Yeah I can't freaking sleep at all, try as hard as I might. I have a tummy ache, it's too hot, my pillow sucks major ass and my mind went on creative crack for some reason. >:T So I just finally gave up after 3 hours of tossing and turning, and just let my thoughts flow out into this. I'd been thinking about this moment for Erebus for a long time, ever since suggested that the ascension for each of the Dawn heroes is more than just fighting your double, that it should be about conquering your fears and cleansing yourself mentally. So here is Erebus' final test before ascending, I hope it feels as powerful to someone else as it did for me (I was crying at some points while writing >:V )

Also, pasting the story here in case people are too lazy/can't read the text file:

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'Why am I doing this? Why have I gone this far...?' the young Espeon's thoughts raced with these questions as he watched the mesa practically beckoning to him. This was the final test, after three difficult trials with the troupe he was obligated to be a part of, he wondered now why he kept going. The deal was that he show them around, not to fight alongside them like a hero...! The days of being a hero were dead to him, gone, destroyed, there was no way to be a hero anymore and now he was being pushed forward once again... Only this time he was alone... And as he stared into the mesa of Augury Rock, he found himself hesitant to enter... This final trial to become 'ascended', as they called it, was supposed to be taken with no allies.

But despite the race of emotion and the doubt that was suddenly swarming his mind, his feet moved forward into the dark crevice, and by the time he had turned with second thoughts he was already closed inside the mesa. Alone. Completely and utterly alone. His breathing quickened for a moment, as he didn't expect to be closed inside this place, whatever it was... He slowly turned forward again, with little option to go any other way but down the dark path.

“Couldn't they have just left me behind once things had gotten serious? I never asked for this, I never asked for any of this at all...” Erebus murmured, reaching his hands out in front of him blindly. But no matter what way he reached, there was nothing, no walls to steady himself in the darkness, no way to guide himself in the pitch black. “What the hell....” He turned once more, the walls that had closed him in this place weren't even there anymore, not that he could see or feel. “What is this place?!” he growled, running with his arms reaching for anything at all that could show him he hadn't just walked into a black abyss. But no matter how far he ran or what direction he searched, there was nothing. Nothing!!
“Hello?! Is anyone there?! Someone let me out of here, dammit, this aint funny!!” he shouted, beginning to grow panicked over his situation. On and on he wandered, frantically flailing his arms about for anything, his eyes searching for any kind of light. He finally collapsed to his knees, pressing his hands to the ground as he shook, “Do they... Expect me to die in here?!”
“Well, you ARE pretty useless...” a dark but somehow familiar voice echoed.
Erebus' ears shot up straight, shifting around to try and find where this voice had come from. “Who the hell was that?!” he snapped, quickly pulling himself to his feet.
“I think you should be asking who the hell YOU are, necromancer...” The voice breathed against his ear, and as Erebus turned to face this haunt he couldn't help but cry out and stumble backwards.
In all the darkness there was only one thing visible. The messy hair of black, the cold magenta eyes, the thin lavender fur... Erebus was staring at none other than himself... But yet this thing that looked like him was somehow different, he couldn't figure out what is was but the sight filled him with uneasiness.
“Y-you're... That's impossible!” he sputtered, going into a defensive stance.
The other Erebus spun in a slow circle, stopping to grin tauntingly at the young espeon, “I'm standing right here, aren't I? And why are YOU standing there?”
Erebus' jaw hung open for a bit, he paused and shook his head, stepping back in hesitation, “I.... I'm.... I don't even... know...”
His other self doubled over, snickering in a very off tone with his palm covering his face, “You don't know?! Then you shouldn't be here to begin with!” he stood up straight again, flipping his unkempt hair out of his face, grinning disturbingly.

Again, the young necromancer hesitated, but before he could speak the 'other him' had his hands on his shoulders, that cold face leaned closely to his own. His double spoke in a voice that constantly changed in pitch and tone, from whispers to growls and snaps, and even to something that sounded on the verge of laughter, “They don't care about you, you know. You're just being dragged along for the extra help, but they don't really need you.” his sharp claws gently slid across Erebus' furred cheek and traced his jawline. Erebus gulped, he could feel himself beginning to sweat uneasily.
The other him stepped back, waving an arm up invitingly as he laughed in a high pitch, “We can kill them all before it happens though!”
Erebus furrowed his brows, trembling as he spoke in a weak voice, “Before... What happens?”
“Before they betray you, of course!!” the other leaned forward with a crazed laugh, “We both know-- Heh- We both know no one could ever stick around you! And if they do they'll just die anyways so why bother? Kill them before they abandon you, it's easier that way!”
Erebus' eyes widened, “No- that's not tr--”
“Oh it is true! You know it! You know it!!! Flint hates you, he tricked you into joining him, he hasn't really done much to thank you, it wont be long, you'll see... He'll get fed up with you and leave you behind!”
The espeon went silent, clenching his fists and turning his gaze to the ground. “He... Flint isn't like that....”
“Oh he isn't? How do you know?” his double stepped behind him, resting his chin on Erebus' shoulder and whispering darkly in his ear again, “If not that... Then what happens if everyone is put in danger... You'll just run away again, you'd be helpless to do anything, just like when Ascalon was destroyed, just like with Prince Rurik when he lay in the snow with his doom approaching...! You can't be a hero, you can't protect anyone, they'll all die and you'd have once again just let it happen!” Erebus' eyes were wide again, he clenched them shut as he shoved his other self away from him, his whole body trembling.
“No!” he cried out, weakly, his voice filled with fear and doubt.
His double seemed hardly phased by the shove, cracking his neck and pacing as he spoke in his insane voice, “Oh, yes yes yes! You could have stayed in Ascalon, killing the charr and keeping them at bay, but you just had to get those little heroic hopes up when the prince specifically asked for you to help... And what did that do, tell me, what did it do?”
Erebus lowered his head, staring at the pitch blackness at his feet as beads of sweat trailed down his forehead, “I...It got him... kil--”
“Killed! That's right! You failed to protect your own prince, Ascalon's last possible hope of victory, you killed the last bit of Ascalon that survived because you got too far ahead of yourself trying to be a 'hero' again! Give up the hero dreams.. Ascalon is dead now, the charr are still there, destroying whatever they can, and now you aren't even there anymore to defend your precious home... While you're way out here, far away, doing what? Traveling around with a little group that doesn't even like or need you!”
Erebus' knees buckled under him and he fell on all fours, staring down wide eyed and in defeat. He could feel his eyes stinging up with tears as he quivered. His other self towered over him, staring down with crazed eyes and laughing mockingly at him.
“Give it up already! Kill them, drop everything, and go home. We can kill charr again, we don't need to care about anything, we don't need to feel pain. Just blood, that's all life should be for us, Maudit. You already admitted that you were cursed by the gods, cursed to be surrounded by death and suffering, cursed to carry out Grenth's work by slaughtering those charr bastards...” his other self gripped onto Erebus' shoulders, digging his claws into them a little as he continued to speak frantically, “Let's go back! Let's go back to killing! It was fun, wasn't it? No worries, just simple killing--”
After staring in utter silence for a long time, Erebus finally murmured to cut off his other self's little speech, “I get it now....”
The double let go and tilted his head, his lip twitching a little in irritation, “Get- what?”
Wobbling, he forced himself to slowly stand again, facing away from this other Erebus, his eyes still turned downward. “You're... just like the charr....”
“What....?” his other self was now the one showing slight hesitation, stepping back and laughing, “Like the charr--? What are you talking about, I'm you..!”
Erebus gave a short “Heh!” before turning to face the other espeon, looking him straight in the eyes. “Yeah... you're right... I know who you are... When I was hopeless, and dead to the world around me, nothing else mattered but killing the charr... It was all I felt I had, I told myself I enjoyed it, that it gave me some worth...” he stepped forward towards his double, who was backing away from him as he spoke. Erebus lifted up his head fully, some tears escaping his determined and pained eyes, “And when Rurik came to me, he didn't come just because I killed many charr... I think... He came to me because he could tell I still loved Ascalon and that I was determined to bring back the happy days of lush green villages and orchards, to see the survivors of the destruction no longer have to suffer... I wanted to find some way for my fellow Ascalonians to find solace and peace again, and... to see fields of blooming red iris flowers full of life!” his cheeks were stained with running tears now, but he continued to step forward, his voice booming confidently and his eyes burning with passion, his double now beginning to cower away from him, looking around nervously.
“Prince Rurik may have died because I wasn't able to defend him as well as I could, but before he died he left it in my hands to continue to try and find help for the Ascalonians, and I lost sight of that because I was a coward!”
“Coward or not, Ascalon can never be saved and you know it!” his doppelganger stated almost desperately.
Erebus smirked, closing his eyes for a moment as he nodded sadly, “I know that now...” he opened his eyes again, becoming serious as he clenched his fists, “But that doesn't mean I can't stop it from happening to anyone else's homeland! No one else should have to feel the pain I had to go through, and I intend to make sure no one else will!”
His double suddenly dug his claws into his own palm, gashing open a wound and letting the blood drop to the floor. The red markings of a necromancer appeared over his face as the area around the blood began to light up and glow an eerie green. “Not if I can help it!” he snarled, gathering up the green necrotic energies into his body to awaken the power of the blood spells.
Erebus stood ready, his own markings lighting up around his eyes as he himself gave a small prick to his fingertip and let a little drop of blood form. The doppelganger rushed forward, swinging his bloodied hand towards Erebus, and from it a large swarm of biting insects flew forth in a fog of green smoke. The espeon endured the pain of the many small bites all over his body, flicking the small drop of blood forward, the droplet bursting into a flurry of green that surrounded the other him. The double charged straight for him, clawing out at him angrily, while Erebus stared at him darkly as he narrowly dodged the attack. His eyes took on a necrotic glow as his gaze drew out a bit of life from the imposter, who was throwing spells and slashes left and right at him.
He was knocked down suddenly by the raging other, the double lifted his arm to thrust down at Erebus' chest, but almost calmly Erebus caught it with little effort.
“What-- why aren't you flinching!? I HAVE THE UPPER HAND!” the crazed version of himself screeched.
Erebus merely smirked, “I'll tell you a little something I've learned from my leader... You can't win if you're too angry to think straight.” and with that statement he thrust his free hand forward against the shocked imposter's chest, his hand glowing with some kind of diseased look as it sucked out the rest of the other's energy.
With wide eyes, the double collapsed over without movement. Erebus panted slowly as he stood, staring down at this creature that he could have been if he had never met Flint and lost to that bet, if he had never traveled with the intelligent vaporeon Phlu, the energetic umbreon Chaos, the odd but skilled jolteon Draco, and their fearless flareon leader, Flint. He gave a soft and proud scoff, stepping over the miserable heap, and around him the darkness began to fade, clearing away to reveal that he was in some kind of grand circular hall. The walls opened up once more and the light from the sun outside washed over him.
Erebus closed his eyes, basking in the light that he had feared he'd lost, and for the first time in many years, he felt confident and somehow stronger than he had ever been. He finally felt that the gods had given him a blessing, rather than a curse, and with that feeling he left the dark mesa that he was once afraid of, ready to face the battle that was sure to come.