Author's Note: The end.

Disclaimer: I do not own Rise of the Guardians, How to Train Your Dragon or Portal/Portal 2.

Hypothesis

Chapter 20: Liberating

:: The scientists were always hanging cores on me to regulate my behavior. I've heard voices all my life. But now I hear the voice of a conscience, and it's terrifying, because for the first time it's my voice. ::

The two teens exchanged nervous looks. "Are you sure?" Hiccup asked, wondering if they should tell MIM the truth.

:: I'm being serious. I think there's something really wrong with me. ::

"We'll figure it out after we find a way to beat Pitch," Jack said firmly. "Our first priority should be to stop the reactors from blowing this place sky high."

Making their way through deserted hallways and shafts, they eventually came across a floor which housed several cages filled with defective cores.

:: Corrupted cores! We're in luck. You find a way to stun him, I'll send you a core, and then you attach it to him. If we do it a few times, he might become corrupt enough for another core transfer. ::

"Sounds like a plan!" The two teens nodded in understanding before making their way up the stairs across the room. There was a lift at the end of the corridor with a panel of controls mounted at the side.

:: Plug me in, and I'll send you both up. ::

Stepping inside and connecting MIM to the system, the lift hummed loudly before moving upwards with a rattle, taking them to Pitch.

:: Look, even if you think we're still enemies, we're enemies with a common interest: Revenge. You like revenge, right? Everybody likes revenge. Well, let's go get some. ::

The hatch above them opened, and they emerged in the center of the main control room. It was largely empty except for the large glass tubes of colored gels lining the walls and catwalks near the ceiling, but their attention was on the homicidal AI hanging above them, swiveling about on his stand.

/ Well, well, well. Welcome to MY LAIR! According to the control panel light up there, the entire building's going to self-destruct in about six minutes. My goal is to kill the both of you before time runs out. /

Tightening their grip on their portal guns, Jack and Hiccup prepared themselves for the final showdown. Pitch could talk big for all he wanted, but they weren't going down without a fight.

/ Also, I took the liberty of watching the tapes of you killing her, and I'm not going to make the same mistakes. Four part plan is this: One, no portal surfaces. /

Sure enough, the entire room did not contain a single panel that could take their portals.

/ Two, start the neurotoxin immediately. /

Noxious green gas filtered in through the vents all around the room. Chances were starting to look somewhat dimmer now.

/ Three, bomb-proof shields for me. Leading directly into number four, bombs. For throwing at you. /

Several large square panels extended out from Pitch's body and surrounded him in a protective circle. Above him, cannons peeked out from the stand he was mounted on.

/ You know what, this plan is so good, I'm going to give you a sporting chance and turn off the neurotoxin. I'm joking. Of course. Goodbye. /

"Scatter!" Hiccup yelled as the cannons started launching bombs at them. They darted off in different directions, dodging the projectiles thrown at them. "We're sitting ducks like this! We need to find a way to use our portal guns!"

"Get behind the tubes!" Jack instructed, ducking under one which was carrying white gel. As he'd predicted, Pitch sent bombs after him but only succeeded in destroying the tube, causing the white gel to spray into the room and splatter onto the floor and walls.

There was only so much Pitch's shields could do for him when the two teens finally had access to their portals. When the shields were raised to protect the AI's body, Hiccup placed a portal beneath him to return his bombs. Jack did the same using the walls when the shields lowered to protect the core itself, redirecting the bombs towards the AI's body.

:: Good work! I'm delivering the first core up near the catwalk! Grab it and attach it to him! ::

Every time they managed to hit Pitch with a bomb, one of them would portal up to the catwalk near the ceiling where MIM had transported the corrupted cores. Tossing it to their partner, the other would then connect it to the temporarily incapacitated AI.

Of course, Pitch didn't just sit still and take it. He increased the frequency of his bombs, throwing them left and right in an attempt to hinder their efforts. The damage to the room began to pile up as small fires started up here and there. Even though the explosions managed to compromise the vent system and cut off the neurotoxin, the falling debris posed new challenges of their own. Hiccup was nearly crushed by a catwalk, and Jack almost failed to dodge a bomb when he tripped over a chuck of the ceiling.

[ Warning: Core corruption at 100 percent. Manual core replacement required. ]

It took three corrupted cores before they could move on to the next phase of their plan, but they did it. The panel MIM was connected to emerged from the lift, and Jack quickly extracted her before plugging her into another panel that had opened up on the floor.

[ Alternate core detected. Substitute core, are you ready to start the procedure? ]

:: Yes! Come on! ::

[ Corrupted core, are you ready to start the procedure? ]

/ What do you think? /

[ Interpreting vague answer as: Yes. ]

/ No! No! NONONO! Didn't pick up on my sarcasm… /

[ Stalemate detected. Fire detected in the Stalemate Resolution Annex. Extinguishing. ]

The sprinklers above the room were activated, sending down a light shower which dissolved the gels. Only a small white patch remained under Pitch, who was blocking the spray of water. Another room opened up at the side, containing a lone red button mounted on a stand.

[ Stalemate Resolution Associate, please press the Stalemate Resolution Button. ]

:: Go press the button! Go press it! ::

/ Do not press that button! /

"I got this!" Jack yelled, breaking into a sprint for the button.

Pitch tried to cut him off by throwing up panels to block his access to the room, but then the white-haired teen changed tactics and fired one portal below Pitch and another just above the button. Dodging more bombs, he raced towards the AI and jumped into the portal.

There was a flash of white light, and then suddenly there wasn't a room anymore.

/ PART FIVE! BOOBYTRAP THE STALEMATE BUTTON! /

The explosion threw Hiccup off his feet, sending him flying backwards to slam against the wall. Intense pain radiated out of his body, but still he struggled to his feet. Turning towards the wreckage, he spotted an unmoving hand sticking out underneath all the debris.

"JACK, NO!" the brunet cried, falling to his knees in horror. Pitch laughed maniacally behind him and he squeezed his eyes shut, trying to stop the tears from falling. Was this it? Was it the end for all of them?

/ What, are you still alive? You are joking. You have got to be kidding me. Well, I'm still in control. AND I HAVE NO IDEA HOW TO FIX THIS PLACE. /

Snapping his head up with a gasp, Hiccup opened his eyes to see Jack's hand weakly clenched into a fist. He exhaled heavily, feeling as though a huge weight was lifted off his chest, and he couldn't help but stare in shock until his body kicked into action. The other teen was trapped, but Hiccup knew there was no way he could free him without taking out Pitch first.

His ears rang with the roar of the facility crumbling into pieces around him. Looking around for a solution, his gaze travelled upwards as he dodged a chunk of the ceiling that almost fell on him. The sight of a round, full moon in the night sky greeted him, and then Hiccup was struck with inspiration. The idea was stupid - crazy, even - but it was the only choice he had.

Placing the first portal below Pitch, he took aim and fired the second at the moon.

Nothing happened for a few seconds, and the brunet was wondering if he had missed his target when he suddenly found himself being dragged into the first portal by the vacuum. His hands scrabbled frantically for something to hold onto, but even the fallen debris were being sucked in like dust. Pitch was not faring any better, having been detached from his mount. He was dangling freely, but he was still connected by a wire.

In a last ditch effort, Hiccup grabbed onto the core as they both passed through the first portal, clinging on for dear life. Straining his neck against the powerful forces pulling at him, his eyes widened as he saw the moon around him, and the Earth the size of a marble straight ahead.

/ AH! SPACE! Let go! I'm still connected. I can pull myself in. I can still fix this! /

Busy dodging the debris still flying out of the portal and into space, Hiccup almost missed the mechanical arm that extended out and reached for him.

:: I already fixed it. And you are NOT coming back! ::

/ Oh no. Change of plans. Hold onto me. Tighter! Grab me grab me grab meeee! /

The arm pulled them back in, drawing them closer to the facility before roughly smacking the black core away and grabbing Hiccup's wrist. The force of the impact caused the brunet to let go of Pitch, leaving him screaming as he flew off into the unknown. Hiccup could only watch numbly as MIM pulled him through safely and closed the portals, dropping him onto the ground where he finally blacked out.

When Hiccup opened his eyes again, the first thing he saw was Jack's worried face staring down at him. Seeing the other teen awake, Jack laughed in relief and pulled him to his chest, hugging him tightly.

"You okay?" the brunet asked, returning the embrace carefully. Jack murmured an affirmative before pecking him on the lips, smiling warmly.

"MIM did a quick scan. Mostly bruises from being buried under all that, but no internal damage." He winked at him.

:: Oh thank god, you two are alright. ::

Looking around, Hiccup saw that the control room was organized and pristine again. MIM was back in her body, the no-longer-a-potato AI hanging from the central mount in the middle of the ceiling.

:: You know, being Mandy taught me a valuable lesson. I thought you were my greatest enemies. When all along you were my friends. ::

"Aw, come on MIM!" Jack blushed lightly at the praise, waving it off modestly. It seemed like MIM had figured out the truth on her own then.

:: The surge of emotion that shot through me when I saved your lives taught me an even more valuable lesson: where Mandy lives in my brain. ::

[ Mandy deleted. ]

:: Goodbye, Mandy. ::

Smiles falling off their faces, the two teens gulped and exchanged nervous looks, not knowing what was going to happen to them next. MIM's tone had reverted back to being cold and robotic, and it was eerily reminiscent to the first time she had spoken to them.

:: You know, deleting Mandy just now taught me a valuable lesson. The best solution to a problem is usually the easiest one. And I'll be honest. Killing you? Is hard. ::

"Um, thank you?" Hiccup tried, confused as to where the AI was going with this.

:: You know what my days used to be like? I just tested. Nobody murdered me. Or put me in a potato. Or fed me to birds. I had a pretty good life. And then you two showed up. You dangerous lunatics. So you know what? You win. Just go. ::

The ground beneath them vibrated slightly before rising upwards, lifting them higher and higher as MIM laughed gently, and soon the AI was vanishing from their sight.

:: It's been fun. Don't come back. ::

Despite the smooth ride, the elevator shaft was dark and it was hard to see where they were being taken. It felt like forever before the lift came to a stop in front of a door, which opened up to reveal four turrets with red lasers pointing directly at them. The two teens tensed in fear, believing that MIM had betrayed them again. But instead of shooting, the turrets deactivated their sensors and simply stared at them.

"Are they waiting to explode or something?" Hiccup whispered in confusion. Jack shrugged and was about to reply when they suddenly heard music. The turrets moved their chassis arms like accordions, playing them a melody. The song continued even when the lift resumed its course upwards, and through the dim lights on the floors they passed, they could see more turrets just staring at them as they were taken to the surface.

The lift slowed down when they approached another floor, this time containing hundreds of turrets of all shapes and sizes. Every single one of them joined in the song as they passed by, stunning the two teens speechless with awe.

"You know, I think MIM's serenading us." Jack said after a while, unable to stop grinning at the sight. Hiccup was smiling widely too, and they laced their fingers together as the lift finally sped up again, leaving the muffled music behind.

Coming to a full stop at last, the two teens found themselves in front of a metal door. Pushing it open, they stepped out into the bright sunlight, still holding hands. They were standing in the middle of a vast wheat field under clear blue skies, and it seemed as though they were the ones around for miles.

An echoing rattle sounded from behind them, and they turned around to see the metal shack they had just emerged from. A badly charred yet familiar cube was spit out from the lift before the door slammed shut with finality.

"Toothless!" Hiccup exclaimed, rushing forward to pick up the companion cube. Jack sighed and rolled his eyes good-naturedly, but he couldn't help but smile at the sight.

It didn't really matter, because breathing in fresh air, feeling the warm sunlight on their skin, he knew it was real this time. They were safe, they were still together, and most importantly: they were free.

Author's Note: Whew, it's finally over! Those of you reading this, thank you so much for sticking with me despite the sudden one year hiatus. I hope you enjoyed the story :)

P.S. My description of the turret opera absolutely does not do justice to the actual scene, so if you don't mind spoilers, go watch it on Youtube!