Changed: Saving My Friend

“Thorax, Help Me!”

He was inside the hive mind again. He was running through a maze; a dark maze that seemed endless. He turned left, then turned right, left, right, left, right. He felt like a rat trapped in a maze. At one point he was turned into a rat; he had to dodge a variety of traps made to kill rodents. Whoever was making this maze had incredible control of the hive mind. He tried to fight back. But, whoever it was mastered control of the mental scape. All he could do was make his way through it and hope and pray.

He turned down another hallway and saw a door at the end of it. He smiled and started to walk towards it; the door started to move away from him. He started to run towards it. It only continued to move away from him. He began to run faster and faster; the door kept moving away from him. The area around him seemed to melt away into darkness. Even the ground was fading away. He only focused on the door, all that mattered was the door, he was just in hooves reach of the handle. The door flung open and he ran through.

He breathed heavily after landing on the ground. He groaned a little in pain as he slowly stood up. He looked around the area. He was on some kind of road in the middle of nowhere. The area was surrounded by a thick fog. There was also ash falling from the sky. He gasped after recognizing the area; it was from that movie he and Spike had watched. He looked around the area as he tried to remember the movie.

“What was it? What was it?” He questioned himself. “Violent, Violet's, Silence?” He paused for a moment to focus on the name. “Quiet Meadow!” He remembered.

The color drained from his face as he heard the sound of scrapping metal. He slowly turned around and saw it slowly approaching. It was a half-dressed dragon with a large metal cube on its head. It dragged a large double-bladed ax on the ground. He quickly took off running. As he ran through the fog he heard them. The other monsters that also inhabited the city. Deformed ponies that were always crying out in pain. Horribly mutilated changelings that hung from the walls of the buildings. There were even some half-dead creatures stumbling through the streets.

He found a spot to hide allowing him to catch his breath. He could hear the growls of the monsters. As he rested; he thought about the situation he was currently in. The one controlling the Hive Mind was incredibly skilled in the mental space. They were clearly reading Spike's mind. But, by the looks of it, they weren't reading it too thoroughly. The monsters in the city were just roaming around like zombies. They weren't hunting him down. Even Cube Head was acting dumb. So, whoever it was they didn't know that much about the movie or the game.

“Hmm.....I wonder?” He questioned.

He began to focus on the Hive Mind. He thought about the heroes from the movies and the games. He focused on how they looked, their powers, and the weapons they used. He continued to think about them and then he heard it. He smiled as he looked to the streets. He saw all the heroes fighting the monsters. Each of them was taking them down without a problem. He heard what sounded like a door opening and looked in front of him. A door had suddenly appeared in front of him.

“I know it's a trap.” He sighed as he opened the door.

He stepped into the castle in Canterlot. It appeared to be some kind of room, but he didn't recognize it. He searched around it for any clues. But, he hardly found anything that stood out. He continued to search the room. As he searched he heard something metallic hit the floor near the bed. He moved closer to the area and found a ring. He picked it up and studied it. It was a wedding ring.

“Canterlot Castle and a wedding ring.” He spoke to himself.

The door to the room slowly opened and he exited it. He was back in that labyrinth again. He felt more annoyed than scared now. He walked further into the maze and kept himself alert. He began to focus on Spike's memories. He stopped for a moment and continued to hone in on them. He breathed calmly and did his best to focus on the memories. He sensed them, they were all hidden within the maze. No, they were the maze. Spike's own memories were being weaponized.

“I have to get Spike to help me.” He said to himself.

He began to focus on his friend's mind. He used the memories he already viewed as guidance; they led back to the cocoon. His friend was in a horrible state of mind. Whoever was attacking him had broken bits of his mind. He could hear him sobbing inside the mental space.

“Spike.” He called out.

“Thorax?” He heard him call out. “Thorax, is that you?”

He smiled happily as he heard his friend replying to him. He actually felt some tears falling from his eyes. He was happy to hear his voice again. He wanted to hug him but he didn't have that luxury at the moment. He could already feel the presence of the other. He focused on his friend.

“Spike, I need your help.” He told him.

“I can't help you.” He heard him reply. “I....I.....I'm just a pathetic.”

“Stop!” He interrupted him. “Whoever is attacking you is trying to make you feel that way.” He warned.

“Well, they're doing a good job.” He sobbed a little. “Please, Thorax. Help me.” He begged.

“I can't help you until you help me, Spike.” He replied. “They're using your darkest memories against you.” He informed him. He gasped as he felt the evil presence again. It wouldn't be long until it pulled him back to that labyrinth again. “Spike, I need you to remember the happiest memory you have.”

He felt his friend's nervousness. He could hear him questioning himself. Questioning if he was strong enough to fight back. All those negative emotions were giving power to the intruder. Thorax had to think of something fast right now.

“Spike!” He yelled. “Remember, when you saved the Crystal Empire?” He asked for a moment he felt Spike's curiosity. “How about the time you save Peewee?” He hoped he could help him by reminding him of the good he did. “How you got Rarity back to her senses during that time with the book. When you ran in after Twilight when you both went to the other world.” He listed all of them off. But, now the presence had a hold on him and was pulling him back. “Spike! Think of your happiest memory!”

He had been pulled right back into the maze. He panted heavily on the cold hard ground. It was up to Spike now. He was the only one who could help him get out. He shut his eyes and prayed that the dragon he loved would come through. A door slowly opened behind him. He gasped and turned around; just in time to see a door fully open. He felt it. Happiness, joy, some nervousness, and a little bit of fear. But, there was one emotion behind them all. Love, this memory was filled with love. And, he was going to use it.

“Hold on, Spike. I'm coming.” He said before running through the door and entering the memory.

He was in the hallway of Twilight's former castle. The Castle of Friendship. He stopped for a moment and looked around. He couldn't feel the presence of the intruder. This memory though it felt strange. He felt nervous, almost like he was about to do something very important. That was when he saw an image of his friend walking down the hall. He was heading towards one of the guest rooms.

“Don't do this, Spike.” He heard his friend's voice whisper to him. It was the voice in his head trying to get him to stop. “You're just going to ruin the friendship you both have.”

“Who is he talking about?” He wondered as he followed him.

The walk down the hall felt like it was taking forever. The voice repeatedly told him to stop. But, he wasn't stopping, he had to do what he had to do. He was now standing in front of the door to the room. His claw trembled as he slowly reach for the knob. The moment his claw grabbed it; he slowly turned and opened the door. Thorax saw an image of himself resting on the bed in the room.

“I remember now.” He spoke to himself as he followed his friend inside. “This was shortly after the changelings were freed. I spent the night here.” He continued to watch as his friend continued to walk towards the bed. “What did you do?” He questioned.

Spike continued to walk up to the bed. He was a complete nervous wreck right now. His body trembled with fear. His mind yelled at him to get out of the room. He took in a deep breath and climbed onto the bed. He crawled all the way up to his friend's head. His mind commented on how cute he looked as he slept. Thorax continued to watch the event in front of him. He was then struck with a small headache.

He groaned a little as he found himself slowly waking up on the bed. He could barely see Spike's face in front of him. He felt one of his claws gently caress his cheek. He was inside his own memory inside of Spike's memory.

“Thorax.” He heard Spike whisper his name. There was a long pause. “I love you.”

He gasped as he found himself standing across from the bed again. He then watched as Spike kissed him. He couldn't believe his own eyes. Spike had kissed him. He gasped as he felt a warming sensation on his lips. It lasted only for a few seconds. But, that small act was enough to give him the power he needed.

“I love you, too.” The image of himself replied in sync with his.

Like a surge of electricity, he powered his way out of the mental scape that the intruder had made. He focused all the energy he had on tracking the creature down. Almost instantly he had searched every single changeling's mind. He eventually found the intruder. They were trying to slip out through a hidden connection.

“You're not getting away from me!” He yelled as he followed it. “I'm gonna know who you are soon enough!” He yelled again.

For a moment he felt fear come from the pressence that attacked his friend. It was a fear that he recognized. A fear that was rare to feel. But, it was followed by an anger he was all too familiar with. He heard that horrible hiss. He sat up in his bed gasping for air. His body and his sheets were covered in sweat. He panted like he had just run a mile. A mile would be an understatement. He then gritted his teeth and jumped out of his bed.

“MOTHER!” He yelled his voice echoing all throughout the hive. More than a few changeling guards felt something none of them expected to feel. Pure anger, coming from their king.