My name is Fluttershy. Everypony knows that I'm really, really shy, and I don't have a lot of confidence in myself... but I know what's right and what's wrong, perhaps even better than most ponies do. I take care of animals in my free time, and I have a lot of nice friends that I wouldn't give up for anything... not even the world...
Days for me were average and repetitive. I would wake up, go outside, feed my animal friends, then go back inside to feed more of my animal friends. Often I would also go out and visit my pony friends, too, but that wasn’t every day.
It really was no surprise to me when I saw a black notebook left alone in front of my house. Ponies often stopped by to visit my animals, even more than they came to visit me. I never minded, even when they accidentally left their stuff in my yard. I would simply return it and we would get on with our merry lives.
But this time was… different. The notebook I found was very strange, just holding it in my hooves made me feel a little queasy. I looked at the cover, and my pupils shrank to an inequestrian size.
The Death Note.
When I got back inside, I wanted to have a quick look at the Death Note. It was none of my business, but I wanted to make sure it wasn't plans to hurt somepony or anything like that... to my surprise, when I opened it up to the first page, there were... instructions. Awful, awful instructions...
"The pony whose name is written in this note..." I lowered my voice, barely a whisper. "Shall die…"
I tossed the notebook back into my saddlebag. It could be some enchanted, cursed item; I needed to get it to Twilight right away. I wonder if it's real... I stopped.
The thoughts ran through my head, way too fast, with no sign of slowing down. If it is real, then I need to get rid of it. But if it isn't real, there would be no harm in... I stared down at the ground. Some ponies are truly terrible... whoever made this cursed notebook... I sat down on the ground, my legs trembling too much for me to have even considered standing up. Ponies like that...
My eyes were drawn to the newspaper sitting on the arm of my couch. Angel was peacefully asleep on top of the cushion, snoring surprisingly loudly for a bunny. I would have found the sight adorable if I wasn't intending to attempt...
No. My thoughts turned from a cyclone to a warzone. I don't get to judge ponies... that isn't who I am. No ponies deserve to die no matter what they've done. Even if they're truly the worst, most terrible, evil ponies known in the world...
"Maybe j-just one... to test...?" I shook my way over to the newspaper. Right on the front page, to my hidden delight, was some stallion's mugshot. "Serial Rapist Caught Hiding Under Canterlot Tower" I continued skimming the article until I found more details... "Sentenced to life in prison?" I stared at the mugshot. Despite the black and white photo, I could tell that the stallion was darkly colored- but that wasn't the worst part. The stallion's photo froze with him in... by Celestia, I couldn't help but squeak and shiver. It was the most sickly, disturbed grin I had ever had the displeasure of witnessing.
Just a photo of this depraved son of a timberwolf had my knees wanting to give out under me. I tried to fight off the feelings deep within me. I'm the element of kindness... I should share my kindness with the world... My wide-eyed, terrified stare narrowed into a frighteningly dark one. Wouldn’t it be sharing more kindness to get rid of evil ponies like these ones…? To make it so the world is a safer place, for ponies weak like me?
I found myself doing what I never thought I would. I opened the Death Note and set my eyes upon the instructions.
"The pony whose name is written in this note shall die. This note will not take effect unless the writer has the pony's face in their mind when writing his or her name. Therefor, people sharing the same name will not be affected."
It made sense, I suppose... otherwise, if I wrote some really common name in the notebook, I would end up killing a whole bunch of ponies.
"If the cause of death is written within 40 seconds of writing the pony's name, it will happen. If the cause of death is not specified, the person will simply die of a heart attack. After writing the cause of death, details of the death should be written in the next 6 minutes and 40 seconds."
I closed my eyes. Details of the death? What kind of details? How far could that go? If this actually works, and everything is functional...
Just one single criminal, to see how it works… If it does, I’ll take it to Twilight tomorrow and she can tell me what to do with it. I’ll have to rip this page out, before she sees it, though…
The thought struck me as odd. Why would I hide it, unless it was the wrong thing to do? Was I making a really big mistake? I already hated lying to my friends, and avoided it whenever it was at all possible, but I couldn’t possibly tell them I had killed a pony… they would be so worried, and angry, and sad…
I decided to stop contemplating. I could have sat there all night and stared at the instructions, considering how far something like this could go if it was placed in the wrong hooves, but I was too curious not to try it out by that point. I started writing the stallion's name, staring at the photo of his face for good measure (obviously not because it was too grotesque and disturbing to take my eyes off of it).
I stopped after the name. If what the Death Note said was true, then this stallion would be dead in 40 seconds... because of me. A flood of power pushed the building panic back. I slapped my hoof against my face, weakly. Even if he did die in 40 seconds, I wouldn't hear about it until the next day, when the newspaper was sent out.
Lying on my bed, I didn't get a wink of sleep that night. I was too anxious. Did I just kill somepony? More importantly, if I did...
Would anypony find out? Should I continue?
I sat up, suddenly.
Why would I continue? These are ponies' lives... Ending them before they're supposed to end would be... That's murder! If it just worked this one time, I would be a murderer, and it's that simple! But...
I couldn't get caught. There was no way I would get caught. Nopony would ever suspect the existence of such a powerful magic, with the ability to kill anypony with just their name and face. I could get away with the murders of thousands...
But just because I could doesn't mean that I should.
I set the notebook beside my bed and lay back down. My thoughts were still far too wild for actual rest, but I at least managed to relax. I was going to get rid of the notebook the next day, one way or another.
Meanwhile...
Princess Twilight Sparkle was awoken from a dead sleep by the dull glow of her horn. One of the other princesses was calling her, and judging by the time, it must have been something of importance. She sat up in her bed, gave a yawn, and allowed the connection to be made. In her mind, she heard Princess Luna.
"We apologize for disturbing your rest, Twilight Sparkle. This is a matter We could not find an accurate explanation for... We were hoping you might assist us in finding one."
"An explanation? For what?" She spoke quietly, not wanting to wake Spike. "Did something happen?"
As Luna explained, Twilight found herself feeling more and more interested, which almost helped wipe away the haze of her sleepiness.
"So he died of a heart attack, despite not having any problems before?"
"Well..." Luna hesitated. "We do not know if he had "No problems," but he most certainly had no issues with his heart. In fact, Our report states that his heart was in top medical condition."
Twilight thought that through. "And... this was a criminal? I think I saw him in the newspaper today...”
Eventually, Luna's call ended. Twilight was definitely going to do more research on this.
She yawned again; sleep first, research odd heart attack tomorrow.
Silently staring at the wall. I don't know how long I've been doing it, but I am. I just heard the news a few hours ago; the stallion whose name I'd written in the Death Note... they died. Just around the time I wrote the name; from the time given in the newspaper, it was probably 40 seconds afterwards.
I'm a murderer... I killed a pony. He was a terrible, awful pony, but I still killed him. And yet I can't bring myself to give the Death Note up or even tell anypony about it. I stare down at the blank page of the notebook. What was I doing? Why was I doing this?
My eyes widen in shock and surprise. The once-blank pages began filling up with names. The cause and situations of death were left blank for all of the names; that meant heart attacks, 40 seconds after the names were added. I look up at the ceiling. Why does that seem so natural? That isn't natural. Why are those names there? Who wrote them?
A heavy sensation in my hoof. I look at it; there lay the quill, the culprit for by now at least 20 heart attacks. My hoof is sore. I must have been struggling to take it away from the awful pony who wrote all of these names down.
Blots of ink are all over my body; I spilled it all over myself. The thought sits in my head like a corrupt, yet vivid dream. I'm covered in the blackened blood of all of those ponies.All of these criminals I've just killed.
NO.
I stand up, glaring down at the notebook, as if it's responsible. They killed themselves the moment they decided to pursue evil...
I'm covered in ink; the blood of the Death Note's victims. I'm covered in the blood of the criminals who decided, when they woke up one morning, to ruin the lives of other ponies just for their own benefits. I'm covered in the blood of the greedy, the corrupt, and those too proud to admit that they are either.
I now know what I have to do.
Meanwhile...
Twilight Sparkle paced back and forth in the main room of her library. Spike had managed to convince her not to walk in the same circle over and over again, since that usually resulted in unintentional trenches that he eventually would have to repair.
It didn't make sense to her. Perhaps the strangest thing to ever happen in Equestrian history; sure, the first suspect would be a unicorn with some kind of magic, but there were no traces of magic anywhere at any of the crime scenes.
Crime scenes? Twilight nodded. Crime scenes.
Whatever was happening, it had to be murder. Whether it was some type of foreign magic, chemical or scientific weapons, there was no other explanation. Somepony was forcing these victims to have heart attacks and die before they were meant to. Twilight tapped her hoof against the ground. Why?
"It is obviously some sort of god complex."
Princess Luna's voice made Twilight jump. She turned and quickly greeted her. "Princess Luna...! What a pleasant surprise!"
Appearing strictly business, Luna walked up to the younger, less experienced princess. "We believe that we are dealing with a pony who seeks to set the world to be within his or her own image." She scuffled her hoof, hesitating slightly. "Or perhaps it could be a group."
Twilight shook her head. She knew it wasn't a group; a few things didn't make sense with the group theory. Most significantly, all of the heart attacks, excluding the first- Twilight called it the "experimental" murder- took place at the exact same time. An organized group would be much more careful not to directly associate their own schedule with their actions. The idea of it being a group also makes Luna's "god complex" theory less likely, despite that being exactly what the case looks like. Twilight explained all of this to Luna.
Luna, despite her greater age and better understanding of the universe, found herself getting lost in Twilight's words. This was nothing new lately. Even Celestia had issues understanding Twilight's views sometimes, due to her having much more personal experience among average ponies. Luna nodded, pretending to know everything Twilight was talking about.
Unfortunately, Twilight wasn't actually talking anymore, and caught on to Luna's confusion.
"Anyways... my point is, we're dealing with a single pony, with a god complex like you said. And I think I have a good idea how to narrow the search."
Luna stared at Twilight skeptically. "So quickly?"
Twilight nodded. "It's simple. We try to provoke them, in controlled areas of course." She looked down. "This may be a bit immoral, but I see no other way to handle this without guaranteeing our own deaths."
Luna caught on quickly. "You intend to use bait, Twilight Sparkle?"
Determination was evident in Twilight's expression as she responded. "I'm afraid that's the most efficient way to come to any conclusions about where they are." She decided to change the subject, because judging from Luna's gaze, she wasn't far from slapping Twilight silly. "Have you heard of the term 'Kira', Princess Luna?"
Luna was taken aback by Twilight's question. "'Tis Saddle Arabian, correct? I have not completely familiarized myself with their tongue."
The glow of Twilight's horn brought a newspaper over to Luna, who opened it and quickly began skimming through it.
"Oh."
Meanwhile...
I'm not sure at what point I noticed the giant, black alicorn hovering in the center of my living room, but it was a little bit startling.
Okay, I was freaking out. The alicorn's face was a pale white, his mane and tail both a very sickly green; his appearance made me think of how the changeling queen, Chrysalis, would appear if she was a gender-swapped zombie. Oh, and if her holes were repaired.
But, most importantly, I was a complete mess- I was in NO condition to have guests over. I must have screamed at some point, because a high-pitched sound reverberated behind me as I dashed back upstairs into my bedroom. I went to my mirror and fixed up my mane and tail, as quickly as I possibly could without pulling my hairs out. I think I still lost quite a few, to be honest, but I didn't have time to think about that. I had company!
I rushed around my room, grabbing a bottle of special perfume I'd gotten from Twilight as a birthday present- "capable of eliminating any odor," she claimed. I had no reason to believe I stunk, but I wanted to make sure just in case; I hadn't taken a shower yet, after all.
A quick check over my body revealed that I was still covered in ink. I could feel the frustration rising in my throat, wanting to come out as a rush of profanity, but I held it in as I always did. That white alicorn face poked itself around the corner and into my room, seeming a little amused.
"I'm so sorry! Please, just wait a little longer, I have to get this ink out of my coat..!"
The amused look turned to confusion. Then, immediately, more amusement. What is wrong with him? Laughing at me like this.. My cheeks reddened and the heat I commonly associated with flaming embarrassment washed over me.
To my surprise, the alicorn quickly recovered from his fit of laughter. He started speaking, though I could have easily mistaken it for choking. The voice was so sick and so broken I was ready to offer him a cough drop before my mind started recognizing the formation of actual words.
"Relax, mare, it is not my job to judge your hospitality!" The alicorn started laughing again. "It's refreshing to get such a warm welcome, as opposed to the usual reactions!"
I calmed myself a little. "Everypony deserves a warm w-welcome when they're in somepony else's house, it's just the n-nice thing to do..." My shyness had me subconsciously backing up, closer and closer to my bed.
The alicorn gave me a twisted smirk as he walked into my room. "How nice it is to see ponies with so much kindness and respect. I take it that I'm definitely not in Canterlot."
My ear twitched. Why doesn't he know where he is? "Um... of course not, this is Ponyville. Everypony is nice to each other here, for the most part. A-As long as you're nice to them, of course..."
The alicorn rolled his eyes. I noticed his horn glowing when suddenly a familiar black notebook appeared in front of him. Wait... that was my familiar black notebook! He skimmed through the first two pages, nodding to himself. "Of course. You're a bundle of kindness." He started laughing again, each cackle sending shivers down my spine. I didn't say anything about it though. "How long has this been here in Equestrian days? Just one day? And yet you've filled out two whole pages!"
I glanced down, tears starting to form in my eyes. I'd been caught, already. I was going to get banished to the Everfree Forest, or locked up, or maybe even banished to the...
"It's pretty impressive."
My ears shot up and I gazed back up at the alicorn, a surprised expression forced across my face. That notebook killed dozens of ponies today, and he's calling it impressive? What the hay kind of sick- I had to stop my thoughts, because I was the one who'd been responsible for the deaths anyways. Who was I to judge another pony for supporting things I did, myself?
The alicorn clearly had no problems with making himself comfortable in my home. He disappeared for a moment, then I quickly realized he was sitting on my bed behind me. "My name is Warai, by the way. It's a pleasure to meet you, Fluttershy."
I almost fell over. "How do you know my name? I never told you..."
"I can see it. Right there." He pointed over my head; I turned around to look where he was pointing. My name wasn't written on my door. It's not on the wall.
The alicorn laughed again, this time harder. "Not there!"
I started feeling a little flustered. "W-Where is it...?"
"You can't see it. Most ponies can't."
I blushed again, remembering alicorns are much more powerful than normal ponies. "Oh, I guess that makes sense. But I've never seen another pony who can see other ponies' names above their heads. Are you from far away?"
More laughing came from the alicorn. I was easily used to his window-shattering giggles by now, though I wished I could get a response that wasn't accompanied by them. "You could say that! I'm from so far away, nopony has ever been there!"
I started feeling confused. Nopony? But... "If nopony has ever been there, does that mean... you're not...?"
A nod confirmed my immediate suspicions. Whatever this creature was, it wasn't a pony. Yet it spoke the Equestrian language, it had a horn and wings, and even had the basic shape of a pony; it deserved respect just like anypony else I'd ever talked to. Still, I had to ask. "You look like a pony..." I hoped so much that wasn't an offensive thing to say.
The response, however, wasn't offense. In fact, I probably should have guessed pretty easily what it was going to be; laughter. More and more annoyance and frustration built up inside of me, all of which I dared not show.
Finally, after another agonizing 15 seconds of his silly giggles, Warai looked at me with a semi-serious, yet still somehow mostly amused, expression. "This is just how I look in your world." He chuckled, and for a second I feared another fit of his idiotic laughing. "You ponies can't comprehend my true appearance."
I pondered that for a moment. So this thing wasn't a pony, yet it looked like a pony so that I could comprehend its image? Something about the explanation didn't sit right with me. "If you're not a pony, then what are you?"
"A God- no..." He stopped, tapping his chin with one of his hooves. "To you, I suppose I would be an Alicorn of Death."
An Alicorn of Death? My mind ran to the princesses, but I quickly dismissed the thought; this was very clearly a different kind of creature altogether. Besides, though Princess Celestia and Luna are insanely powerful and look larger than most ponies, they still are just ponies. Something told me that didn't apply to my new friend.
Death. The thought struck me suddenly and roughly; an Alicorn of Death just the day after I found the Death Note? I would have been stupid to try and consider that coincidental. I avoided Warai's gaze. "So... are you going to take the notebook away from me...?"
For some reason, deep inside, I just knew that's what he was here for. An all-powerful Alicorn of Death lost his Death Note, and now he wanted to get it back- and possibly even kill all of those who had seen and heard of it. I was suddenly much happier that I hadn't taken the notebook to Twilight.
"No. I'm going to help you use it." I nearly fell over, once again.
Meanwhile...
Rainbow Dash was flying home from a busy day of work. It's always difficult to maintain the right weather conditions during the pre-winter times, and she found herself being constantly called upon to set things up right.
Still, despite its minor setbacks, this was her favorite time of the year. The air was crisp and so easy to fly through, the humidity seeming cool due to the chilly autumn breeze gliding over Ponyville. It was what she'd always imagined the weather in heaven to be like. Perfectly moderated.
When she went inside her home, however, her thoughts were broken from the beautiful conditions she had just set up for everypony to enjoy. A black book with white words scribbled on the front sat upon her bed, right next to her pillow.
Meanwhile...
"Alicorn Eyes...?" I didn't know what to think at this point.
Warai nodded, and I'd almost wished he hadn't. "The cost is half of your lifespan. If you're destined to live another year, you'll live for 6 months. If you're destined to live for 6 months, you'll live for only 3." He chuckled, tapping the Death Note a few times. "With how vigorously you're using it, I'd say they could definitely come in handy for you."
"No."
Warai actually seemed surprised at how easily my answer came. "No? Why not? It would let you see the names of ponies you don't even know, just by looking at their face."
I didn't need to consider it. There was no way I was going to take the offer. "If I'm going to have my way with this and fix Equestria to be even better than it already is, I need to stay alive, and I need to be the example for all of those ponies who can't show kindness as easily as I can." I tried to ignore that Warai was already laughing at this point. "Giving away half of my life would be disloyal to myself, my friends, and the entire world..."
I stomped my hoof in determination, and it almost actually made a sound. "And so I can't do it...! That offer is out of the question, please don't bring it up again." I smiled at myself. Kind, but firm. It wasn't often I got myself to act that way, but this time I'd pulled it off excellently.
Warai was silent for a moment. Is he going to me something or just sit there all day?
"If you have something to say, Warai, I'd like to hear it now..."
"It's just a few more things involving the Death Note." A sick grin spread across his muzzle. "I won't be helping you survive, but I am more than happy to tell you anything you want to know about how it works. And this may be the most important thing that I even can tell you about it."
My ears perked up as I listened intently. If it was important and involved the Death Note, then it would almost certainly be useful information in the future.
"Those who use the Death Note... Well, let's just say that their souls are special. When they die, they don't follow the path of other souls."
I rolled my eyes. Is he trying to say that I'm going to hell for this? I knew that wasn't the case, but I humored the thought. Though, I wasn't exactly prepared for the next big bombshell he was getting ready to drop on me.
"Heaven and Hell do not exist, Fluttershy. When a pony dies, they are sent to another world, but I promise you that it is neither of those." More laughter. "In fact, I can't even tell you where other souls go; all I can tell you is that those who use the Death Note are reborn as..." He stopped, seeming to want me to guess. I just shrugged my shoulders. He sighed and turned away. "You really are making this boring."
"Sorry... Just tell me where it is, please." I was starting to feel a little anxious and impatient.
Warai cleared his throat, turning back to face me. "Users of the Death Note become hunters rather than prey the second they write down their first name. As such... mortal users of the Death Note are reborn as my kind when they die." He grinned devilishly. "You will become an Alicorn of Death!"
I'm proud to say this time that I didn't nearly fall over. I actually did fall, and it hurt, a lot.
Despite my tumble, I was still faintly aware of a knocking on my front door in the living room. "Oh dear! Please, Warai, stay here for just a moment!" Before he had the slimmest chance to respond, I flew down the stairs and answered the door. I briefly recalled missing Rarity's appointment at the spa the other day, and I was just getting ready to apologize when I realized that, instead of Rarity, I was looking at nothing.
"Uh... Fluttershy, are you okay?" The slightly grainy (though not nearly as much as Warai) voice questioned as I looked around, wondering where Rarity was. I glanced downward to find an orange-coated filly with a purple mane. Scootaloo.
"Scootaloo! Oh, um... please, come in-" What in Celestia's good name is this little filly wearing?
To my unpleasant surprise, neatly fitted to Scootaloo's body was a black hoodie. It had what appeared to be bleeding hearts scattered all over it as decoration, and right on the front read "KIRA - Evil-Doers, Beware." I wasn't sure at all what to think of her new garbs. I wanted to try to compliment them, but all that came out was "Wahuh...?"
"Oh, do you like my outfit?" Scootaloo gestured to her new clothes proudly. "I'm a Kira supporter!"
"A what?" My eyes widened when I heard a faint tap behind me. Warai, what the hay are you doing, I said to stay in my bedroom...!!!
"A Kira supporter!" Scootaloo exclaimed, jumping all around the room. "Haven't you heard? About all the heart attacks?"
"Umm..." I tried to play dumb, glad that awkward and ignorant came so perfectly natural to me. "Heart attacks...? Kira?"
An excited nod from Scootaloo practically shook the entire cottage. "Yeah! Kira! They were named after the Saddle Arabian term, which means killer!" She took a fierce pose with the last word, making me squeak and back up slightly.
Even worse, I spotted Warai standing next to the staircase to my bedroom. It was only a matter of seconds before Scootaloo...
"It's just so awesome and amazing that somepony out there is taking it upon themselves to kill all of the evil ponies out there!" I couldn't help but blush a little. The term, Kira, referred to somepony who was a killer... I wasn't a killer, though. I was kindness, and justice, and I was going to spread that throughout the world. But if that's what the world wanted to call me, I couldn't stop it. Not yet, at least.
Back to the immediate issue at hoof- Scootaloo was backing up, definitely seconds from backing right into Warai. I shied away and winced, desperately begging for him to go away or at least move out of the way of the filly's flank. But he had no intention to do so.
I froze. By now, she's backed into him, she sees him, and it's all over now... I barely even got started... I reluctantly opened my eyes and looked over at where I was certain Scootaloo was freaking out about the giant Chrysalizombie in my living room.
...Oh my apple-bucked Celestia, that is the most disturbing thing I have ever seen...!!!
Okay, so I wasn't found out and Scootaloo didn't see Warai. Instead, Scootaloo had backed up INSIDE of Warai, who was now laughing loudly as if he was being ferociously tickled. It was starting to get difficult to focus, and I felt a little nauseous, but at least I wasn't getting sentenced to death.
To my pleasant surprise, Scootaloo was still yapping on about something; I chose to tune Warai out and listen to her story.
"...And I saw in this morning's newspaper that they had been killed! It just felt so good to see that they were getting what they deserved after what they did! At the same exact time as all those other criminals, the two murderers who killed my parents dropped dead in their prison cell! They were sentenced to life in jail, but Kira had something else to say about that!" She explained aloud.
I nodded understandingly. So ponies were already starting to accept what was happening. The world was already aware of my judgement. A huge step forward toward the new Equestria.
Even if I was labeled as a killer instead of a savior, beggars can't be choosers. I was going to clean the world up and take my place as the savior of Equestria. Nothing was going to stop me.
Meanwhile...
Twilight Sparkle stared at the stallion in front of her. His green coat and dark blue mane made him seem more villainous than even the average prison inmate. Yet, he had wholeheartedly agreed to help her out with her plan to reveal the town of Kira's hiding place.
"This stallion is responsible for the death of two ponies," Luna informed Twilight. "His name was never released to the public and he's never appeared in any newspapers. We believe he will serve your purposes efficiently enough."