Throughout the treetops, Pyro and Teela dodged branches as they tailed Chirpy. For him, every bit futher Pyro flew seemed to motivate him to go further. Food isn't that far away... he thought to himself as Teela bypassed him.
"Hey! Keep up the pace! Chirpy isn't stopping!" Teela called back as she flipped over several branches. Pyro nodded and ducked under a branch coming for him, and clambered passed a large trunk. Ok, this is getting repetative, he thought as he shoved some branches aside. In his head, he was constantly trying to become intangible, but it seemed to be leading him nowhere. Just as he caught up with Teela, an idea pulsed through his mind.
Why not test the Darkness?
The familiar feeling jolted through his body, and Pyro lost his train of thought. After he came back into focus, he saw a tree standing in his way. "WOAH!"
Teela looked back. She heard Pyro yell, but she didn't see him. She looked back forward, and still saw nothing. Stopping and balancing on a branch, she was about to go back, when...
"C'mon, let's go!"
"What?!" Teela was picked up by an invisible force!
"Come on, I said! Let's go!" Chirpy was just about to leave sight when Teela's body was jerked forward. She was carried past branches and other obstacles, almost like she was flying. But then, a tree stood in her way.
"Woah!"
"Don't worry, I got this." With that, Teela felt a warm sensation. Something funny jolted through her body, and she went right through the tree! She looked back, and saw many other branches pass through her.
"Pyroboo?"
"Uh huh! Yep!" With that, a translucent image of Pyro appeared under Teela, carrying her!
After passing through many other trees and passing Chirpy, a clearing came into sight. With only two more trees to pass, Pyro put Teela on a branch, and they both became solid again. She stared at Pyro with a look of amazement. "How did you do that?"
"I dunno! But I'm not arguing!" Pyro and Teela laughed. "All right, now let's- Ow!" Pyro was cut off by Chirpy's beak jabbing his side. The bird shook it's head, and exited the forest. "C'mere, you!" cried Pyro, giving Chirpy chase. Teela followed behind, finally leaving the Forest of Illusion.
"We're out... We're really out!!" exclaimed Pyro, kissing the ground that was the entrance to the forest. Teela emerged and called for Chirpy, who landed on her outstretched finger.
"Ok, now we need to focus on fo-"
"CHIIRP!" Chirpy took to the skies once again, off into the distance.
"Hey! Enough already!" cried Teela, running after him. But she then stopped abruptly and turned back to Pyro. "Hey, could you help me catch that bird?"
"My pleasure. Ya got me outta that forest, so I'll get the bird."
"Thanks, Pyro," Teela said, and Pyro took to the skies with Teela running behind. It was only a matter of time before Pyro caught up to Chirpy and clamped him between his hands.
"Ha! Gotcha!" said Pyro, sticking his tongue out at Chirpy. The bird just cut his eyes and ignored Pyro. The Boo floated back down to the ground and handed Chirpy to Teela. She brushed the hair out of her eyes and looked at Chirpy scornfully.
"Okay, why don't you tell us why you're acting like this?" asked Teela, expecting an answer.
Chipy woefully gave in, and replied, "Chiiiirpy chirp, chirp chiroy. Chirp." It finished, and then pointed a wing to Pyro. He stepped back, trying to remember it was only a bird.
"Well, he said that you were some kind of demon," Teela said, looking back down at Chirpy.
"What?"
"Chirp chirpy chiiiirp!" said Chirpy, snaping his beak fiercely at Pyro.
"He says the Darkness shouldn't be trusted."
"Chirp."
"I have to side with him on that," said Pyro, advancing forward. He took Chirpy into his own hands. "I didn't ask for the Darkness. Trust me, I'd rather not have it. It does things to my body, senses, even my thoughts. But I promise you, I'd never hurt you." Chirpy looked up. He seemed to ease at the words, but still coldly shunned Pyro. Teela took Chirpy back and pet him.
"He isn't an enemy, Chirpy. Stop acting like this."
"No, he doesn't have to trust me. I've learned not to give trust out easily, and Chirpy knows the same. He doesn't have to like me, I'm just some demon of the Dark."
"... You talk like you're nothing but Darkness. But you aren't. It isn't your whole being, it's something you own."
"... I wish that were true," said Pyro. "But I won't let it take me down. I can assure you."
"I wouldn't be so sure."
"What?!" Teela and Pyro said simultaniously. The world around them started to shift and break, destroying everything. Chirpy was chirping over and over and flying around, hoping to stop the shaking, while Pyro stood his ground.
"Not this place again," said Pyro, shaking his head as the area started to gray.
"Where are we?" asked Teela as the gray encircled them.
"The Dark Realm," replied Pyro, holding his position. Teela did the same, hoping for the shaking to stop.
"You are correct."
"Who is that?!" asked Teela, looking around for someone as the quake subsided.
"That's Voice," said Pyro as the area became pitch black. "Whatever you do, don't let Darkness close on you," warned Pyro as he advanced forward with Teela. Chirpy landed on her shoulder and shivered, as they advanced deeper into the Darkness.
"I can see your friend is very Dark." After the words left the voice, a green light started to flash around Teela.
"Hey, what is this? Get it off!" screamed Teela as the Darkness enclosed around her.
"LEAVE HER ALONE!" Pyro cried as he glowwed green. The light around Teela faded.
"Do not take what is hers."
"I'm the Dark one here, not her. She isn't Dark at all."
"Nay, she is. Look at her fangs." Pyro did so, and saw the fangs jutting out from her mouth.
"Yeah, so I have fangs. Doesn't mean I'm Dark!" replied Teela. The voice's laugh was so cold that it might as well have frozen the trio.
"This one's Darkness may just rival ours."
"Ours?" asked Teela. Pyro turned in her direction.
"Yeah, this loon keeps implying that we're the same person."
"Wouldn't you like proof?" asked Voice in a serious manner.
"Actually, that would be nice," said Pyro sarcastically.
"Very well. Use the Darkness. Look forward."
"Fine." Pyro filled his entire body to the brim with Darkness, and gleamed with a blue light. He squinted, and saw a blurred image of something red and black in the distant Dark.
"See me?" The voice was now speaking in a dual voice, one that sounded like a full grown man, and another that sounded the same as Pyro's.
"I can hear him, but I don't see him..." said Teela, squinting towards where Pyro was looking.
"Keep it that way. I don't want you flooded with Darkness," Pyro replied as the figure came closer. It looked familiar, somewhat, and when it came into view...
"No. You're..."
"Us. Yes, that's me. I am-" he dropped the adult voice, and went into Pyro's only, "-you."
"You aren't..."
"Yes I am. We are one in the same." It was Matt Yoshi!
"..." Pyro took a good look at him. He was wearing the very same bandana, the same wristbands, had the very same eyes, and the very same hair, even the same cursed spikes. But he looked about sixteen, and was wearing a cloak. He looked very much older than what he last remembered...
"Now, about your friend."
"Don't you dare." Pyro's green glow was now a harsh red, and he cut his eyes fiercely.
"Oh, so scary. You think you can beat yourself?"
"No, but I'll beat ya within an inch of your life if you even touch Teela."
"What's he gonna do?!" asked Teela as she drew back into an aggressive stance.
"He ain't gonna do nothing. I'll protect you," answered Pyro as he floated in front of Teela. Matt just advanced forward.
"Don't even try," warned Pyro as he glowed a darker red. att merely laughed and raised one hand.
"Uhh!" Pyro was thrown across the area by the Darkness!
"Pyro!" Teela screamed. Since she couldn't see Matt, she shuffled around and waited.
"Pyroboo is like you: a denizen of the Dark." A light flickered around her, and Teela started to glow green once again.
"I SAID LEAVE HER ALONE!" screamed Pyro as he shoved Matt with all his might. Teela then stopped glowing, and returned to her original bluish tint.
"Pyro, where is this guy?"
"Don't worry Teela, just-"
"ENOUGH!" boomed Matt, standing back up. "If you won't let her submit to the Darkness, then I will submerge her in it!" With that, Matt called a wave of green light that blinded Pyro and Teela. He directed the light like an arrow towards Teela, and let it fly.
Just as the arrow was about to connect with Teela, something unexpected happened.
"CHIRP!!!"
With a flash of light that blinded Pyro, Teela, and even Matt, Chirpy had blocked the blast!
When the light dimmed, Matt appeared next to Chirpy's body.
"He hated the Darkness so much that it was his downfall. A fitting end," said Matt as he disappeared into the shadows. Both Teela and Pyro ran to Chirpy. Teela picked Chirpy up and tried to find words to say. Pyro was studdering as Teela sniffled.
"Chirpy?!" cried Teela. Chirpy was silent.
"He couldn't have..." Pyro stopped himself amid his sentence, as he saw Teela crying.
"... Chirpy. No, you aren't dead." To Pyro's amazement, Teela started to glow a white light. "You aren't dead. No! NO!" The white light enclosed around Chirpy, and the bird matched his owner. Soon, the light intensified to a blinding flash, and the entire Dark Realm was immersed in it.
...
The two of them sat near the entrance of the Forest of Illusion. Teela was wimpering as she held Chirpy in her hands, while Pyro was forcing back tears. Such a heroic act... Not in vain, thought Pyro.
"...irp."
"!!"
There was movement in Teela's hand. They both stood and gazed at Chirpy.
"Ch... Chi... Chirp." He was alive!
"CHIRPY! But how?" exclaimed Teela, watching Chirpy stretch his wings weakly.
"You did it."
"Huh?"
"You brought him back."
"I... did?" With that, Teela started to glow a bluish white light. Since he had the ability to smell the supernatural, Pyro got a whiff of Teela.
"You smell like roses. Like that sunlight. You're glowing... Maybe... This is the opposite of Darkness?"
"... Light?" said Teela, and she let Chirpy fly.
"Yeah. Matt was
wrong. You're not Dark. You're Light."
"So, what's next for you, Teela?" asked Pyro, as Teela scratched her head in thought.
"Well, I can't lie. I'm fascinated by the Light and Darkness. So, I think I'll look into it a little. Same as you!" Teela smiled as the evening sun shone on her.
"Well, we've got similar paths. Why don't we look into it together?" thought Pyro. Teela nodded and smirked.
"I just hope we don't run into that Matt Yoshi person... Anyway, why does he keep saying you two are the same?" she asked. Pyro sighed.
"Because he's crazy." They both laughed at the joke. "But seriously... I think I just may be him. In a past sense."
"How's that?"
"Well... Before I became a Boo, I was a Yoshi. I took on the Darkness, became a ghost, and... Well, I met you," said Pyro as his fangs basked in the sunlight. Teela nodded.
"Well, for sure, you aren't him now."
"... Thanks," replied Pyro with a large grin. With that, their conversation was interrupted by Chirpy.
"Chirp," said Chirpy to Pyro. He couldn't understand him, so he just smiled, dumbfounded.
"He said he still doesn't trust you," translated Teela while snickering.
"Eh... Uh..." His grin faded into a frown. "So... We gonna get some food or what?"
"Yeah. You got any money?" asked Teela. Pyro shook his head.
"Me neither."
"Well, I'm not about to go through some garbage," said Pyro as his stomach growled. The sun was setting over the horizon, and the moon was about to rise. "I vote we set up camp."
"Ohh, sounds good," said Teela.
"Chiiirp," agreed Chirpy as he perched himself on Teela's head.
"Okay, we're gonna need a soft surface... Tree leaves?" said Teela, as she plucked two giant leaves from the Forest pf Illusion's entrance flora.
"And... A fire!" exclaimed Pyro, as he summoned a wisp of green flames. "Feh, I'm too smooth."
"Yeah, sure," remarked Teela as the moon rose and the sun retreated.
...
Two leaves were placed on each side of the fire. Teela lay with Chirpy hidden in her hair, and Pyro lay on one leaf with a bite mark from an attempt to eat it.
"G'night," said Teela as she turned on her backside.
"Yep," followed Pyro, as he dimmed the fire with a clap of his hands.
...
A completely white area surrounded Teela Yoshi. It was desolate, with nothing but everlasting acres of a bleached world. As she was about to advance forward, a voice called out to her.
"You made a foolish decision."
"!!" She turned around, but saw nobody.
"But the Darkness will not turn its back on one such as yourself," said the voice, coming from nowhere. It sounded familiar, but she couldn't quite make out who it belonged to. "You are special. You chose Light over Darkness, and diminished it from yourself. Now, you have barely any Darkness in you."
"??"
"You are unlike that Boo. You did not accept me."
"...?"
"But, all hope is not lost. You can still call it back," the voice said. With that, something appeared in the distance. Teela squinted, but all she could see was a blur of red and black. The creature started towards her, with care in each step.
"?!" Teela found herself unable to speak.
"Show me this 'Light' of yours," said the voice. Teela tried to call the Light and force the creature back, but it just wasn't coming.
"Unable to comprehend your powers?"
"!!!" Teela closed her eyes and tried as hard as she could to summon some Light, but her effort had no result. When she stopped and opened her eyes, the creature was towering over her. "!!" she jumped back and tried to growl, but found it impossible.
"I cannot exist in this Realm Of Light for long, but I can hold my own, I can assure you of that." The creature appeared to be a teenage Yoshi, and had black hair and was wearing a black cloak with a hood on it. On top of his head was a bandana of a scarlet color, and he had two menacing, green eyes that seemed to penatrate her mind. "I came here to bestow you a gift."
"?"
"I came to temper the Darkness within you."
The Yoshi snapped
his fingers, and a blue light flashed around his hand. Teela then started
to glow a greenish black color.
It felt powerful, but then she remembered something important.
Flashback...
"Whatever you do, don't let Darkness close on you," warned Pyro as he advanced forward with Teela.
End Flashback...
"..." Teela looked up at the Yoshi. He was smirking as the Darkness took effect on her. "!!!" She pushed the Darkness back, and in turn blew the Yoshi back with a blast of Light. He was pushed back a few feet, but still remained as determined as ever.
"You still remain resistant?" Teela nodded once, as the Yoshi laughed. "Very well. But know this; Light is nothing compared to Darkness. If you want to even have the slightest chance against its power, you would be wise to collect as many wielders of Light as possible." Teela was confused, but nonetheless stood her ground. "A wielder of Light, such as yourself. You should remember very well," Matt said, but Teela seemed to draw a blank. "Like her," Matt continued, as he walked towards her again, extending his index finger.
"?!"
"Do not fret," finished Matt, as the finger touched her snout. As soon as the glove made a connection, Teela felt a warm sensation. She liked it, but at the same time she tried to prevent it. As soon as she got used to it, Matt took it back, but left his finger in place. After the feeling left, a very vivid image replaced it.
Flashback...
"Follow me," she said, as Teela was led towards the stairs by her friend. The Yoshi scanned the impressive castle, and had to admit that it was very "abstract" in many different ways, with the dark walls and pictures upon pictures of Koopas.
"Thank you..."
Teela said, shivering. Not a single guard in the hall
neglected
to eye her maliciously, especially the ones who had just recently captured
her. As they were about to advance further, the young Koopa from earlier
popped in.
"What were you doing here?" asked the Koopa as the wind from the window played with his wild turquoise hair.
"Sleeping," replied Teela as she let a small yawn escape.
"I know that. But... Why in blazes in this... dreary dark place?" Interjected the girl who saved her.
"Who cares?" asked Teela, crossing her arms as the cold wind that crept into the room swept her hair sideways. She was about to walk out of the room and exit the stronghold when the girl ran in front of her.
"We do..." said Karma Koopa.
End Flashback...
"..." As the old memories sifted through Teela's mind, she felt a slight shiver in her spine. Matt took his finger off her nose and let it rest over his other, crossing them.
"You remember, correct?" asked Matt. Teela nodded once hesitantly.
"Are you sure you prefer Light?" inquired Matt once again. This time, Teela nodded twice vigorously.
"Very well. But remember. You cannot fall back on Light. Now, the Darkness is something you can depend on." The Yoshi disappeared into the corridors of Darkness as Teela's vision blurred into black.
...
"Woah!" screamed Teela as her body jerked up. She was panting heavily, like her heart had skipped a beat. Pyro slowly groaned and pulled himself out of his sleep, grabbing his bandana and looking over the deceased fire.
"It's like three in the morning. You okay?"
"... I'm not sure," said Teela, as she clenched her hand in and out. Was that Karma? thought Teela as a look of discomfort formed. Pyro, confused, floated up and over to her.
"Why wouldn't ya be okay?" he asked, trying to make eye contact. Teela looked back up at him and sighed.
"No reason."
"No, you tell me," replied Pyro, acting very serious as he donned his bandana without tying it.
"... I think I may have seen that Matt Yoshi demon."
"WHAT?!" Pyro floated back and his bandana fell off, revealing his poofy hair. "You can't have! You're Light!"
"I know. But there still is Darkness in me." Teela pointed to her fangs, while Pyro just shook his head.
"... You brought Chirpy back from the dead. Thats' as much proof as I need to say that you're anything but Dark."
"Yeah, but Matt played around with the Darkness inside me," replied Teela as Chirpy landed on her shoulder.
"No, you definitely aren't Dark." Pyro sniffed her and nodded. "You still smell like flowers. Besides, it was probably just a dream."
"... I'm pretty sure it wasn't. I could smell him," said Teela as she sat up and hugged her knees.
"What did he smell like?" asked Pyro. Teela had to think for a moment, but got a memory.
"... Something foul." As soon as the words passed, Pyro's eyes widened in fear.
"That's... right." Pyro gulped, and an awkward silence followed. He then broke it and said, "So, you're Light... and you have the ability to sniff out the elements?"
"... I guess that's whats it is," finished Teela, as she nudged Chirpy off her shoulder and rolled back onto the leaf. "Ok, now we need to sleep. We can figure this out later..." she said as her voice trailed off into the night.
"... Ya never cease to amaze me, Teela Marie Yoshi." And that was all Pyro said before falling back onto his leaf and into a deep sleep.
...
"Hey... Wake up!" said Teela, nudging Pyro with her boot. The Boo started to squirm and gripe at every touch.
"... C'mon... Still tired..." he moaned, waving his hand at her foot.
"Pyro, get up!" she said, nudging him a little harder. He just phazed out, making her foot go through him.
"No, you get up. Now," she said, pulling out the bitten leaf from under him. He was forcefully phazed back in, and his face hit the ground with a loud THUD!.
"Ow... Okay! I'm up!" whined Pyro as he pulled the leaf back from the Yoshi girl. He rolled back and fixed his view on Teela. "Okay... Why am I up at-" he looked at the sun, and made a guess, "six o'clock?"
"... I had another part to that dream."
"Okay. Tell me," said Pyro, snapping into focus almost immediaetly as "dream" left Teela's lips.
"Well..." She stopped, bit her lip, and crossed her arms. "I just have this gut feeling that... we should see a friend of mine."
"... What kind of gut feeling? What did he say?" asked Pyro, as he felt around for his bandana and tried to push the image of Matt Yoshi out of his head. Teela sighed as the wind brushed her hair behind her, and took a seat next to Pyro.
"He said that if we ever would stand a chance against the Darkness... then we would need a lot of Light."
"... So what does that have to do with your friend?"
"... He showed me a memory. A memory of a very close friend. He also said she was Light," replied Teela, looking up at the baby blue sky. Pyro looked up as well.
"Does that mean he wants to... I don't know, wage war or something?" Pyro said with a slight laugh. Teela, though, was silent.
"It's a possibility."
"... Well then, why are we standing here?" said Pyro, picking his bandana up from under him and tying it loosely. "If we're gonna find this friend... then we'd better get going!" he finished as he levitated up and extended a hand down to her. She nodded and smiled innocently.
"Yeah," she said, taking his hand.