The King - Sanders Sides

Chapter Six

A white mass began to form as the light cleared. The sides that watched in awe just began to open their eyes by the time they saw it clearly. There was no Roman. There was no Remus. There was just him. The King.

He stood taller than any of the others, a cape blowing behind him in pride. His hair had a gray streak through it with one red and one green eye behind the black scleras. His crown and outfit were the same as Roman's just somehow darker as more energy flowed through him.

When all the light was cleared, The King mocked the four standing in front of him, rubbing his hands together with a grip of his new power flowing through him. "Now...that's much better," He chuckled, approaching the group of helpless sides.

Logan helped Patton back up and Virgil did the same. Janus stood there, stuck in place. He couldn't believe that one of his best friends was seemingly gone. Though his hands were still in shackles, he clutched his fists together, anger boiling his blood. "Where is he? WHAT HAVE YOU DONE TO REMUS?!" Janus screamed as he stared down the side looming over him.

"Oh yes, my brother? He's here. I've just...overpowered him for the time being so you won't be seeing him much anymore."

"You traitor! You will ruin Thomas like this, do you understand that?"

"Why, Janus, you've got it all wrong. I'm what's good for Thomas. You've gone and made yourself and them all bad for Thomas," The King informed, waving his hand at the side behind him. "And when I'm through with Thomas, he'll have no use for sides like you anymore."

"K-Kiddo, this isn't what's right!" Patton cried.

"Maybe it's not what Thomas wants, but it's what he needs. And trust me, he needs a whole lot less of you four." Janus continued to stand his ground, snarling at the massive side. "Now, all of you, get out of my sight."

Before anyone could process the words he had spoken, the sides were all lifted into the air as The King raised his hand. With a wicked grin, he threw them all behind him, bathing in the sounds of their screams as they whirled through the air.

The four sides panicked, doing everything they could to slow themselves down as they traveled. Logan held on to a still-injured Patton, Virgil tucked his head down to avoid injury and Janus tried to use his cape to slow himself. The more they flew, however, the more their screams echoed throughout the walls of the mind palace. It didn't make sense at first, but then Janus turned around and gasped at the sight.

The back of the mind palace housed a gigantic pit where things were made to be forgotten. It was most often memories and dreams but Janus knew it quite well having traveled by here many times before. Janus quickly summoned his staff, his blind panic breaking off the chains that draped his hands from his neck. He caught the hook end of his staff to the edge of the pit right before he fell, cold breath escaping him at the shock and adrenaline.

One by one, the others just started flying over the edge too. Janus was quick to reach out and grab Logan's hand just as he extended it and Patton somehow found the strength to grab Virgil's straitjacket before he fell into the pit as well.

The four remained as still as possible, staring down the pit in fear of the end crawling up their backs. "How could Roman do this?" Patton teared up, "How could he literally try and throw us away like this!?"

"That's not Roman anymore! His anger created its own dark version of himself that corrupted him!" Logan yelled over the wind of the pit.

"Logan's right! Remus told me about this!" Janus added, "It comes from his crown! Roman's negative thoughts are powerful enough to create their own dark creative energy! If we can get that crown off his head he'll go back to normal!"

"Has this happened before?"

"No, but Remus' has seen Roman's thoughts do this once before! And only Remus was the one to talk him out of the dark thoughts!"

"So we have to break through to Remus?" Virgil questioned, kicking at the air below him, "How are we supposed to do that from here?" Janus' mind began to race, he had to get them out of here. They had to stop Roman.

They had to stop Roman. No matter what.

Janus looked up at how his staff was positioned, shaking it in his hand a little bit to see how much it'd move. From there, he began to make the chain of sides swing. Back and forth, they swang along the edge of the pit, Virgil's screams as Patton's grip would slip not helping his confidence when gathering the strength he needed to get everyone to safety.

"Janus, what are you doing?!" Logan yelled up at him, catching on to what his plan was.

"Roman thinks I'm the root of the problem! My presence not being here is the only way to get close enough to him to break through to Remus and save Thomas!"

"But what about you?" Before he could form an answer, Janus launched them up to the surface of the pit, Virgil and Patton's weight acting as an anchor to pull up Logan and Janus.

But Janus let go of Logan and the other two sides began to struggle as they fought to pull the both of them up. "Let me go, Logan! You know this is the only way!" Janus screamed to the side holding him.

"We can all do this together! There has to be a better plan!"

"There isn't and you know that!" Janus' tears fell down into the pit, his stomach sinking. "Heal Thomas! Get to Remus! If you get the crown off Roman's head everything will go back to normal!"

"What about you?"

"I'll be okay." Logan's grip slipped a little bit, Patton and Virgil losing leverage as the side came closer to falling. The nerd closed his eyes and released his clasped hand. The weight in his hand became thin air, the snake plummeting down into the pit, making no sound other than subtle sobs of fear with his vision fading to black.

The moral and anxious side pulled Logan back up to the surface. As they gasped for air, the two stared confused at Logan's empty hands and the lack of a certain yellow side. Logic turned to them, a single tear sliding down his stone face. "Let's find Remus."