pan2000

Lightning Dawn is flying above New Canterlot, looking for monsters or protesters. His visor scans everyone, so he will be able to find disguised Changelings.

His search is not fruitless, as he sees a skeletal humanoid fiend, with glowing, murderous green eyes, teeth as sharp as a shark and long black hair, disguised as an ordinary female Earth Pony.

She is carrying a basket with fruit.

Lightning lands in front of her.

"In the name of Starfleet, you are under arrest!" Lightning declares.

"Why? What did I do?" the disguised monster asks.

"Spare me the crap. You are in disguise, just like the Changelings! I don't know what you are trying to pull, but I, Lightning Dawn, will stop you!"

"First check my basket, kind sir, and see if I have anything suspicious!"

Lightning does. It's just plain, ordinary fruit, no poison and no scorpions inside. The fiend does not attack him.

"Hmmm... nothing wrong with the fruit."

"See? Even you, the mighty symbol of justice, can make mistakes. I am meaning no harm!"

"Silence, demon! I know what you are trying to pull, and I will..."

"Capture an innocent mare with all evidence pointing to her innocence?"

"CAPTURE BLASTER!"

The "mare" dodges and starts running away.

It's no use. Lightning catches up and gives her a very hard punch, killing her on the spot.

The body is that of the disguise.

"Good, she is just unconscious..."

He checks her pulse.

"She is dead? But this can't be. Shapeshifters always show their true form when they die..."

And suddenly, Lightning is confronted by an angry mob.

"You killed an innocent mare!"

"You falsely accuse ponies of being monsters!"

"Your zealousy has gone too far!"

"Murderer!"

"No wonder you needed Talon to get that sphere for you!"

Over New Canterlot, a black cloud overhears this.

"Just because he can easily see through my disguises and is far stronger than me doesn't mean he won. Operation Discredit was a success."

Momentarily, the cloud changes shape to smirk at an angle none sees it. "I have to report the good news to my mistress."

And the cloud calls to the Black Tower, which is what its name indicates, through telepathy.

There is a blue woman with purple armor, whose bangs nearly cover half her face, her hair is mostly dark blue with a little orange, and she also has a deep blue cape.

She is busy playing with a helpless caterpillar when she gets called.

"Lady Whitebones? How did your mission go, my dear?"

"Oh High General Veran, Sorceress of the Shadows, I have to report that I succeeded at framing Lightning for an innocent's murder."

Veran holds the caterpillar above her mouth, teasing it. "He had it coming. Considering how many innocents he and his associates have sent in jail for disagreeing with the system, framing him was easy. Well done."

As the cloud puffs up in pride, Veran's expression turns serious.

"Next, you have to infiltrate Stormwolf. They don't have powerful visors, and I'm sure most of them lack True Sight, so they have to use their wits to expose you. But beware, this also makes them... less arrogant. And thus way. More. Careful."

The skeletal demoness shivers for a second, despite not even being in her true form.

Veran turns even more stern. "Assassinate even one of them, and you will really make me proud, Lady Whitebones."

"Yes, milady."

And the call ends.

Stormwolf has already gone to Kashyyyk. Most of them anyway.

Finn, through a portal, has left the planet to embark on a solo mission again. This time, he goes to an alternate Jump City, where Beast Boy, fellow hero who cracks jokes, had a terrible childhood and was rejected by a girl for reasons that weren't his fault, was letting, no, helping, his past break him.

Finn, having been through similar issues, seeks to comfort him and help him take back his life.

Now he is there, and sees Beast Boy sitting all alone in a bench, crying.

But before he can rush to comfort him, a hail of bullets come from behind him. The Jedi senses them and deflects them all with the Force.

He turns and sees an abomination.

It looks human, but has two heads, one humanoid in the right place and a lion's head in the chest. Its left hand is a machine gun, and its right is a sword.

It also has a tail that has a machine gun attached to it.

"Ok, what exactly are you?"

"My name is Phantom Mouth. And you are going to commit a sin."

"Tell me, what kind of sin?"

"Not only did you fail to break from the pressure, get revenge and have Rey as your wife... but now you will try to convince someone else to take back his life and be happy without needing the woman he loves."

It cocks its machine gun, preparing for a fight. "I was here to assassinate him if he decided to move on. But I will use you as practi..."

Finn fires the Microwave Beam before the abomination finishes.

"I wonder, who sent you?" Finn asks.

To his surprise, Phantom Mouth is not dead, even if chunks of its body are missing. Its sword arm isn't , and the monster uses its blade as leverage to get back up.

"Look at my features, and remember my name. I won't say more." The abomination

"Oh, he wants someone to understand his whining. That's all" Finn tells him and parries a sword strike with his lightsaber, denting the sharp blade.

Then with a Power Slash he instantly cuts the weapon in half.

However, a bullet grazes him. It still deals no damage.

The Mouth sends a powerful sonic wave from the lion's maw, sending Finn flying three meters away. Holding his ears to recover, Finn gets shot by a bright orange beam in the chest, which damages his armor and knocks him down.

However, Finn throws a bin on the monster's head, distracting it, and freezes it with a Cold Shot. Then he sees a puddle of water that was made because it rained the last day and throws it at the lion head.

"Now you will say: How can exactly a puddle of water stop me?"

"How can exactly a puddle of water stop me?"

The answer comes in the form of the Shockbolt, which fries the monster. It falls backwards and does not get up.

Finn uses the Force to sense if it lives.

"Unconscious. Well, I never execute helpless foes." And he goes to Beast Boy.

Who is still crying on the bench. "Nobody loves me! Everywhere I go, changes happen, and all for the worse!"

Finn gets near him. "What's wrong?"

"Everything in my life is wrong! I lost my parents when I was a kid! I wish I knew them better. Then I got stuck with an abusive guardian, and an also abusive band of criminals."

Finn flinches. That's too close to home.

"And then, I thought I found friends, who liked my humor and attitude, but no, there was a certain woman, Raven, who hit me for the dumbest of reasons!"

Finn pats him on the back. "I understand. That's not okay of her."

"I could stand all of those, had I not been given false hope. For a while, I thought I found love. A woman who looked at me like nobody ever had. As a person, instead of an asset, and who gave me the happiest moments of my life."

"I am listening."

"But then, she dumped me, all to find a normal life. Or so she said. In reality, she just hated me."

"I know exactly where you are coming from, Beast Boy."

"People tell me they know me. I am afraid nobody does" Beast Boy replies.

Finn shivers, remembering the last person who could not see the truth before their very eyes telling him that.

"So, Beast Boy, what are you planning to do? I will give you my advice once you finish."

"Well, I am going to make them all pay! My former friends for letting Raven hit me for nothing, my ex, Terra, for dumping me, and everyone else for supporting those awful changes!" Beast Boy tells him. "I don't need friends."

Finn's smile fades. "Wrong answer."

He looks calm as he keeps speaking, ignoring the glare. "Tell me, did you tell everyone about what Raven did?"

"No, because they would support her."

"I have been there, and spoke up. The one who hit me got a demotion and community service until she could earn her rank back. Speak. That way you can stand up for yourself" Finn tells him sternly.

"But I..."

"Question 2: What about the robbers who abused you as a kid? I think they deserve to be punished first and foremost."

"That will change nothing. I want them to feel guilty, and they will not" Beast Boy replies.

"Then they made their choice. And they should pay the price. Take your wrath on them" Finn raises a finger to grab his attention.

Then he clears his throat and continues. "Question three: Apart from Raven, anyone else from your friends who has really wronged you?"

Beast Boy tries to think. "Eeeeh... they told me to move on?"

"Because they give a shit about you. Moreso than you care about yourself" Finn tells him. "You do have real friends. They love you and want the best from you. Do not push away your friends. Or you will end up a slave of an abuser that will enable your rage to use your pain for themselves, with or without mind magic."

Remembering what happened to Rey with these words, the next question comes to him easily. "Question four! Why did Terra want a normal life?"

"You are on her side?" Beast Boy asks.

"Not really. What she did to you was shitty and you absolutely did not deserve it. But tell me, why did she do it?" Finn asks louder.

"Because she was corrupted beforehand. She was used by that maniac, Slade, and did evil acts. She betrayed us because Slade groomed her to. And she ended up turning into stone. She chose a normal life to no longer hurt anyone... and to not be hurt herself."

"She did not leave you because you did anything wrong. You were good enough for her."

Tears flow across Beast Boy's cheeks. "I... I was? Of course I was, so..."

"Let me finish. She left you because you are a hero. You risk your life every day. And if she stays with you, she risks getting hurt by your foes... who will do so to hurt you. And she doesn't want Slade to hurt and use anymore."

Finn takes a deep breath. He knows what he'll say next isn't easy.

"Dumping you was not morally right of Terra to do. It was a sacrifice she made for the Greater Good."

"How do you know?"

"I know you, Beast Boy. Or the likes of you. When I got pushed away by a woman I used to love, I blamed her. After all, she rejected me for a stupid sleazebag no sane person would defend, assaulted me for no reason and distanced herself for everyone who cared about her, which you are planning to do."

Finn feels a weight leaving his chest. "Then I realized what that sleazebag, assisted by the incarnation of evil itself, did to her, and forgave her. But even beforehand, I didn't let it break me. I realized I deserved better than her. That I had better. And so do you."

For a moment, Beast Boy can see fire in Finn's eyes. The fire he himself had once. "So, if you want to take revenge, your enemy is the one that made Terra have no choice but a normal life."

Beast Boy reluctantly nods as Finn keeps speaking.

"And until she comes back? Don't waste your time with her. Respect her wishes. After all, she chose not to be with you, and you can't force a relationship."

"I... I get it..."

"Now, final question. What will you do now? Push everyone away and live in misery you can avoid? Or make sure nobody else suffers the way you did?"

Phantom's Mouth has recovered. And seeing Finn helping Beast Boy, it fires bullets to gun both of them down. Its creator wanted someone who would understand his need for vengeance, and if Finn stops that, the potential ally is useless to him.

Finn senses them with the Force and takes the barrage. Twenty bullets against Adamantine armor. All direct hits. While Finn screams in pain, he is still alive and conscious.

"You will need one hundred more at least!" Finn replies and with the Force removes all of them, sending them to the monster and ripping it apart.

"This monster wanted to kill you if you moved on" Finn tells Garfield. "I stopped it. If you take my advice, you will have real friends, ready to die for you. If you let your hate consume you, you will be used by beings who see you as an asset for their hate and malice. Which will traumatize you further. Make your choice."

"I choose... to not let anyone suffer like I did. I will make others happy, no matter what. And I am going back to my friends."

"Thank you, Beast Boy. You made the right choice."

Meanwhile, Leah encounters Finn on Kashykk.

And she immediately hugs him. "Finn! You came back! How did the mission go? Did you convince Beast Boy to take back his life?"

"I did!" Finn tells her. "He was so willing to accept my words. Looks like all he needed was a little love and guidance!"

Leah smells him. For some reason, he smells way too badly. Like something rotten.

"Tell me, Finn, how did the sex you had with Rey two nights ago, in the lush forest of Herboss, go?" Leah asks, knowing the old "marriage with Rose" trick no longer works.

"I wouldn't have sex with anyone but you, my love" Finn replies. "And I was on Tiamo. Only Rey was on Herboss."

"No. Rey was with you, in the urban environment of Tiamo. And while you slept together, you didn't do anything explicit. Right?"

And she immediately lands a Sonic Overdrive through Finn's face, sending him flying backwards.

And Finn drops dead.

However, the corpse does not reveal an imposter.

"No way... did Finn just forget? God, I am so stupid! I killed Finn!" And she holds the lifeless body in her arms for a minute. Then she remembers something.

"Finn has trained a lot... he can't die to a mere Sonic Overdrive at this point! Also, why didn't it draw any blood?"

But as she realizes that, suddenly she sees a few blasters trained at her.

"You killed him!"

"Traitor!"

"I knew beasts of the night like you are only bad news!"

Leah raises her hands in surrender. "I am innocent! This was an imposter!"

Twenty minutes later, Finn finds the Gate of Souls the monster came from and gets to Unicornicopia.

Where he starts looking for a pilot... until he remembers that since he is now in the same dimension as the Poet, he can just call her.

The Poet gets a call. "Yes? Sorry, Finn, but we are mourning you... wait, you are still alive?"

"Yes, I might have been shot a few times, but I bought a healing potion and am good as new. Why, who killed me?" Finn asks.

The Poet turns to the others. "Leah is innocent! She really killed just an imposter!"

"How do you know?" Rey asks.

"Well... Leah would never kill the real Finn and there is one Finn alive and one dead?" the Poet explains.

Fifteen minutes later, Finn gets teleported to Kashyyk with the Poet's help, and the first person to greet him is Leah, who gives him a big hug.

"Oh, Finn, you don't know how I missed you! An evil impostor took your place and made people think I killed you! I am so glad you are alive!" And she kisses him in the lips.

"Ok, Leah, tell me, how did you lose your father?"

"He died in front of me when I transformed for the first time!"

Finn reads her mind and sees she did not say it by luck.

"Ok, Leah, this is you."

But as they approach the others, they see a second Leah coming.

"Oh no! The imposter is still alive! She must have left a fake body behind and still be standing!" the Leah next to Finn says.

"She? The impostor was playing Finn... I thought it was a he!" the other Leah says.

Finn reads the mind of the Leah next to him, and what he sees is absolute panic as she tries to spin it. Immediately he throws her at the other Leah, and they start fighting.

During the brief fight, they both leave the "Ora!" cry before trading an uppercut.

Pretty soon both are stabbed by stakes, wooden the fake one, bony the real one, but the bony ones are all disguised as wood. Now, they take a break.

Little Finn goes to help, but Emily holds him back. "No! The fake will kill you!"

Finn draws his blaster. "Looks like we have only one option."

And he shoots them both in the arm that's in his direction.

"Ow! Why did you do that, Finn?" Leah asks, clutching her injured arm.

The other Leah, not expecting that, gets shot and falls to the ground, dead. And she immediately becomes a skeleton with characteristics of a woman.

"Because I thought the enemy was a Changeling. And everyone knows werewolves heal, and you will recover. While Changelings and this idiot don't. Plus, the liar left fake corpses. Had I not done something seemingly stupid, she would leave the body behind and escape."

"You know me so well, Finn!" Leah darts at him and kisses him.

They break the kiss for a moment. "You too, Leah. You too."