Domination and Twisted Bone

"Did you pack your toothbrush? Your sleeping bag?"

"Yes, Twilight. Everything's right here."

"Are you sure? Do you want to go over your checklist again?"

"Twilight, come on! I've unpacked this bag three times already!", Spike complained. "All of our stuff that isn't in your saddlebags is in there. I promise."

Strange yawned from his seat by the window, not exactly pleased to be woken up so early. He shifted on the long, ornate bench, causing it to groan under his weight. Twilight had woken everybody up before dawn, eager to inspect the site where Strange told her he'd woken up. He had a feeling she didn't totally trust his story.

Still, he wasn't going to complain. She'd been nice enough to give him a place to sleep, even if that sleep had been cut short.

He leaned his head against the cold glass pane, inspecting the quiet moonlit town. The only other lights he could see were from a barn in the distance, peeking out over distant treetops.

"Strange, are you ready to go? We need to get there before any, um, clues get trampled."

"Yeah, I'm ready." The last of his coffee dripped down the back of his throat like fuel breathing new life into dying embers. He still felt like shit, but protesting would only make him look more suspicious. The elastic waistband on his temporary pants stretched as he pulled himself to his knees. Rarity had dropped them off at the library last night. He concealed a wry grin, remembering the second gift she'd given him underneath the table.

Spike stood back up and slung his backpack over his shoulders. He opened the door, shivering in the cold wind that greeted him. The fire-breathing reptile did poorly in the cold, but he had been adamant about coming.

"Shall we get going then?"

Twilight gathered herself up and led the way outside. The tight straps of her saddlebags looked painful as they dug into her skin. Strange then Spike followed her out, closing the door behind them. The purple dragon pulled a large set of keys from a pocket on his giant backpack and slid one into the hole on the front door. The locking mechanism slid into place with a loud *clank*.

"Is that really necessary, Spike? We won't be gone for more than a day."

"I know better than to take half measures when we go on our little adventures, Twi." He tucked the keys back into his pack. "Better safe than sorry. Now Strange, which way are we headed."

Strange took in his surroundings, trying to remember the previous night. "Well, if I came to the library from this angle then...this way." His long index finger pointed through the center of town.

"So you ran all the way through Ponyville, and just happened to stop at the library."

Her voice didn't sound like a question, but he answered anyway. "I guess so. Maybe it's a little hard to believe, but that's why we're up at the asscrack of dawn, isn't it?

Spike sighed. "Let's just get going."

◊ ◊ ◊ ◊ ◊ ◊

Walking along the long gravelly roads through town from the library, the trio finally reached the outskirts of Ponyville. A wide grassy plain stretched out before them, ended by an impossible dense treeline.

The purple dragon let out a groan. "Right, of course it's the Everfree. Why did I even bother hoping?"

They continued on through the grass, and eventually came to the looming edge of the Everfree Forest. Twilight stopped and the three of them stood in silence. The wind blowing through the trees sounded like an unholy choir, growing in volume as the wind picked up speed.

The Princess spoke up. "If you were sprinting for your life as you said, then you should have left a trail."

Strange looked down to see her staring stoically into the treeline. He narrowed his eyes, not missing the implication. "Guess we'd better start looking then."

"Uh, guys?" Spike had already started to search and was now standing by a tree at the edge of the forest about a dozen yards away. He pointed at something in the trees. "I think I found it."

They followed the path he had made through the tall, dead grass. Twilight turned to look at what he'd found and felt the cold morning air being forced out of her lungs.

"Ho-," Twilight's questioned caught in her throat. She couldn't believe her eyes. "How strong are you?"

But Strange didn't respond. He took a step into the forest, stunned by what he saw. It had been dark last night, but surely he would have noticed doing this? He kneeled and reached out with his hand. Icy splintered wood lay scattered along the ground, leading a trail to the remains of a large tree that had been knocked clean out of the ground. Its roots were cracked and torn. At the site of the impact, the tree had almost been broken in two. His arms fall to his sides.

"Did I...really do this?", asking so quietly only he could hear the question.

Spike began to walk over to Strange's side, but suddenly stopped. A blazing purple light cast long shadows through the dark forest as Twilight's horn glowed brighter and brighter. Her expression was stern. Her eyes were cold.

"Whoa Twilight, what are you doing!?" cried Spike, noticing his older sister's lethal expression.

"What I should have done yesterday! I can't believe I was so stupid. You had me fooled, acting so polite at Rarity's, ut now I see you were just trying to lure us to the forest so you could pick us off!"

Spike jumped in front of Twilight's horn. "Twilight, stop! That doesn't make any sense! A guy as strong as him could have killed half the town the first night he got here!"

"Except that he was smart enough to try and take out the one person in Ponyville who could take him down! You really think he just showed up at the door to my room by sheer coincidence!?", shrieked Twilight. Her back hooves dug into the dirt as she started to lower her horn.

Spike shook his head and spread his arms out. "If he wanted to kill us, he would have done it already. I'm not gonna let you hurt him just because you're scared!"

"Ahg!" Twilight let out a desperate scream. A bright flash from her horn sent Spike floating up into the air.

"Holy shit! Strange, look out!" he yelled, unable to turn his body towards the ground.

Twilight turned towards Strange and took a fighting stance, but...he was gone.

"Wh-where did he go?", Twilight questioned aloud. She stepped slowly towards where she'd last seen Strange kneeling by the broken tree. His wide legs had left deep impressions in the mud. A set of large footprints led out from there, traveling further into the forest.

Looking closer, she could see other signs of destruction making a line through the dense forest. A cracked rock. A trampled bush. Another broken tree. Twilight's eyes widened with realization.

He was following the trail.

"Oh, buck!"

A loud popping sound came from overhead, and Spike began to plummet back towards the ground. Twilight's horn glowed and she caught him right before he made impact.

"Not cool, Twilight." Spike complained from on top of a magic purple cushion. He clambered off and the cushion dematerialized. The dragon dusted himself off and walked over to where she stood. He followed her gaze down the path of destruction Strange had left behind.

"You know, if you did fight him," Spike remarked. "I'm not sure who would win."

◊ ◊ ◊ ◊ ◊ ◊

The trio-turned-pair continued to follow Strange's beaten path. They'd been walking for hours, and it had been a surprisingly peaceful hike. They were miles into the Everfree Forest by now but they hadn't run into a single animal, dangerous or otherwise.

"Very strange...", she muttered under her breath. Spike snorted from behind her.

She took great effort to walk as quietly as possible, keeping her eyes peeled for any movement. Meanwhile, Spike was taking no such precautions. The giant bag on his back swung with every step, creating a loud clatter of plates and tent stakes colliding together. His eyes were glazed over, the rhythmic crunch of dry leaves nearly lulling him to sleep.

Suddenly, the path grew much brighter. Spike looked up to see the sun directly overhead. It was finally noon. The warm sunlight washed over his scales, easing the chill that had set into his bones. He was glad to have a break from the icy forest air.

Then, as quickly as it had appeared, the light vanished as a dark cloud rolled into view. A cold wind blew through the trees, whisking away any warmth he'd been feeling. A small raindrop fell on his snout, and he let out a loud groan.

His foot hit something hard and he started to trip. "WhoOoOa!" he shouted, windmilling his arms backward uselessly. His scale-hardened knees collided with stone and he stopped himself from face-planting with his foreclaws. He pulled himself back onto his feet, suddenly feeling a lot less motivated. He'd tripped on the edge of a huge piece of flat stone that created a large opening in the forest canopy. It seemed to have slipped down from the adjacent mountain, leaving a long, rocky scar in the dense forest.

"Twiliiight!", he whined. His voice echoed through the forest.

The tense unicorn whipped around to face him. "Shh!"

"We've been walking for hours, let's take a breeeaaak!" The dragon continued to whine. His exhaustion outweighed any need he had to act his age. He sat down on a stray rock, nearly sliding off due to the weight of his pack.

Spike let out a frustrated sigh. "How much further can we even go? The Everfree doesn't look wider than five miles on a map."

The Alicorn looked at her younger brother and bowed her head in a deep sigh. "The forest is non-Euclidean, Spike. That means it's bigger on the inside. Nopony's ever walked from one side to the other, so there's honestly no telling how far he's gone."

Feelings of hopelessness started to leak into her thoughts. Her stomach rumbled in protest at the idea of walking further. They hadn't eaten since dawn.

Twilight turned to look down the seemingly endless path. The mangled remains of a large timberwolf lay shattered further down the path. She stared into its lifeless eyes and thought of her friends in Ponyville. The Princess let out a deep sigh. They couldn't stop yet.

With a grimace, she turned her head back towards the young dragon. "Not yet, Spike. I know Strange isn't stopping just because he's hungry. We need to find him before he hur-"

*CRACK* *THUMP* *THUMP* *THUMP* *CRACK*

Her voice was cut off by the sound of heavy impacts and breaking wood. Something huge was moving through the forest towards the clearing, knocking down trees as it walked.

"Spike, we need to run. Drop the bag, and get on my back."

"Twilight, wh-"

"NOW, Spike."

An ear-shattering roar blasted through the trees, knocking down the last of the blackened Winter leaves still clinging to their branches. The monster was partially visible now. A single giant eyeball stared down at them, angry, red, and bloodshot.

Spike cut himself free of the pack with his claws and scrambled across the stone over to Twilight. In his haste, he sunk several talons into the soft flesh on the left side of her neck. Twilight winced, feeling warm blood soak through her cold, damp fur.

"Oh buck, I'm so sorry Twilight!"

"It's alright, Spike. Just hold on!"

Twilight spread her wings and glanced behind her. The monster was completely visible now, standing over twenty feet tall and just a few dozen yards away. She began to flap her wings as hard as she could, using every bit of her self-control to keep her wings in a steady rhythm.

"BUCK, Twilight! Please, please, go!"

Spike wrapped his arms around the front of her neck, pleading for dear life. She got off the ground and barely managed to clear the canopy during takeoff. Suddenly, their ascent was halted and Twilight cried out as an immense force seized her from behind.

Spike screamed as he turned around, seeing the cyclops' scaled hand gripping the end of Twilight's tail. She strained against his grasp, barely managing to keep them in the air. Spike extended the claws on his foot and swiped down at the cyclops' hand, but to no effect. He didn't even scratch the bastard.

Twilight blasted him with a stream of fire from her horn, but he didn't even seem to notice it. Spike turned his efforts to her's tail and frantically sawed straight through it. Finally free from the cyclop's hold, Twilight and Spike shot forward into the sky.

Once they were sure of their safety, the two of them began laughing and crying. They were okay. They were safe. Spike tightened his arms around Twilight's neck and buried his head in the top of her mane.

"Thanks, Twi. Sorry about your neck." He said with a sniffle, wiping his tears into her hair.

Twilight didn't spare the energy to speak. She was giving everything she had to keep them in the air. If they made it back, she'd have to thank Rainbow for the flying lessons.

"Um, Twilight?"

She turned her head back to look at him. Spike sounded a little off.

"It's following us."

Twilight looked down and almost started crying again. The red-finned cyclops was staring up at them, crashing through the forest with no sign of slowing down. She returned her eyes to the skyline and could see Ponyville in the distance.

Twilight started running through her options in her head. She needed a plan, and fast. It was entirely possible that the cyclops would stop chasing them before they got back to town. On the other hand, if it followed them back she'd have to kill it herself or it would destroy the entire town.

She looked down at the forest. If she tried to fight it here in the Everfree there was a smaller chance for collateral damage, but the cyclops would have the terrain advantage and it would probably kill both her and Spike. She set her eyes back on the horizon.

If she could make it back to Ponyville ahead of the cyclops, she could fight him in the field between the edge of the forest and Ponyville. It'd mean risking the town, but it was by far the best chance she had of saving everypony. She steeled herself and made her choice.

She raced back to town, psyching herself up for the fight of her life.

◊ ◊ ◊ ◊ ◊ ◊

Twilight began her descent towards the town. The cyclops had followed them all the way back to Ponyville, but she had gained a one-hundred yard lead on the creature. She landed on the town outskirts, and Spike rolled off of her back. Her legs gave out and leaned against a fencepost, her chest heaving up and down. She'd just flown eight miles in twenty minutes. She pressed a hoof to the gashes on her chest and felt blood gushing outwards with each thump of her heart.

"Are you okay, Twi?" Spike asked her, eyes wide.

Twilight pulled herself to her hooves and turned to face him. "I'm fine Spike. We're going to be fine." She wiped the sweat off her face with her forehoof, continuing to breathe heavily. "Go get the others, Spike."

"What are you talking about, Twilight!? He's right behind us, there's no ti-"

"Spike!" He didn't need to tell her. She already knew. "Go get the others."

Spike looked at the ground and wiped tears from his eyes. He clenched his jaw and curled his claws into fists. "Okay Twilight, I'll go get the others. Just...hold him off until I get back."

Spike ran off towards the center of town. Once he was out of sight, Twilight allowed herself to collapse back against the fence. She pressed a hoof against her neck and examined it, dismayed to see it slick with blood. She watched with fading vision as blood trailed down her front hooves and formed a pool on the ground. Her legs felt cold, and her wings were completely numb.

*CRACK* *THUMP* *THUMP* *CRACK* *THUMP* *THUMP* *THUMP*

The sounds of the approaching cyclops were starting to grow louder. Still braced against the fence, she turned her body to face her challenger.

"Another dead legend..."

Cyclopes were semi-aquatic carnivores that had supposedly gone extinct thousands of years ago due to a sudden lack of their primary food source: pygmies. When she had read about it she'd thought it a good thing, since they were almost entirely magic-proof.

*CRACK* *THUMP* *THUMP*

The cyclops had broken the treeline and was now angrily scanning his surroundings. His search stopped on her, and the massive iris in his single eye shrunk down to the size of an apple. He let out an angry roar, sending powerful ripples through the tall grass in the hundred-foot field between them.

Twilight screamed back at him, indignant. She was Princess Twilight Sparkle! An Alicorn, dammit! She'd been chosen by Celestia herself to become a God, a guardian, of Ponyville! She...she...

She needed to run. Away from Ponyville, back to Canterlot. Back to her laboratory. Back to Celestia. She pushed herself off of the fence and tried to run into town, but her weakened legs gave out from under her. She hit the ground hard and felt her brain rattle inside her skull. Her heart pounded against her ribcage like it was about to explode. She was going to die.

The beast roared again. She could hear him stomping towards her, faster and faster. Tears and snot poured down her face and onto the dirt. Twilight struggled uselessly to pull herself up onto her hooves. She sobbed uncontrollably, pleading internally for someone to save her. What had been the point of all of it? Why had she struggled so hard, why had Celestia made her an Alicorn if her destiny was to die here in a pool of her own blood and tears?

The thumping slowed, and a tall shadow loomed over Twilight's bloody form. Twilight pulled her head up to face the monstrous form that had approached her, but collapsed back onto the ground. She closed her eyes, defeated. She couldn't even muster the strength to look her death in the eye.

"Just...do it."

Then, her vision turned to black.

◊ ◊ ◊ ◊ ◊ ◊

The first thing she heard when she woke up was the scratching of a quill, and the quiet humming of hospital lights.

"Mhm, and you brought her here right after?"

"Well, I had to ask around to find out where the hospital was, but yeah pretty much." Twilight was still unable to open her eyes, but she knew that second voice.

"Thank you, Mister...Strange, was it? You saved her life bringing her here."

"Come on, I just did what anybody would have. She'd just saved the town, was I just gonna leave her there?"

"No, not just anybody would have done what you did. I think what you did was very heroic. You should be proud."

Twilight could hear the clink of a curtain being closed, and the sound of hoofsteps fading into another room.

"I know you're awake, Sparkles. Don't think I didn't see those little ears of yours start twitching."

Twilight forced open her eyes, blinded by the bright fluorescent lights. Her eyes adjusted, and she saw Strange facing her from a seat next to her bed. He looked tired.

"You...saved me," croaked Twilight, almost asking a question.

Strange gave her a wry smile. "Yeah, I did."

"Why?"

Strange's smile disappeared. "What are you talking about?"

"I was...trying to kill you...thought you were a monster..."

Strange was silent. He looked away, out the hospital window. The town was quiet.

"...I did it because I'm not." Strange turned back to face her, conviction in his eyes. "I may look like one, and sometimes I'm gonna act like one, but...I'm not the monster you think I am."

Twilight's eyes filled with tears. "...so...sorry..."

Strange rested a hand on Twilight's shoulder. "I know you are, Sparkles. I know you are."

◊ ◊ ◊ ◊ ◊ ◊

Twilight opened her eyes.

"She's awake. Everypony she's awake!" Spike cried out. The quiet murmuring in the room stopped, and Twilight could see a few of her friends here to see her.

"How ya' doin', sunshine?", asked Applejack, her voice filled with naked relief.

Twilight smiled. "Hi, AJ. Thanks for coming to see me. I'm feeling much better now." Her voice was quiet and strained. The blood loss had taken its toll.

A rainbow-maned pony stepped forward, looking anxious. "How did this happen, Twilight? Spike said it was a cyclops, but nopony else saw it."

Twilight looked away. "I... don't remember."

"You don't remember? Seriously? You turned a cyclops into monster-mash and you don't even remember doing it?"

"No, um...it's all black."

The room breathed a collective sigh. The remains that had been found looked like somepony had run the creature through a blender. If she'd remembered doing it, Twilight might never have gotten over it.

Twilight noticed Rarity looking around, searching for something.

"Rarity?", Twilight called out. "What are you looking for?"

"It's nothing, dear. Just...where is the pygmy?"

Several pairs of eyes widened.

"A pygmy!?", Rainbow questioned. "There's a pygmy here? In Ponyville?"

Spike spoke up with fire in his voice. "He was staying with us at the library. He was the reason we went out to the Everfree in the first place. I swear, I'll kick his ass when I see him, I'll-"

"Spike!" Twilight chided. "Don't be upset with Strange."

"What!? But he-"

"He saved my life, Spike. He was the one who carried me here."

Twilight winced. Raising her voice at Spike had caused her to shift her body, and the gashes on the front of her chest had started to open back up.

Spike watched blood soak through the heavy bandaging on Twilight's torso. His eyes filled with tears, and he looked away. "I...I understand, Twilight. I won't be mad at Strange."

Twilight looked at Spike with appreciation. "Thank you, Spike."

The sound of approaching hooves could be heard from the door to the hospital room. Nurse Tenderheart appeared in the doorway.

"Excuse me. I'm afraid it's time for Miss Sparkle to have her bandages changed. You folks can come to see her tomorrow."

◊ ◊ ◊ ◊ ◊ ◊

"Thank Celestia, you finally get to go home," Spike exclaimed as he pushed Twilight's wheelchair along the path back to the library. "They had said your wounds weren't serious, so I didn't get why they kept you so long."

Twilight knew why. She'd lost a lot of blood from the cuts Spike had accidentally made. The gashes were small, but the decreased pressure at high altitudes made her blood much thinner. She'd almost bled out by the time Strange had gotten her to the hospital. But Spike didn't need to know that.

"And don't worry about Strange. I don't really get what happened, but I know you're not mad at him anymore. That's good enough for me. Trust me Twilight, we'll find him eventually."

Spike rolled the chair up to the entrance of the Golden Oaks Library. "Home, sweet home," he said as he pulled his keyring out of his satchel. He pushed the key into the lock, but couldn't make it turn.

"Hmph, that's odd. I know this is the right key."

Spike tried turning the doorknob but was surprised to find it already unlocked.

"That's even weirder! I know I left the door locked before we left, and I haven't been back here since I heard you were at the hospital. Stay here, Twilight. I'm gonna see if it's safe."

Twilight sat back in her chair, rolling her eyes at Spike's overprotective behavior. A cool breeze blew through town, causing the naked branches of the library to sway overhead. She closed her eyes and breathed a deep sigh of relief. She was glad to be home.

"Not worried about the intruder?"

Twilight opened her eyes again and turned to look towards the source of the voice.

"Strange!", she called out. "Where have you been?"

Strange flashed his white razors at her in a grin. "I've been here, dummy. Where else?"

He pushed the front door open and brought Twilight inside the main reading room, quietly closing the door behind them. Strange wheeled her over to the unlit hearth.

"Hmph, the little bastard didn't even start the fire."

"Oh, I can do that." Twilight's horn glowed, and the fireplace abruptly began to roar with heat.

Strange took a seat across from her, stretching out his legs and warming his bare feet by the flame. The flame seemed to melt him into his chair as he sagged further and further into the seat. He stared at the flame with half-lidded eyes.

Twilight, on the other hand, was fidgeting in her chair.

"What's up, Sparks? You need to pee?"

"Wh-what? No! I just..." Twilight folded her hooves in her lap. "...is this really okay?"

Strange opened his eyes to look at her. "Is what really okay?"

"This!" Twilight threw up her forehooves. "I tried to kill you! Then you come back to save my life! Are we really just supposed to go back to the way things were?"

"Sure. Why not?"

"Because I can't just do that!" Twilight was almost yelling now. "Every time I see you I'm reminded of how awful a pony I am!
How much of a monster I am! I'm supposed to be the Princess of Friendship, and yet I tried to kill somepony just because they looked like a monster!"

The only sounds in the library were the crackling of flames and the distant howling of wind blowing through high branches. Twilight flopped back in her chair, wiping tears from the corners of her eyes. Strange stayed silent, staring into the fire.

"The couch...", he finally muttered.

"What?"

"The couch is...uncomfortable. It makes for a shitty bed. If you want to make it up to me...then I want my own room here."

◊ ◊ ◊ ◊ ◊ ◊

Strange lie in the darkness, resting on his new bed. Well, beds. They'd had to line up two mattresses to make a something long enough for him to fit on. There had barely been enough space in the guest room for it, but it was a thing of beauty when it was finished.

He smiled. Twilight had nearly cried when he'd told her he wanted to live here. She was such a sweet girl.

Strange lie back on his pillow and thought back to a few days ago when they'd gone into the forest. To after they'd entered the forest, and he had fled. To what he'd found.

◊ ◊ ◊ ◊ ◊ ◊

Strange walked back along the path, still unsure if he could have been the one to create all this wreckage. He stared down the straight and narrow path, straining his eyes trying to see an end. He sighed and stopped walking, taking a seat on one of the fallen trees along the path.

This didn't feel right. Something about was wrong, but what? He thought back to that night, the sweating, the breathing, the thumping of his feet as he ran-

That was it.

Strange stood up. If he'd made this path in ten minutes, he should be able to follow it back in the same time. He started down the path at a fast jog. The sound of his footsteps made a heavy, thumping rhythm echo through the otherwise silent forest. Strange frowned. He'd been going faster than this. He was sure of it. Strange tried to increase his speed and found he could keep the faster pace quite easily. Maybe he could go a little faster. Even faster. Faster! The forest had turned into a green and brown blur. Several seconds passed between each stride. Strange could no longer tell how fast he was going. He pushed, and pushed, and pushed the limits of his speed, showing no signs of leveling out.

Suddenly, the ground gave way beneath him. Strange started to free-fall, but his forward momentum slammed him into a hard rock wall. Strange barely struggled to escape his stone prison, finding that the rock wasn't as hard as he'd believed.

He climbed out of the hole he'd made in the rock face, sliding down the wall to the bottom of the small canyon he'd fallen into. He looked over his body for any signs of damage but found only powdered stone clinging to his skin.

Strange thought back to Twilight's frightened expression. The way she'd screamed at him.

He clenched his fists in frustration. Why had this happened to him? Why did he look like a monster? Why did he have these abilities?

He looked back over to the cliff he'd sprinted off of. If he could get back up there, he could probably see where his trail continued. If he wanted to find answers, he would have to get back to where he'd first arrived in Equestria. Strange walked to the slowly sloping wall at the base of the cliff and started to climb, methodically burying his hands and feet in solid stone to create footholds. Finally reaching the top edge, he looked down at the shallow gorge.

"Oh my God."

The long, straight canyon started shallow at one end and grew much deeper towards the other. Scorched, shattered rocks were scattered throughout the gorge, and fallen trees lined the edges. He had found the pit he'd woken up in, but it was not a natural formation. It was a crater.

◊ ◊ ◊ ◊ ◊ ◊

After that, he'd sat in the crater for hours. He felt alone and confused. Twilight had rejected him. And even though Spike would stand up for him, he knew he'd never be at home in that library.

The only thing that had pulled him out of his stupor was a strange feeling from the direction he'd come from. The same feeling that had guided him to Ponyville in the first place. It had been by pure chance that he'd been there in time to kill that cyclops. He shuddered, thinking of what could have happened if he'd gotten there even a second later, but also of how easily he'd been able to kill the beast, of how familiar he was with the sensation of tearing through flesh.

Now feeling restless, Strange got up out of his bed. He walked over to the window, looking down over the sleepy rural town and to the forest beyond. The Everfree seemed to look back at him. He shuddered. It was a forest full of monsters. Did he belong out there with them? Did he belong anywhere?

Strange cursed under his breath. Of course he belonged somewhere! He belonged here, at the library. Even if it was dysfunctional, he had a family here.

He looked down at his green hands, remembering the dark red viscera that had coated them after he'd ripped that cyclops to shreds. Whispering to no one but himself, Strange chanted.

"I am not a monster. I am not a monster. I am not a monster."

As he repeated the chant, his nerves cooled and his feelings of anxiety faded. He drew deep, shaky breaths that cast fog against the chilled windowpane. He stared at his warped reflection in the glass. His eyes seemed to glow in the darkness.

Strange let out another deep sigh. Exhaustion clouded his mind. He turned away from the window and eased himself into his bed. His existential crisis could wait until morning. He covered his eyes with an undersized pillow and waited for sleep to take him.

◊ ◊ ◊ ◊ ◊ ◊

Sweat poured down his back and chest as he strained against the lever with immense effort. His legs shuddered, his arms twitched, and he felt like he was about to throw up. He must have been pushing this damned thing for hours.

"Keep going, you've almost hit 15 minutes."

The human didn't even need to look to see who was talking. After all, he was the only other person here.

"That's the ticket, little man. You're almost there."

"Fuck...off," said the human, out of breath.

"Don't be like that. You're going to be doing this for a long time, so you might as well do it with a smile."

The human continued in silence.

"I'll tell you what: you make it to thirty minutes, and I'll give you a reward."

The human turned his head to face his guest. "What reward...could possibly...be worth...this!?"

His conversation partner grinned at him. "Why, the greatest gift of all to a human like you."

"Death?"

The human's quip earned a throaty laugh. "No, not quite. I thought we'd already discussed that, little man. No, I'm talking about knowledge. All the secrets of the world flow through this room. If you do what I ask, I'll let you skim a bit off the top."

"That's it...gossip?"

"No mere gossip, little man. The secrets to true power. Forbidden knowledge. Stuff that would send Gods running like scared children."

The human glanced up at the other speaker. What use could he have for something like that, especially in a place like this? And yet his first milestone came and went, and the human showed no signs of stopping. Another fifteen minutes later, the human crumpled to the floor in a pile of sweat and exhaustion. He could do nothing but dry heave as his guest loomed over him with an inhuman smile.

"I knew you had it in you, little man. I could see it from the moment you came here. You are ruled by a bottomless thirst for power."

The human's limp body was lifted by his torso, his head and limbs dangling down towards the ground. "Very well. I shall give you a taste."

His face was pressed against cold stone and, in his next breath, he saw a glimpse of the face of God. Color, light, life, death blew through his mind. He saw flashes of everything anybody had ever known, yet only a grain of this heavenly wealth of knowledge would lodge itself into his mind.

Again he was lifted into the air, the flow of knowledge forcing its way through his mind now cut off. He was tossed backward, landing against the wall and somehow managing to land on his feet.

"And what did you learn?"

The human gave his watcher an incredulous look.

"What the fuck are you talking about, I didn't learn anyth-"

The human's breath was stolen away as an immense pain wracked his entire body. He collapsed to the ground, writhing helplessly. A vicious cracking rung out from beneath his skin. It was as if every bone in his body was exploding. Tears and snot streamed down his face. The human opened his mouth but was unable to air his grievances. The bones in his neck had collapsed inwards, and his deprived lungs felt like they were about to burst.

Suddenly, the pain began to fade. His punished limbs retook their shape and his windpipe expanded, allowing him to breathe. The human could only focus on taking in oxygen as his skeleton finished reforming itself.

Finally, his torture had ended. The human looked up from the ground at his inhuman watcher, fury in his eyes.

"What the fuck was that?"

The watcher laughed. "It seems fate has played a cruel joke on you, little man. Looks like you've learned something you weren't ready for."

The human scrambled to his feet. He ran a hand over his face, wiping away a mixture of sweat and tears. "I didn't bust my ass for you just to get pranked."

The watcher laughed again. "One day, little man, you will understand what you have been given. The boon you carry can never be taken back. If those false Gods could see you now..." He gave the human an unearthly smile.

"...why, they'd kill you where you stand."