here in the Everfree. In spite of its beauty, the ring felt off. The sensation was akin to walking in the midst of a thunderstorm, and feeling the sheer power about to be unleashed on the Earth. I gently bent down and picked it up.

I was treated to a reshowing of Understanding. The sensation I was used to, having experienced it once before. No new insights presented themselves to me, so I can assume that the ring was meant to be such a device of inflicting Understanding on unsuspecting people. Such a tiny thing presenting so big a gift... I was intrigued. I scanned it mentally, trying to detect any intent to attack. None; the ring simply wanted to spread its destructive gift of Understanding across as many people as it could. Not even maliciously, but simply because that was what it was meant to do.

I turned the interlocked rings over, and I saw the signature.

Teridax.

Frowning, I gripped the ring. An artifact of Teridax had found its way into my hands. I would have to take great care with it. As I left, I was careful not to put it on. Teridax had been a genius, but even I had thought that making a Ring of Power was beyond him. This would necessitate further investigation.

For now, though, I was going to find this village near my fortress and...

Well, talk to the locals I guess.

Faust walked into an area that most the multiverse over would call 'Hell.' There's no point describing it- simply imagine what Hell looks like and you have an image that is incomplete and complete. Even if it isn't its own dimension, there is still a concept for most worlds that melds together and coagulates in parts.

Faust's form was her typical form when she walked in her universes- a tall, cream-coloured alicorn, with a straight red mane and pale blue eyes. The entities of this plane of existence thought about stopping a goddess, even one from a rather weak reality, then thought again of it when they looked at her properly.

Instinct and intuition and asking questions directed her to the object of her attention.

He was chained up at the moment, suspended above lava. Faust looked at the soul, so incredibly inhuman and twisted- so like a Makuta's, even though he had once been a man - and felt... something. Not pity, or remorse. Just sheer rage at the perversions of reality that he had enacted.

Teridax Prime, as he was known to his alternate selves, looked at Faust in her appearance. His death had opened his eyes beyond what an ordinary three-dimensional being could see, and he saw her truest form, the true culmination of her being, and something like a smile appeared in his form. He spoke in a deep baritone voice, snakesmooth in its diction. "Hello, Lady Faust. And what do I owe this immense honour?"

Author's Note

I think you'll like this.

Quiet Interlude

I looked at the small filly in front of me. The small filly stared back at me. We had been at this for a while. I had been walking to the nearest village, still smarting slightly over being told to, essentially, "go and talk to people who are going to age, wither and die in only a handful of years," when I had been confronted by this tiny filly.

An Earth pony with a dull blue coat and corn yellow mane, she stared at me with the curious gravity that only small children and statues are ever able to master. I have to admit, it really had thrown me off my game. Considering that I was a ten-foot tall metallic giant, I had expected her to run in fear, or scream. Not stare at me with such a calm attitude.

Finally, I broke the silence. "Hello, little one."

She kept staring at me. I was determined to get an answer out of this small child. "Are you lost? What are you doing out here?"

There was an awkward shuffling of hooves. She didn't really look at me. Something was mumbled out that may have been an answer, but I couldn't really tell. Whatever she was doing here, in probably the most dangerous part of the planet except for the area where there were literally dragons, I was not going to leave a child there. I gently extended a hand out. "Come here, little one. There's a town far up the road that I can take you to. You can go home with me as your guide."

"Dun have a home," the foal finally muttered, her first audible words since I'd spotted her.

I paused. "Well then, little one, come with me." Gently, I crouched down and offered my hand. "My name is Teridax, little one. What's your name?"

She looked down at the ground and mumbled something. I tilted my head. "What was that? I couldn't hear you."

"...Foxglove."

I gestured forwards, walking slowly so that she could follow. "Foxglove. Good name. Good plant. Of course, you may not have discovered why it is good yet. Do you know why it is good?"

She looked at me as we walked, head tilted to the left. "Isn't foxglove poisonous?"

I nodded. "It is. Foxglove is quite poisonous, but it is the poison that makes it so good."

"How's that?"

I could tell her the exact name of the chemical, digitalis. I could tell her the exact chemical composition, mention in passing that in some universes foxgloves were sentient, in others they were just poisonous with no medical use whatsoever, and even that its exact medical usage was variable as all things. Instead, I chose to go with, "Well, the poison in foxglove, when properly diluted, is good for the heart." I looked at her directly. "You're very brave you know, to be talking to something you don't know anything about."

She smiled at that. "You don't look all that scary. You're all white and gold. Those aren't scary colours."

I chuckled. "I suppose they aren't. But I'm a lot bigger than you are. I could just gobble you up."

"No you couldn't. Adults are bigger than me and they don't gobble me up. The princesses are bigger than me and other ponies and they don't go around gobbling ponies."

Thanks to me, one of them would likely never gain that reputation. It gave me a warm sensation in my heart. I nodded, going along with the little foal. "Well, I suppose I can't argue with that. You got me there." Briefly, I wondered why I was doing this, but then I forgot about that when I saw her smile.

"Why are you here and not in a village?"

She stopped. I could feel that this was dangerous ground to probe on. "Dun have a home."

For a moment, I was lost. Then, a decision was made.

"Would you like one?"

After ten years of living in Teridax's house, Foxglove could say with utter confidence that she knew the giant's habits and mind better than anybody else. And what he was right now was bored.

When she'd first moved in with him, she'd helped other ponies relate to the massive creature of metal. There was something just curiously relaxing about a tiny filly sitting on the shoulder of a ten foot tall colossus that just unnerved ponies enough to relax around him. It seemed strange, but Teridax had talked to her about the inherent absurdity of the situation. It beggared belief, he said, that something so small could live with something so large. Of course, it always seemed so simple when he explained it.

Teridax was smart. Over her short life she'd met nobles, mayors, intellectuals of all kinds, and none compared to Teridax. It was like comparing a candle to the sun, or a glass of water to the ocean. From Teridax's mutterings, she could tell that he was meant for bigger and better things than staying here. And yet he stayed because he liked it. That was what made her enjoy his company.

She smiled, and when the explosion rang out she frowned again. Quickly, with the speed developed over a lifetime of such incidents, she grabbed a bucket of water in her mouth and then ran into the laboratory.

Inside, it was a mess. Parchment was covering the floors, sot-blackened and charred by the force of the last. Glassware was shattered, noxious fluids bubbling along the stone floor and in the middle of it all, Teridax stood, glaring at something on the floor. Foxglove looked around, and then put the bucket on the ground. She looked at him, cautiously.

Foxglove knew that Teridax was mercurial and unreadable to the average pony. But there were traits about him, tics, that she could read and made his mood apparent. When he was happy, his eyes glowed an incredibly bright blue, like the sky on a summer's day, and he would stride with incredible energy, every movement purposeful. When he was distracted, corn yellow, and his movements were slow and erratic. Now, with his eyes glowing dark red, and his movements slow and deliberate, she knew that Teridadx was angry. Furious, even.

As he picked up parchment that had fallen around him, slamming the sheaves together with more force than necessary, she heard him muttering to himself. "Damn and blast this infernal ring. Where in existence did you forge it, you bastard? Where?" Then, without looking, he muttered, "Oh, hello Foxglove. I was testing a theory here and it... got a little out of hoof."

Foxglove smirked. "Right. A little out of hoof. What were you trying to do in here, cave in the roof?"

Teridax turned, and his eyes were slowly settling into a dull orange colour, and his armour shone a little brighter. "If you must know, I was trying to concentrate alchemist's fire in an attempt to make it more stable. This obviously failed."

Foxglove waved it off and went to help. As she was doing so, her eye caught the tiny thing in the middle of the blast mark. It looked shiny and metallic. "What 's that on the blast mark?" She went to touch it, but Teridax, quick as the eye could see, darted over and grabbed it.

"Don't touch it. It's dangerous. I'm trying to destroy it." His eyes were red briefly, and then they turned to their normal blue colour. "Sorry. You didn't deserve that. Let me tell you what this is."

Gently, delicately, he pulled the object apart. Foxglove looked at it, and saw how intricate the rings were, how delicately interlaced they were. The craftsponyship was incredibly fine, even for something of that size. "It's beautiful."

Teridax nodded. "It is beautiful. And very, very dangerous." The tiny pinprick of pure white light in the centre of his eye briefly looked away, and he shifted. Finally, he looked back. "This ring is... cursed would be the best word for what it does, but it's not really appropriate. This ring gives those who put it on Understanding."

Foxglove shivered involuntarily. Even as an Earth pony, she knew from Teridax talking to her about it and from her own experience that power like this was to be respected. From just the word, she knew that it wasn't good.

Teridax continued, playing with the ring. "I've told you that the universe is infinite, no? And you also know that I come from another world. These are true. What if I told you that there are infinite versions of this universe?"

Foxglove tilted her head. "Infinite means infinite. Nothing beyond infinite, that's what you told me." But even as she said this, she remembered something else. "But you also said that infinite could mean infinitely big and infinitely small. So which is this universe? And what about your universe?"

Teridax's eyes went a brighter blue as she said this. "Actually, both answers are true and not true. It's complicated, but here are the basics: outside this universe is an infinite multiverse. Inside this multiverse there are infinite universes of infinite size. To picture this, imagine a pack of cards. Each card is a universe. Normally, universes can't interact with one another, but if you put a dot on one of the cards, you can interact. Does that make sense?"

Foxglove was about to say yes, but the brightness of his eyes and her knowledge of his contrarianism made her pause. She narrowed her eyes at him. "You're going to say that metaphor is completely wrong and completely true at the same time, so no, it doesn't make sense."

Teridax clapped his hands and nodded. "Exactly! Since the multiverse is infinite, any way of viewing it is entirely your own interpretation. But I left out the other thing: the Void. Hazard a guess as to what the Void is."

Foxglove thought for a moment, then had her answer. "Everything that is not a universe, from the sounds of it. But if universes contain everything, then this Void would have to be everything that isn't? Am I right?"

Teridax nodded. "Well done. I've taught you well, and you've received these ideas well. yes, the Void is everything that doesn't exist. Dreams exist, hope exists, love exists, but we dont concern ourselves with those things in the Void. There is no up, down, left, right, light, dark, mass, gravity, or even time in the Void. It is simply nothing. What you see there is what your mind puts there."

Foxglove paused for a moment, filing the information away, then went back to the topic on hand. "But you haven't told me what this... Understanding actually is."

Teridax nodded. "That's true, I haven't. Alright, here is the ultimate nugget. Understanding is knowledge of everything in existence. Knowledge of how everything works, knowledge of where everything is. Someone with Understanding has great power, because they know how to use and exploit this knowledge. Knowledge, after all..."

"...Is power," Foxglove finished, the old statement one of the first things Teridax had taught her. As she thought about the implications, she hit a snag. "Hang on. There's no way any mind could hold all of that information. It'd just... leak out."

Teridax shook his head this time. "Understanding is special. It's almost magical, it's almost scientific, but you can't forget about it. It sits in the mind like a toad in a stone."

Foxglove paused. Her mind went into overdrive, suddenly piecing together the little clues and hints that Teridax had strewn through his little speech. "Are you saying-"

Teridax waved his hand. "It doesn't matter. I have told you why this ring is dangerous. It will drive you mad if you touch it. If you touch it, you'll never be the same, Foxglove." He gently put a hand on her back and crouched down. "This ring is not malicious, it just wants to inflict this knowledge on people. And that, is a more destructive thing than the most malicious monster. Remember, the road to Tartarus is paved with good intentions."

Foxglove nodded. She was actually curious about this ring now, but Teridax took one look at her and shook his head. "No. Until I know exactly how to destroy it..." he moved over to a large steel box and opened it with his finger, dropping the ring in and then locking it, "this stays right here. It's too dangerous for you. It will ruin your life."

Foxglove looked away for a bit, before she shook her head. "Why would I want to be like you, you huge galumph?"

"I am not a huge galumph. I'm an average galumph, at worst."

Foxglove chuckled and tapped him lightly on the side. "Whatever, galumph."

Teridax glared at the stallion who was with Foxglove. "What, pray tell, are you doing here with my adopted daughter?" The stress on pray took on sinister overtones as his hand clenched slightly tighter.

The stallion gulped audibly, and was about to back off when Foxglove sighed. She was a fully grown mare of twenty, and she stood tall and proud, and even though she stood shorter than Teridax, she carried an air of pride and confidence that seemed to make her his equal. "Look, Teridax, it really doesn't matter what you think."

"Actually, mr Teridax, I say it does." the stallion interjected. He was pale green, with a dull brown mane and brown eyes, and right now he wanted nothing more than to be gone.

"Be quiet, Feldspar." She turned to Teridax again. "We're getting married, with or without your permission. All we ask is your blessing, Father."

Teridax looked at the rather nervous stallion and Foxglove, and seemed to be thinking. His eyes went through a kaleidoscope of changes - red to green to purple to orange to blue and back to red. Yellow flashes as he ruminated on it. Finally, he sighed, eyes blue again. "Alright. You have my blessing, AND my permission."

Foxglove rushed up and got him in a hug. He returned it, gently, while looking at Feldspar intently. There was a message in his eyes: do anything to hurt her and they will never find the body. Feldspar trembled like a leaf under the power of his gaze, and shakily nodded. Then, he released the hug. "Now then, Foxglove, let's to the village. There should be a church or similar item there, I should know. I walk past it every day it seems."

I looked at his adopted daughter, now ninety years old and bed-ridden, and sighed. Feldspar looked at me, leaning on the doorframe. What made me more ashamed of myself than anything else was the little feeling in my gut, the knowledge that that should be you in that bed, you bastard, anypony but her.

"It was in the garden. She just... fell over. I was just across from her, and I got to her as soon as I could."

As soon as I'd heard, I'd probed his mind furiously, trying to see if he;d done it or if there'd been an assailant. Nothing. Absolutely nothing. It happened as he'd said it happened. Even without reading his mind I could look at him and know he was telling the truth.

I looked at my adopted daughter and wished I could smile. She gently reached forwards and touched my hand.

"How've you been, you galumph?"

"Ive been... fine. I'm still working on a project of mine. The desalination work."

She smiled at that. "It's been twenty years, and you still haven't figured it out?"

"Not really, I need better assistants. The research assistants I have now are terrible."

Foxglove laughed, which quickly went into a dry cough that racked her body. I went up, and was about to heal her when she looked me in the eye. "I know you want to but... that wold be cheating." She chuckled. "Besides, I don't have much longer to live."

"Nonsense. The average life expectancy of an earth pony is-"

"Ninety-six years old, I know. Long life is one of our great advantages."

It wasn't long enough for me. I wanted to make her immortal. I wanted her to live with me in her prime, forever. I wanted...

Foxglove looked at me. "Remember, all those years ago, when you said you wanted to make me immortal? Do you remember what I said when I refused?"

I nodded. I remembered all too well. "You said that if I did that, I would have a doll, not a daughter." It had been a point of great contention. One of our largest arguments. It had been one that I'd known I had to lose.

My daughter has always been taught that freedom is great. If I'd kept her by my side for eternity, I would have been violating that. She knew this, and we had parted civilly for the most part. She pushed herself up a bit, wincing in pain. "Teridax, I think you should continue being a good person. I know it's corny, but will you do that?"

I looked her in the eyes, and gently placed my hand on her chest. "I will."

The funeral had been quiet. I couldn't bring myself to go. It had hurt too much with all of those grandchildren there who looked so much like her. Besides, a monster like me was entirely inappropriate to be there.

I'd changed the colour of my armour to sombre black. As I approached, I noticed that it was raining now, a light drizzle. There was still a shovelful of earth still there.

"Foxglove... I know I wasn't there with the rest of them. I know you're probably really disappointed in me for not being there. It was just... inappropriate."

I looked at the tiny stone and kept talking. "I just... it's hard to say this, but... I wish it was somebody else in there. I wish anybody else had died, and you were still alive. I wish for a lot of things, and they would all make you so disappointed in me, my wise, beautiful daughter."

For a while, I just sat there, looking at the gravestone. "I thought that Feldspar gave a good speech. He was good for you. He helped you grow and you helped him become a real stallion. He looked as broken as I was when he left. It won't be long before he joins you."

I stood up. "I am not a good person, at least I don't think so. For that to happen, I need to go on a little sabatical. I need to grow as a person. It's time to leave this home."

As I spoke, a portal opened behind me, waiting to carry me across to a random universe. "Goodbye for now, Foxglove. I'll remember you as you were."

Author's Note

Here's a quiet little interlude, nothing too heavy.

Two meetings

Faust just glared at Teridax, before marching up to him. "How did you do it."

Teridax seemed supremely unconcerned. "What have I done, exactly? Enlighten me, I've done so much I've honestly forgotten most of my exploits."

In response, Faust's horn lit up, creating what looked like a mass of yarn. "How did you do this to your timeline. This is... way beyond the abilities of a Makuta. Way beyond that Mask of Time. Somehow, you've caused this particular problem. Normally, I'd just say that it was the Mask of Time being shattered that caused this problem, but then I dug a little deeper and found this." With a wave of her hoof, most of the mess went away, to reveal a mass of straight lines, converging on a massive tangle. "You managed to destroy practically every single most likely timeline and tied them to this point. In order to do this, you would have had to travel back in time, multiple times, and then keep doing relatively similar actions over and over and over again." The illusion went away, and she looked Teridax in the eye. "Now tell me how you did it."

Teridax seemed bored as she showed him the simplification of reality. A limb coalesced, still bound by the chain, and he idly examined his fingers. "So you're asking because you don't know how I did it, and you want to fix it. Not easy, but I'll give you an answer." Teridax pushed himself up. "I exploited quantum uncertainty to do that. Quite clever. You understand how it works in its most basic form, right?"

Faust nodded. "You destabilised your own timeline so that you could do that. Incredible. Unbelievable." She shook her head at that, and chuckled a little. "I honestly didn't think anybody could be so petty. You risked your own life - your own existence - so that you could get revenge. Just... amazing." She just looked at Teridax and then she turned away.

"I'm done here. I'm done with you."

Teridax shrugged, chains rattling as he settled back. "Goodbye, Lady Faust. Don't let the door hit you on the way out."

Faust paused, briefly, then turned back. "How, exactly, did you even manage to enter a state of quantum uncertainty and then get out of it freely?"

Teridax waved a finger mockingly. "For that ultimate nugget, Lady Faust, you're going to have to keep digging, and harder than that."

She turned around, and the air around her got just a little bit colder as she glared at Teridax. "You're speaking to a goddess. And I will find out how you did it. When I do, and when I fix it-"

Teridax interrupted, seemingly leering. "I'm afraid the damage is well out of your ability to fix. Better call in your pet admin to solve the problems you're too inept to solve."

Faust stiffened slightly. "He's actually resigned. Strange you didn't know that. I thought you prided yourself on knowing everything."

Teridax's eyes widened slightly. "So the little maggot grew a backbone. I'm actually impressed. My respect for him has grown marginally."

Faust just left without another word. For a while, Teridax stayed in place.

Then his chains fell off, and Teridax chuckled.

Where I had gone, I wasn't exactly sure. While I looked around, the feeling that I'd seen this place before hit me. Sometimes, deja vu is just deja vu, but at others, it's a memory from something else. I'd walked through my portal, and all I'd wanted was a universe where I could just get some time to myself, somewhere that didn't make me remember the problem I was now running away from.

Still, the garden I'd found myself in was very, very well kept. Even though it looked like nobody had been here for ages, the plants looked like they were still growing in relative order. Very few weeds grew around the plants- only the hardiest seemed able to survive. Curious, I walked around. It was small, compact, and utterly minimalist. From what my instincts were telling me, this was a universe with Earth in it. Some tiny hidden glen, far from the rest of civilisation.

I could get some serious thinking done here.

Teridax observed his domain, approvingly. It had taken him a lot of time to get everything set up this way, and finally, it had worked. When he'd first come here, it had been a personal project of his to take over. Unfortunately, he'd been in a hell where the beings inside had no idea who he was, what he could do, and were thus extremely paranoid. Not to mention, most of his powers were completely useless in here against the beings that ruled it.

So he'd worked on the problem. He'd started by slowly weakening his chains, and conspiring with those unfaithful demons who thought that a new boss would improve things. After only a couple of years, he'd managed to subvert the majority of beings to his cause. Five more years and the boss of the place was now imprisoned, and nothing stopped Teridax from leaving.

Teridax was tempted to leave, but then he remembered that him returning would cause a veritable storm of problems to come to him, so he played his hand cautiously. So he pushed and manipulated others to do his work for him, walking into dreams and subtly pushing their buttons so that he could get his tools and trinkets. Too bad nobody seemed to think he couldn't get his stuff this way. Nobody seemed to remember that all you could need to travel the multiverse was a donut shape and a bottle attuned with high power dark matter.

As Teridax pondered the foolishness of the other beings that shared his existence, a ping in the back of his head alerted him. Somebody had beaten the fight sim. That meant that they were likely heading to his sanctum. He'd primed his crystal ball so that it viewed him from above. He waited a bit, counting vaguely, then turned and looked in the space where he anticipated he was being watched from. After a bit, he ponderously stated, ”Come through.” A portal opened itself right next to me. What stepped through was vaguely humanoid, feeling more dream than physical being. An almost black dark blue and with red stars appearing in its body, it seemed like a piece of the night sky had decided to take itself off and walk in the form of a man.

Teridax turned to the new being, on guard. The fight sim had demonstrated that it could actually get a hit in. His preliminary mental scan hit the familiar brick wall of Understanding. This being was not to be taken lightly. Still, he didn't let any minor concern show. “Welcome to a hell. I have to say, you came at a good time. Did you enjoy the fight sim?”

“It was fun,” it said, “I have to give you that,” as it looked around, taking in the vastness of the hell.

He smiled. “It really was. Since you’re the only one who’s found my lair, I suppose I shall reward you with some idle chit-chat.” For a moment, he briefly pondered just staying in this form, then coalesced. Humanoid forms were always so much easier to deal with in the minds of others, he'd found.

“Thank you,” it answered with a slight nod, “Personally, I only know of you from your item and looking into your universe.”

He seemed to sit in mid-air. Gravity didn't really appeal to him. “Yes. I suppose I can say something like that would draw interest. I sought to conquer reality itself and rule everything.” He chuckled at that. “As you can see, I have had a temporary setback in that.”

“My plans are a little more… nightmare-ish. Why rule,” he grinned widely as he said this, “when plunging them into an eternal nightmare works just as well?”

Teridax shrugged. It was a fair point, and one he had explored independently. “To each their own. You have our mutual gift, don’t you?” More of a direct statement of fact than a question, nevertheless Teridax said it.

The being nodded, smiling, “It does come in handy, doesn’t it?”

Teridax leant forwards slightly. “Yes. Anyway, I did promise some chit-chat. Unfortunately, I have a wide variety of plans still active, so I’m going to have to ask you not to interfere with them too much.” Briefly, Teridax considered just brute-forcing his way into the mind of this being, but discarded the idea.

The traveller tilted its head to the side, kicking its legs into the air, “I see no reasons, and honestly,” it clicked its tongue, “I feel a mutual agreement, partnership, something in those regards would work out best because, you see, I need information about certain aspects,” it smiled, “about working with your kind of metal. My NIghtmares have slight trouble preserving in reality, and my sister, Roodaka, has agreed to make bodies for them.”

Teridax waved a hand. Those secrets were hardly the ultimate nugget of his knowledge, and they were common enough. “No problem at all. Protosteel is one of my favourite mediums. A forge is necessary, first of all. Obviously, she must have one. The second thing I have to ask is, how much physical substance do they have?” he asked, mind already spinning with a wide range of possibilities. Know limitations before dreaming big, as Teridax always reminded himself.

“The majority have a fair portion, for a short time. My strongest, and the middle ground ones, have solid bodies until they start deteriorating outside of the Mindscape. It's proven to be a major pain when interfering in Equestria,” the being frowned. Obviously, it had been doing a fair amount of work on the problem itself.

Teridax shrugged. “They’re related to dream stuff, I’m guessing. Here’s a tip.” An illusion sprung forth - a rather intricate dreamcatcher. He wondered if the being had tried something similar before, but decided to test the idea out.

“This is called a dreamcatcher. It may work, or it may not. It depends. Find a magic user and enchant these things. Above all, believe that they will work. Belief is as powerful a multiversal force as love and friendship, after all.” He didn't mention that he'd already done many such experiments on the exact nature and power of what belief could do.

His visitor nodded. “Tried a similar thing and it certainly lasted a while longer, but,” it frowned, obviously knowing that it was a complicated problem, “it only works for my nightmares. I need something I can inhabit long enough to accomplish a few tasks In Equestria. The Nightmares,” it waved a hand, one of them nuzzling its side like a young child, “aren’t going to accomplish this goal without me.”

Teridax idly eyed the little creature, pondering. He'd seen the work of a similar enough entity, and he decided to see if the same situation applied. “Hm. For that to work, the best solution would be to merge the dream world and the real world.” Teridax waved a hand idly. “Possible, if you can find enough idiots willing to do that kind of thing.”

The being smiled widely, “That’s part of my plans, however,” as it lifted up a hand, a tendril of energy danced between its fingers, “I can’t do that yet, it would my enemies with power as well. That’s why I wish to have my sister build bodies, both for me and the most powerful Nightmares.”

Teridax considered this. He'd considered many different solutions, but none seemed to be the perfect fit. “Hm. Difficult problem.” He mulled it over, and then a simple, easy to implement idea came to him. With a mental laugh, he cracked his knuckles “Can they possess people through their dreams?”

“Not for nearly long enough,” Teridax's visitor said, shaking its head in regret.

Teridax seemed satisfied. Minds were always difficult, but if you remove the will, then nothing really remains. “Simple enough. Find a bunch of mentally retarded people, get rid of their personalities, and then integrate the brain into the armour. Wire it up and it should work.”

“Brilliant, as for anything else, I need, I can’t think of anything at the moment,” it said, grinning as widely as it had before, “if I think of anything, I’ll let you know. In exchange, anything you need me to do, relay, stuff like that?”

Teridax waved his hand, and several portals opened. “I’m content for now. Besides, my little project is happening. What happens when you take the closest versions of the greatest composers in the multiverse and then drive them mad with one song?”

“It obviously varies, but it sounds super fun! I may have to try something like that,” he laughed, long and loud, “Though I expect the result is a rather appealing tune.”

“Of course.” With that, a thousand renditions of the same song played. Truly breathtaking. His visitor grinned and bowed, walking towards a portal.

“Why the people act like you are a taboo, my friend, I may never know,” his visitor laughed as he stepped into the portal and out into the Mindscape once more, leaving Teridax behind.

"See you around, Tantabus..."

Author's Note

This is a crossover with The Nightmare in the Corner. It's pretty good, I like it.