Just a Game

"Stop.

If an answer is what you seek.

Stop.

If nullification is what you seek.

Stop.

If secrecy is what you seek.

Stop.

If war is what you seek.

Stop.

If euthanasia is what you seek.

Stop.

If redemption is what you seek.

Stop.

[inexplicable]

Stop.

If finality is what you seek.

Stop.

If obligation is what you seek.

Stop.

If retaliation is what you seek.

Stop.

[inexplicable]

Stop.

If your darkest fears are hunting you now.

Stop.

If omissions are becoming clear now.

Stop.

If unanimous conclusions are made now.

Stop.

If red water stains the floor tiles now.

Stop.

[inexplicable]

Stop.

If sinister thoughts run through your mind now.

Stop.

If incoherent screams burrow into your mind now.

Stop.

If never again will you play the games now.

Stop.

If sacrifice seems better than the suffering now.

Stop."

This is all he wrote. He had hoped the shakiness of his writing hadn't deterred the others. They needed to see this.

With the confidence that he had saved somepony, he trudged onward to continue his tiring journey.

After what seemed like countless hours of walking, he had come across two doors.

Which one did he choose?

It is not an important choice, as I've never stated what was behind each door, yet it is important to you.

If I end this stallion's tale here, you would never know what happened to him beyond the door, or what fate awaited him past the other.

What if they both led to the same place?

You would never know. Most people say that once a story ends, the characters and their lives cease to exist. Their sole purpose was to entertain the masses, and what happened to them after what was written is completely unrelated to the main conflict of the plot.

Once presented with no definite end, no conclusion, the fate of those characters actually mean something.

The pony could have been killed instantly. They could have reached an exit and finally escaped their seemingly never-ending nightmare. Their lives only exist as far as you are willing to let them.

This is what makes the mind so great. The ability to re-write the history of an individual and have it seem so convincing. The possibilities are only limited to your imagination, your mind's ability to produce auditory or visual hallucinations. What is even more fascinating, however, is that the ending to this tale is unique for everyone. No matter how similar two conclusions are, there will always be minor differences, such as the appearance of the pony, or the colors of those doors.

Imagine multiple universes being created at the exact moment a decision is made. In those separate universes there will be separate outcomes. In those universes, a decision will create more universes parallel to that specific universe.

Please take the time to stop.

Stop and read this over again.