Deep silence blanketed the mountains, and the towering pines stood upon them in unmoving vigil beneath their winter coats. Snow drifted lazily through the freezing air on its downward journey, finally alighting on a soft bed of its fellows.
The small black pug obliterated the serenity of the forest as he plowed through the snowdrifts, snuffling and panting while dragging his human deeper into the woods.
Stanley trudged along behind, passing beneath evergreen boughs with only patches of gray clouds peeking through. A heavy jacket and dark pants shrouded his figure. Hot breath frosted in the cold air and settled onto his black scruffy beard, already speckled with snowflakes. He squinted against the white glare all around, beneath a knit cap pulled low over the ears.
He was not oblivious to the scenery as the leash dragged him onward through the woods. It was gorgeous, his favorite environment in the nation, if a bit cold now. However, most of his attention was on the other end of the leash, where the dog was trying and failing to avoid the more treacherous piles of snow as he plowed forward.
"I thought you were in a hurry? I didn't even put your booties on, and now you're gonna run through the whole goddamn forest." He sighed, breath billowing out in a cloud as he looked back the way they had come. He could just make out a spot of blue through the trees where he'd left the truck. "I'm gonna have to carry you back, and you're not that light, you know."
Caffeine ignored him as usual until the dog finally found the right spot and did what he needed to. "Good boy, Caff!" Stanley praised. "Now let's go…"
The ground shook beneath their feet.
Before Stanley could react, there was a booming crack below him and a stretch of snow-covered ground fell away into gaping darkness. Then eye-searing light blasted from the hole and directly into his face.
Blinding agony swallowed his mind, and Stanley was toppling backward in reflexive recoil. He might also have screamed as he fell, but was too far gone for such mundane concerns. Instead, he was drowning in brightness.
Only, it wasn't truly light. What shined brighter and hotter than a star did not burn his face as it shone straight through him. The light didn't vaporize his eyes into plasma as it burrowed past them. Instead, it blazed straight through everything else and sank deep into his brain.
Synapses fired, electrical impulses crawling at a lightning pace along the neurons as thoughts formed. Then the new light arrived, and the old speed of light became the second fastest energy in the universe.
Am I dying?
The bright light rode along with the thought as it formed in his brain, illuminating, sharpening, burning. It latched onto every word and branched from thought through to memory and back again. All in less time than it took for Stanley to fall an atom's width toward the snowy ground.
Am.
Word. English language. Verb.
1.
Me. Self. Identity. Everything he had ever thought about who he was, or what he was; Stanley knew it all at once now and with perfect clarity, and he was already analyzing and branching further and further.
Dying?
Throughout his memory, every time he said, thought, saw, or heard the word, he could now remember it fresh and vividly, as if it was happening at this moment. Every feeling he had ever had, opinion he had ever heard or read, all analyzed, taken apart, put back together, and now understood in an impossible perfection.
Still, the brightness spread throughout his mind. Branching off onto infinite paths of knowledge and understanding.
Stanley never liked math, but now? It was simple.
Physics? Obvious.
Quantum mechanics? Boring once you knew how it worked.
Wormholes, dimensional travel, everything thought or dreamed up by humankind. All of it now known and understood by a mind that was never meant to see it.
Yet the branches kept going deeper and higher, into impossible places that shouldn't or couldn't exist but that he now saw were inevitable.
Stanley's body fell slowly to earth, but his mind rode up and out, as the universe simultaneously expanded and shrank in his mind's eye.
He saw the abundant life that filled the universe—observed creatures, beings, and things distant and vast, yet far too close. Some took notice and turned to watch him burn with hungry gazes, while others were indifferent to his newly awakened presence.
Stanley could see the lines of the world, the strings that tied everything together. He could see the strands of probability and, through them, the future. He saw what was coming for his world. The calamity that would sweep over the planet and change everything.
It was a future he would not be a part of.
With so much knowledge, Stanley knew with certainty that he was indeed dying. He knew he was being changed and strengthened, mind and body, by the light, but that the change could never keep up.
Stanley understood the power that was doing this to him and how to wield it to accomplish literally anything. Yet also knew that if he tried to wield it now, he would explode and take half the state with him.
Far below all that, a tiny part of his expanding mind still felt something in his hand as he hit the ground. It was the leash… tying him to Caffeine. His hand now clutched so tightly that he had cracked the plastic. In fact, all of his muscles were so tight that he wasn't breathing. It didn't matter. Even as his muscles ripped apart and his bones cracked, the power roaring through him simply rebuilt them, and the cycle continued.
They were in the middle of nowhere, and Caffeine was not a breed built to survive in the wild. He wouldn't do well alone out here. Stanley would have shed tears thinking of that little dog freezing to death, alone and afraid. But his emotions were nothing more than a fading whisper of a scream.
He would have liked to get Caffeine home one last time. It was always a delight to witness his excitement upon seeing Lee again. Stanley enjoyed seeing his twin too, but there was something special about a dog's pure joy.
As for his twin, Stanley didn't worry about leaving him behind when he died here.
The esoteric link that bound all identical twins was a nebulous thing, but not for them. Not anymore. The power killing Stanley had touched that link. Had traveled down it and, in the process, forged that tremulous connection into a bond that could never be undone. A bond that made them more than the sum of their parts, and the only thing sparing Stanley from instant obliteration.
Now Stanley could feel Lee from across the miles between them as if his brother stood by his side, as if they were of one mind, and together they beheld the secrets of the universe. Together, they burned in the light of the cosmos. Together, they raced toward the inevitable oblivion.
It was a small mercy to be reunited before the end.
Caffeine didn't share that link, no matter that Stanley felt he should after the years spent at his side. No, Caffeine may still survive if he got lucky, though the probability was low... far too low.
Until a new link appeared, one forged and forced by Caffeine himself as he tried so desperately to save Stanley.
Oh, Caff... Stanley and his twin had seen the pug trying to drag him away from the hole before. They couldn't not see it. Now, however, they saw inside the simple mind of Caffeine. Saw the straightforward plan, the unwavering determination and absolute faith, and the horrifying, overwhelming agony that the pug simply... ignored in order to pursue his goal. A goal they knew was impossible.
Caffeine was trying to eat the power before it could destroy them. A plan doomed from the start... but so very like the little pug.
You were always the best dog. Twin thoughts echoed identical sentiments. Then they were slipping higher, unable to focus on something so small. Their conjoined mind expanding too far, the edges unraveling and drifting away.
They burned and watched bits and pieces of themselves evaporate into the void... and heard a faint howl in the distance.
A moment or eternity later, the overwhelming rush of power faltered.
It wasn't for long—only a mere instant.
But it was enough to change everything.
The faltering of the power brought them back to the local present long enough to see the new threads of possibility unraveling before them. There, amongst the tangle of nearly infinite branching threads of possible futures, was a new option. Something that hadn't been there before and a path that did not inevitably end. A thin thread of hope through the darkness that could lead them to a distant future where they would live.
An impossible choice that should not be, one only made possible by a little pug that refused to let his humans go.
It was such a delicate thing, though. They would walk along a razor's edge, where a single misstep would be their end, now or in the future. A path of power and prestige that would see them at the pinnacle of power, but also a trail of pain and suffering, a struggle that would never truly end, of battles for survival that would push them to the limits of life and death.
Despite all that, it was the only choice that didn't end prematurely, that didn't see their world fallen and crushed underfoot by the beings and powers lurking out in the greater beyond. A path that didn't see their lives snuffed out like flickering candles in a storm.
Stanley and his brother spent that infinitesimal moment of time deciding—a lifetime of strife and struggle or the end of their journey here and now.
They chose the same as Caffeine. To fight. To never say die. To do whatever was necessary... to sacrifice what they must.
That pivotal choice was only the beginning. Their bodies and minds were all three swollen with a godlike power that could not be used or even touched... But it didn't need to be.
They acted in that precious moment, grappling not with the untouchable power, but with themselves. Their bodies, flush with energy and potential, were ripe for change. They were eager for it. Practically begging for it. All it took was a nudge in the right direction.
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Then they looked deeper, into the core of themselves, where all that they were and could ever become originated.
It was a beautiful, pure thing. A delicate tapestry of interwoven connections that came from three lifetimes of knowledge, love, understanding, and experience. All of them weaving together into a nearly unbreakable and indestructible expression of life.
They tore it apart.
Together, they mutilated those deepest reaches of themselves. Changed themselves in preparation for what was to come. They ripped and tore. Stretched and burned. Inflicted agony so brutal that even their god-like minds could not endure unscathed.
Using the ruined remains of what they once were, they stitched the pieces back together and built from them a cage. Into that cage went the power. Into that cage went the last light in the dark. The one last good thing that was left of themselves, and they locked it away in the darkness.
It went into the dark willingly, and they screamed at what they'd done.
Then they closed the door.
As the door swung inevitably shut, as the darkness swallowed the light, and as the second hand of the universe leaned ever closer to the final tick of their lives, they did what still had to be done.
The next thing to go was an easy choice. Bright knowledge that their minds could never have held onto, anyway—all the secrets of the universe. It all went into the void, fuel for the fire that consumed them. With it went much of the pain... but not enough. Not nearly enough.
So they sacrificed more of themselves. Thirty-two years of life each, all the memories, the smiling faces, the warm hugs, the moments that made up their lives. Everything that made them who they were. All of it tainted by what they'd done here and now, and all sacrificed in the name of survival. Sacrificed in a last grasp at hope. The faint and distant hope that one day the light would return.
But that day was not yet.
Here and now, the cage closed. The light went out, and Stanley fell down into the dark... alone.
~~~Caffeine~~~
Caffeine stood frozen where he had landed after he reflexively bounced away from the loud noise.
As he stood still, prepared to run or bark at whatever made that sound, Caffeine saw Dearest Human get hit in the face by a terrifying yet perfectly silent brightness.
Caffeine flinched back, and his tail tucked down tight. A whimper escaped as Dearest Human made a pain sound and fell over.
"Attack?" Caffeine thought before howling, "Attack!" He charged then, barking his meanest and fiercest threats at the Brightness.
Unfortunately, the Brightness did not flinch or back down, so Caffeine gave up on the threats and ran to Dearest Human’s face.
His eyes were open but didn’t see Caffeine; only stared straight up, and his eyes were full of the Brightness. It danced and burned and shot little bits of light up into the sky.
Caffeine's best and saddest whine, followed by a good but cautious face licking, gave no results except to make his tongue tingle, and not in a good way. Dearest Human smelled wrong, too, smelled like pain, wounded, and sadness. "Come!" Caffeine barked. "Go! Give! Stay! Sit! Cookie!!!"
The magic words didn’t work!
Caffeine looked back to the Brightness. It was moving! The Brightness had already covered up one Belly Scratcher, but now it was crawling up the arm toward the face!
Caffeine looked at where the Brightness came from. It was coming from the hole. The bad, not interesting, scary hole.
An idea came to him. Pull Dearest Human away from the bad scary Brightness hole!
He latched his best tugging grip onto Dearest Human’s jacket and pulled. There was a slight ripping sound, and he whined but didn’t let go.
Dearest Human would be upset at him for breaking his things, but Caffeine would gladly have Dearest Human anger shout at him. That would be much better than this pain quiet.
He tugged harder.
There was more ripping, but Dearest Human moved! Just a little, but it would work! He would save Dearest Human!
Caffeine started up his best tugging growl and went to work.
Tug! He always won when they played tugging.
Tug! Sometimes Dearest Human would pull the toy right out of his mouth.
Tug! But he always grabbed it again.
Tug! And always, Dearest Human would make the happy sounds.
Tug! That means a win!
Tug! The Brightness was still spreading.
Tug! It was covering Dearest Human's chest.
Tug! It was going down his legs.
Tug! Over his face.
Tug! Getting closer to the shoulder he was tugging.
Tug! He could feel Dearest Human trembling as the Brightness covered more and more of him.
Tug! The Brightness was going to get Caffeine, too!
Tug! I will win!
Tug! I always win!
Tug! The Brightness touched his nose.
Tug! Rip!
Caffeine stumbled back with a whimper. It hurt!
He looked at the bad hole. Dearest Human’s Cookie Giver was halfway out of the Brightness hole.
Caffeine dropped the piece of jacket that had ripped free and looked back at Dearest Human.
The Brightness had covered him completely, and Dearest Human was trembling even more now. The cold whiteness was trembling. The dirt underneath was trembling. Everything seemed to be trembling, and it was getting stronger!
Caffeine dove back in, summoning his newest, even better tugging growl. He latched on, and it Burned!
Tug! The pain will go away when I win!
Tug! It burned his nose, but he didn't let go.
Tug! It burned his eyes, so he closed them.
Tug! It was spreading so fast!
Tug! Maybe there will be Chicken when he wins.
Tug! Or Pizza!
Tug! Dearest Human had left some in the cold box.
Tug! That would be so good!
Tug! They would have pizza.
Tug! Dearest Human would make the happy noises.
Tug! Then scratch his belly in just the right way while he napped.
Tug! He was so tired.
Tug! Usually he would win Tugging by now.
Tug! He felt Dearest Human smiling inside his head! Both Dearest Humans were here! And they were smiling! It felt like getting a belly rub in the sleep place and eating pizza at the same time! But better than that!
Tug! He was so happy! He could feel his tail going wild and wanted to dance around in the happy dance but kept his feet planted and kept pulling…
Tug! Because something was wrong!
Tug! Dearest Humans were slipping away.
Tug! Like a piece of pizza going in the trash, but even worse!
Tug! Caffeine was losing!
Tug! Dearest Human is too big!
Tug! No… I am too small…
Tug! If only I could be bigger!
Caffeine let go of the jacket and looked at Dearest Human again. The Brightness had covered him and seemed to be eating him since he was definitely getting smaller. He knew it was eating both of his Dearest Humans...
Caffeine knew the brightness was all over him as well, and it was eating him too... but it didn’t matter. That was small pain, but this… this… he didn’t know what this was but knew that he would trade all the pizza, all the chicken, even all the belly scratches just to hear one more happy noise from Dearest Human.
Caffeine decided that he would have to eat the Brightness before it could eat Dearest Human. He licked and then chomped at the bad Brightness. It didn't taste good, like too hot, and the more he ate, the more appeared! Caffeine did his best eating tactics he used when Dearest Human had a snack, but when Caffeine needed to finish his own bowl first before he could sit next to Dearest Human and watch for any stray pieces of meat that sometimes jumped from the table!
He ate faster!
The Brightness didn't taste like much of anything besides too hot, but it was making him full... and filling his mind with strange thoughts and ideas. He could see so much as he devoured the Brightness, could see the entire world, all the food in the world, all the pets, all of everything! It was a lot! Caffeine could see how to have all of it if he wanted, but Dearest Humans would be gone…
How could Caffeine enjoy any of that if Dearest Humans weren't there with him?
No, none of that mattered. All that mattered now was saving Dearest Humans from the Brightness.
He ate and ate and ate some more. But the Brightness was too big... and Caffeine was too full. It felt like he would pop... and Caffeine knew that he would if he kept eating the Brightness. But Dearest Humans were getting better! Only a little, but it was better! Caffeine just had to eat it all… and he would!
But then he was too full, so much too full! This was worse than when he got the chicken bones from the forbidden snack bucket—they had jumped out of Caffeine's belly and made a mess on the floor. Dearest Human had been very upset... Now the Brightness wanted to escape as well, it wanted to go back and eat Dearest Humans!
I can run away!
Caffeine knew what to do. He had to eat all of the Brightness that he could and then run away before it jumped out of his stomach and made a mess. This would be a very big mess... It would hurt Dearest Human if it escaped next to him.
Caffeine took a few more of his best and biggest bites... "Goodbye, Dearest Human. I don't want to run away... but I have to go now. I'll... miss you..."
He ran!
And then stopped. It was no use... the Brightness only grew behind him. His eating wasn't enough...
Caffeine howled into the sky in a sad and desperate howl.
He howled at the Brightness. Louder, deeper, roaring. Caffeine didn't care when the sky shook or when the big trees shivered and started dropping cold wetness piled on their branches. He roared out the pain and fear. Roared out his defiance at the Brightness.
"They are MINE!"
"MY Dearest Humans!"
"YOU... CAN… NOT… HAVE… THEM!"
The roar ended with a deafening boom. The ground under his feet jumped upward and then settled back with a rumble…
And then he saw Dearest Humans' plan. A terrible, terrible plan that would cost so... Caffeine agreed with them instantly. Anything was acceptable if it would save them.
He felt a lot more pain after that. It was very not nice! But he didn't care about his own pain. Because Dearest Humans were screaming in his head. They were crying... Caffeine didn't want them to cry. He wanted them to laugh in that very best way they always did...
Caffeine cried with his Dearest Humans until it all finally stopped. Until they both went to sleep. Then opened his eyes and looked at the bad hole. As he watched, the Brightness thinned and split into smaller little streams, until, with a last tiny wisp, the Brightness was gone.
"I did it!" Caffeine barked, but it was a very small woof.
He felt his tail wagging, but it hurt to wag. He was so tired. The Brightness had faded from him too, but now his feet hurt. His teeth hurt. His everything hurt. Caffeine could smell blood. He had tugged too hard…
No! He had tugged the best! Now it was rest time. Or eating time and then rest time. Yes, Dearest Human would carry him to the warm, rumbly place, and they would eat pizza. Dearest Human would scratch his belly and make the happiness sounds while he napped.
He limped one small step to Dearest Human's face, now no longer trembling with the Brightness in his eyes. Now his eyes were closed, and he seemed to be having a nap. Caffeine decided that was a good idea. A quick nap before the pizza. It would be sad to be too tired for pizza. He gave a gentle lick to Dearest Human just to reassure him that everything was okay now, then he curled up next to his head, where, with only a little whimper and a sigh, he slept.