Tainted Gifts

by Touch of Darkness

Rating: teen
Tags: Slice of Life, Dark, Alternate Universe, Sad, Applejack, Original Character, My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic, Cutie Mark Crusaders, Sex, Twilight Sparkle, Discord, Gore
Length: 9113

Everyone has their own talents, their own gifts. I don't want my gift, for it is tainted. My gift is not a gift, but a curse. A curse whose only purpose is to destroy..

Everyone has their own talents, their own gifts. I have a gift, a talent that is special in it's own right. However, my gift is no real gift. My gift doesn't make me a prodigy. My gift doesn't help me excel at life in my own ways. My gift destroys. My gift creates enemies, and separates me from the ones I love. My gift controls me as much as I control it. It scoffs at morality, ignores ethics, stamps on feelings. It is ruthless. It wants to be free, even after all the pain that it has caused me. I can't let it be free. No matter what happens to me, I must harbor this accursed "gift" until the day I die, even if I lose it all in trying.

Sex tag is for innuendos and suggestive situations.

Gore tag is for scenes that are a little more bloody than what is comfortable for some.

Current image is temporary. I have given up on drawing the art for this story, but do plan on using my own content for the image as soon as I get around to it.

Published 2014-09-21 22:30:05 UTC
Last updated 2015-09-27 09:42:14 UTC

Run...

It all started a long time ago, long before I was born, with a rift. A rift in space that defied all explanation. A rift that joined two worlds that should have never been joined. Of course, to the humans, there was no land to be left unmarked, unmapped. The rift was hidden from the general public, but the wealthy and the privileged had the opportunity to visit the strange world of Equestria. Relations between humans and ponies were shaky at first, but curiosity got the best of both species, and things started to slowly improve. Celestia, always kind, let the humans trickle into Equestria. She allowed this to happen because the scientists had promised to keep it at a trickle. They kept their promise, but problems still occurred. Humans, when you think about them, are a dominant species. Humans are the apex-predator, the unconquerable, the forever standing. Humans are used to taming and owning organisms they consider inferior to them, whether it be loyal Fido, or an illegally obtained lion. Coming from a world where ponies were intellectually inferior, the natural human persona began to emerge. Dog eat dog, became dog control mouse, and even the wolf pack couldn't couldn't control the situation. Things began to spiral out of control. All too human problems began to assimilate into the all too pony world. Corruption became prevalent. Chaos began to erupt in a world where peace had reigned for many millennia. Control had to be found somewhere, in some way or method. That is where I come in...

I ran, backpack bouncing on my back, hood and jacket flapping from the speed I was running at. I tripped, tucked in, hit the ground and rolled, got up, and then continued my sprint. I couldn't stop. Terrance had told me not to. Was he okay? Had he made it out? I looked behind me at the bar that was quickly disappearing behind the hulking forms of the Manehatten buildings. I saw the man, our target, walk out of the building, hands clasped behind his back. He looked in my direction, and I knew he smiled. His white coat stirred little in the wind, making the movement of his arm to point at me all the more obvious. Two burly men sprinted through the doors and turned to follow me. The man turned on his perfect black shoes, and walked with his white slacks back into the building. In all essence of his arrogance, his long brown hair flowed behind him as he went back into the bar. I growled and looked back where I was going.

Two streets, turn right, five streets turn left. Get to the train station. Get out of here., Terrance had whispered to me just before it had gone all wrong, and I did just so.

I stood in front of the train station, fumbling with my pack to get it off me. I finally got it off, and threw it to the ground. I opened it, and took out the necessities. My lucky balisong, the money I had with me, and a couple firecrackers all got stuffed in my pockets. I took my spare hoodie out, and changed into it quickly. Then I chucked the backpack, old hoodie stuffed inside, into the alley by the station. I smoothed out my hair as I walked through the door to the station, and then threw my hood back on. A mix of ponies and people were in the station, some alone, some talking together. It was peaceful, calming. I knew that wasn't going to last long. I walked briskly to one of the windows. The pony "manning" it looked at me and jumped, and then smiled and chuckled.

"You look like you just saw a ghost.", he said, politely trying to start conversation about why I looked the way I did. I managed a smile.

"Yeah...saw a couple things coming here I wish I hadn't. Happy I'm getting out of here."

"What'll it be?" I thought quickly about some of places I knew. I'd been everywhere. Everywhere except...

"One ticket to Ponyville please, whichever train is leaving the soonest." I knew of the town only because of the famed Elements of Harmony that resided there. They were always in the paper, always in conversation. They always managed to be one step ahead the bad guys, always proving that good was better than evil.

"That!", the pony exclaimed, bringing my attention back to him. "Will be 150 bits or 100 dollars." I dug into my pocket and forked out the money in dollars. "The first train is leaving in ten minutes. That's train number thirteen. Next one leaves in an hour. That one's train number fifteen." My ticket slid under the bars. A shadow moved in my peripheral vision, and I stealthily slipped the ticket into my pocket. A hand rested on my shoulder. In response, my hands clenched up, and I felt a buzzing sensation through my body. This buzzing was just the build up of a primal energy inside me. Something like endorphins and adrenaline mixing together, but more powerful. I couldn't let this energy find it's way out of me. I had to think fast, and act faster. Otherwise...otherwise I would never leave this place.

"Hey kid, would you mind turning around for us so we could see your face?" I let a fake laugh.

"Why would you want to see the face of a kid?"

"Just do it."

"I refuse to do it without reason." The hand tightened on my shoulder, tensing to turn me around.

"We have reason to suspect that you attempted to murder a very respectable individual less than an hour ago."

"What could I have possibly done? I'm fourteen, religious, young." This response was made specifically to make the teller uncomfortable, and it worked. He backed up a little, and that little bit was all I needed. His body now away from the bars, my next move wouldn't register to him before I had completed it.

"Just make it easy on us and turn around." I smiled mischievously.

"Whatever you say." This is what I had been trained for. I knew how to react to a situation like this. Now all that training was finally going to serve some real use. In a sweeping motion, I grabbed the man's gun (which was hanging tantalizingly close to me) and shoved him back. Not expecting the shove, he reeled back into his partner, even in all his burliness. I cocked the gun and shot it upward. Everyone and everypony broke into an uproar, which is just what I needed. I chucked the gun with all my force at the man who had grabbed me, and it clocked him on the head. He went limp, and his partner, now carrying an unexpected deadweight, gave into the weight and fell as well. I ran through the chaos and found train number thirteen, and boarded it. I went to the back and slid into a seat. The whole ordeal had lasted a couple minutes, probably less. Not long after I got on, the train left towards Ponyville, perfectly on time. As I sat, breathing calmly, I felt all the energy that had been building inside me begin to dissipate. Having no use at the moment, it flowed through my blood till it got back to where it came from. Once there, my body absorbed it once more, ready to release that powerful hormone whenever I felt threatened again.  I was happy that I hadn't needed to use it. Coming on to this happy high that I always got when I didn't use that hormone, that stimulant, I began to doze a little. however, before drifting off, I thanked my lucky stars for this train. This lucky train that had been leaving in the perfect amount of time for my escape. Lucky train number thirteen.

I came down from my high surprisingly quickly, and had awoken only a couple hours after departure. The rest of the trip was long, and I got little sleep between the time I awoke and the day following. The day waned into night again, and I tried to finally get some more sleep. No more than an hour later, the train slowed to a stop, and I was in Ponyville. I groggily got off the train, and stumbled through the station. Once outside, I found myself on the edge of the quaint town. It was late, and many were asleep, but not so late that all were asleep, and I saw quite a few ponies and humans out and about. It was too risky to go straight through the town, so I decided to skirt the edges of the it and see what I could find. On the other side of the town, I found a well trodden dirt path, and followed it. After a little walk, I found a big barn that was surrounded by orchards of trees. I noticed a little building on the side of the barn, and with my little knowledge of barns, and using the hay bales by it as context clues, I figured that is where the owner of the barn stored his or her hay. I dashed to the building, and finding it unlocked, opened it, slipped inside, and then quietly closed it. I let my eyes adjust to the dark, and navigated to the back of the storage area. I climbed on a stack of hay, and finding myself relatively hidden from view, dozed off.

I'll just wake up early...and leave before...before... My train of thought crashed against a yawn, and then everything went black.

Insides

The first thing I noticed when I woke up is that it seemed exceedingly bright for the back of a room with no windows. I tried opening my eyes, but then squeezed them shut again when the light of day pierced them. I tried to get up, but found that I couldn’t. Coming to the reality that I had to open my eyes to see what was wrong, I tensed for the sunlight. I opened my eyes, and hissed in pain. I had barely even began to adjust to the light when a voice spoke up from somewhere in front of me.

“Ah, I see you’re awake.”, said the voice. It was female, and had a distinct Southern like drawl to it. My eyes finished adjusting to the light, and I looked at my surroundings. The first thing I noticed was the mare who had spoken those words. Freckles, light orange skin, whitish blonde hair tied back and held in place with some red bands. She had green eyes that lay in shadow from the stetson placed casually on her head. She was leaning on a stack of hay, staring at me quite angrily.  I coughed nervously and looked down, at which point I find out why I couldn’t get up. A very well tied rope had been wrapped around my legs, prohibiting them from moving. With a sigh, I faced my “demons” and looked back up at the mare, who was still glaring at me. “Well, are you going to say something, or just sit there and look dumb?”

“Don’t talk to me like I am a little child.”

“You are.”

“By definition I am not, and even if I was, it wouldn’t give you the right to treat me like one, especially in such a rude manner.” The mare opened her mouth, and then promptly shut it. She looked away for a second, and sighed softly, before looking back at me.

“I’m sorry that you broke into my house and slept in it. Not like that’s a bad thing.”

“First off, this is a storage room for hay, so you shouldn’t really care. Second, I’m sorry.”

“Don’t be smart with me. It is still my property, and this is an invasion of my privacy in the end.”

“Could you at least say apology accepted?”

“Why would I forgive you for breaking into my-”

“Yeah yeah, I get it, I broke onto your property. I said I’m sorry.” The mare got flustered, and I knew I had already won this battle.

“You don’t have reason though.”

“Did you think to ask if I did?”

“Well...no…”

“Well then how do you know I don’t have reason?”

“Because...you didn’t say anything…in your defense...”

“Why should I have said anything? I don’t need to answer a question that wasn’t asked. Besides, I just woke up, tied up so I couldn’t move. What makes you think I would even want to to talk to you in the first place.” The mare shifted uncomfortably, and looked away from me.

“Why did you break into my house?” She asked, defeated. I smiled in victory.

“Before I say anything, can you free me these damn things?”

“How do I know you won’t just run?”

“You don’t. However, I won’t, because...well look at you. You’re pretty strong for a mare. I can see the muscle under your skin from here. You could probably wrestle me down, no problem.” The mare seemed shocked at the sudden statement. She blinked absently, and then walked over to me, and untied the ropes holding me. I got up, and brushed the hay and dust off me. Standing, I found that the mare was actually a little smaller than I was, and I was already kind of small to begin with. I let out a little huff of relief, and told her everything about what had happened. I thought that was better than lying, because that would only lead to my demise anyway. If she sympathized with me, then I was safe for the time being. If I lied, and ran, they would find her eventually, and she would tell them everything. In the case of being captured, I had my last resort handy. I hoped it wouldn’t come to that, however, as I finished telling her the events leading up to my night in the storage room. The mare looked to the side and scowled, and then looked into my eyes.

“If I trust you, am I safe?” I shook my head.

“Not at all, but it’s not me you’ll have to worry about. You could just tie me down again, and then get the police, or whatever the hell you call them, to take me away. Then you wouldn’t have to worry.” Another scowl as she thought about this. She stared at the ground for an uncomfortable couple of minutes before she looked up, and smiled at me.

“You look hungry. Would you like some breakfast?” This caught me off guard, and I looked at her with wide eyes, astonished.

“Woah, hold up. You were hating me just a couple seconds ago for breaking into your house and now you are offering me breakfast? I’m sorry, but that’s not how logic works.”

“I trust you, and you look hungry. Is there anything wrong with that?” It was my turn to scowl.

“Yes!” The mare slapped herself, furthering my confusion.

“Nope. Didn’t do anything to bring me back to my senses. Now is it a yes or a no?” I gaped at her, and then shook my head in disbelief.

“You’re insane.”

“Maybe.” I rubbed my eyes, and then shrugged.

“Sure, I guess. I could use a bite to eat.” The mare turned and walked out, beckoning me to follow her.

“I’m not insane, so to speak, more just bored of being stuck in a predictable cycle. If you bring danger with you, then let me take it on. I have needed an adrenaline rush for a long time now.”

“So, what happens when the danger does arrive at your doorstep? What happens when the goons chasing me threaten you in order to get to me, even if I am long gone? They’ll come looking for me. They are not against hurting a woman, no less a mare. They’ll probably even kill you after they get what they want. You’ll just be evidence.”

“What little boy? I don’t know of any little boy. Sorry to waste your time.” The mare looked back at me with a playful smile, and I sighed.

“Would it have been better if I had tried to run?”, I asked.

“More than likely.” We had reached the door to the house, and she went inside. I stood outside, and looked to the sky. I could’ve run right then, but I wasn’t going to let the mare down on her generous offer.

“You know what, screw logic.” I stepped up to the door, and pushed it open, but paused before I went in. “Well...here goes nothing...” I sucked in a big breath, and let it out to calm myself, and then stepped inside.

I sat uneasily at the table, tapping my feet on the ground. The mare was in the kitchen, making something that smelled strongly of cinnamon. I folded my hands in front of me, and closed my eyes. I slipped into the recesses of my mind, and heard the faint sound of music. I heard a deep hum, paired with indistinguishable voices and a light piano. It began to calm me, and I opened my eyes again, letting the music distort my reality to a much safer one. Then, a voice broke through the music and shattered my state of my mind.

“Applejack, what are you making? It smells delicious!”, exclaimed the cheery voice. My eyes darted to the source, and a young mare, maybe a couple years older than I was, entered through the door from which I heard her. I took quick note that it seemed she had entered through the front door, and stored that information away for later. Then, I focused on the young mare herself. She was very light yellow in color, with a rosy pink mane that bounced as she skipped into the room. She had large, orange eyes that sparkled with life and energy. She...was staring at me, her eyes as wide as grapefruits. I flinched away, and found the wood on the ground to be very interesting. I still felt her eyes on me, and felt a little nausea rise in my stomach. I hated being studied.

“I would prefer if you stopped staring at me like that. It’s making me uncomfortable, and plus, it’s rude to stare.” The young mare let out a little squeak.

“Applejack...why is there a hume in our house?” I scowled at the use of the term hume. It was a derogatory term against humans. Why or how it was derogatory, I didn’t know. It just was.

“Applebloom, what did I tell you about using that word?”

“But Applejack-”

“I don’t care if you meet the biggest ass of a human. Don’t use that word.”

“Fine, but I still want to know why there is one in our house.” I looked up at Applejack, and raised an eyebrow. She looked at me, and then back at Applebloom.

“He needed something to eat. He has bad parents, and they abuse him, or at least that’s what he said. I hope he isn’t lying.”

“You don’t have to refer to me like I am not here…”, I muttered. Applejack shot me a dirty look, before looking back at the young mare. She was about to say something, but I cut her off by turning to Applebloom and stretching out my hand. “I’m sorry about all this confusion. I just needed a place to get away. I found here by chance, and Applejack here was nice enough to take me in.” I smiled, causing Applebloom to crack a small smile also. “My name’s Cerus. Nice to meet you.” Applebloom slowly reached out with one of her hooves. I grabbed it softly and shook it.

“Nice to meet you, Cerus.” She looked at the ground, and I saw shame in her eyes. “S-Sorry I called you...that word...I didn’t realize...you know…”

“Don’t worry about it. To be fair, all humans are assholes, and if you were under my jurisdiction, you could call everyone of us humes if that’s what you wanted.” This was a lie, but I thought it might be better to appease her than berate her. I let go of her hoof, and she brought it back as slowly as she had extended it, as if she were pondering something. Then she looked at Applejack.

“I don’t believe you answered my first question big sis.” Applejack looked at Applebloom.

“And what would that have been?”

“What are you making? It smells delicious.”

“I don’t quite know actually. I was kind of messing with different things to see what would happen.” Applebloom took a seat at the table.

“I agree with Applebloom. It smells fantastic. I’m sure it will taste just a good as it smells.” Applejack smiled at us, and brought a steaming plate of pastries to the table. Both Applebloom and I grabbed one, and bit into them. I closed my eyes again, and let the flavor of the pastry occupy my mind. A burst of tangy orange mixed with cinnamon and apple to create a sweet and sour medley that pleased the tastebuds. I heard a sound while lost in the rapture of the taste of the pastry, but it was distant and muffled. I heard voices conversing quietly in a room a million miles away, but chose not to focus on them. I was in a state of bliss, and nothing was going to take that away from me. I opened my eyes a little bit, and then saw a dark figure out of the corner of my eye, and I knew that I had been taken for a fool. I kicked my legs against the ground, shooting me back. I quickly reached into my pocket, and pulled out one of my firecracker poppers, and threw it at the cop. It hit him square in the head and popped, surprising him and making him stumble back a little. I then snatched Applebloom out of the chair she was sitting on, and brought her close. My balisong was at her neck within the next millisecond.

“Nobody move!”, I shouted. Applejack stood in the doorway, dumbfounded. The cop, a young man with chiseled features, froze where he stood. His eyes went from mine to my balisong, and then back and forth again. “I am going to leave, and you are going to let me. Otherwise...” I started pushing the knife into Applebloom’s neck, and she let out a small whimper.

“Don’t you dare hurt my sister!”, Applejack cried helplessly. I looked at her, and she gulped.

“This should be you. I put my trust in you, because I thought you were safe. I guess I was wrong. You sent for the cop before I woke up, didn’t you?” Applejack nodded. “I knew something was up. You seemed too calm, too willing to open up to me. I should have ran. I knew it from the start.” I began to back up, towards a door leading outside in the kitchen, dragging Applebloom with me as I went. I reached the door, turned the knob, and kicked it open. I then proceeded to glare at Applejack. “Lying bitch.” I threw Applebloom to the ground, and then ran out the door.

I ran down the trail that led away from the farm, and towards the town. I hated going into public, but if I had any chance of eluding the law, it would be by blending into the crowd. I finally reached the town, tired and sweating profusely from wearing my jacket on such a warm day, but I kept moving. I saw a town square of sorts, jam-packed with civilians, and began to rush to it. However, a couple cops, a pony and a woman, strolled out of a building, and with my bad luck, looked in my direction. Seemingly knowing instantly who I was, they drew their guns. I turned, and rocketed to the left, down an alleyway. I came upon a turn inside the alleyway, and found the alleyway to be a dead end after turning the corner. I turned around, and made an attempt to sprint out of the alleyway before the cops reached it, but I was too late. They sprinted into it, and I skidded to a stop, and reeled back. I almost tripped, and the adrenaline that surged into me as I felt myself stumble triggered the release of my secret hormone. I felt it build in my body, generating a tension too great to hold.

“Stop!”, the pony cop yelled. I felt my consciousness become saturated with a thickness that overwhelmed me. I stopped, and let my hands fall to my side. They began to clench and unclench, as if squeezing a stress ball.

“Make this easy on us kid. Just come with us. Nothing bad will have to happen to you.”, said the woman cop. My morals and ethics became muddled, my thought processes were lost in a haze. I was over the event horizon. I couldn’t control what happened at that point. It was up to my hormone.

“I think you should just let me go.”, I said with an unnatural cockiness. I flipped my hood back with a toss of my head, letting my shoulder length black hair fall freely.

“You are wanted for threat of murder, and for assault of an officer of the law. You aren’t getting away with anything, kid.”, the pony replied. I looked into the cops eyes out of the corner of my eyes, and smiled.

“Last chance.” My hands clenching and unclenching faster and faster, my heart pumping harder, my mind working quicker. Everything fit together in perfect clarity, like a puzzle, but at the same time was lost in a purple haze.

“Is that a threat?”, the pony cop asked incredulously.

“Do those guns have silencers?”, I asked, seeing the tubular extensions on both drawn weapons. The cops looked at each other, and then looked at me. They both approached me. My hands unclenched and splayed open, palms facing the ground. The two cops stumbled, and then stood straight, staring into nothing. “You are worthless. You are trash, controlled by a heartless, corrupt government. It pains me to see you give yourselves so freely to it. I don’t believe you two deserve to live anymore. Do you agree?” The cops pointed their guns at their heads, and cocked them. I walked passed them, and out of the alleyway. I turned back to look at them, still staring ahead, guns pointed at their heads. “Au revoir.” The guns fired in perfect sync. The red spray that followed also flew out in perfect sync. Both cops dropped to the floor, dead. There was no need to check if they were, for half there head was missing (probably due to hollow point bullets), with brain matter splattered hectically on the walls and the ground. There was no need to run, for there had been no sound, because the guns did indeed have silencers. I flipped my hood back up, and walked into the square, melting into the crowd.

It didn’t take long for my hormone to wear off, for I had expended most of it on the two cops. I knew what was coming, the aftereffects of using my hormone, but it still hit me hard nonetheless. I began to feel dizzy, and unconsciously walked out of the crowd. I felt my legs lock, and I dropped to the ground. My muscles began to spasm in a Grand Mal seizure, and my already suffering body managed to also throw up multiple times as it flailed on the ground. I heard the sound of muffled shouting, but it was indistinct. Everything started fading to black, and the last thing I saw before I blacked out was shoes and hooves alike running towards me.

Casualty of Innocence

I woke up with a jolt, and shot up. Everything was blurry, and I felt sick. I clenched my stomach, and bent over the side of my bed, and let out a sickly brown and bloody stream of puke. I sat there like that for a couple minutes, breathing heavily and letting myself wake up. Then I felt hooves on me, pulling me up and setting me back on my pillow. Still a little bleary, I couldn’t make out exactly who the pony was, but I innately recognized that he or she had good intentions, so I didn’t struggle.

“Are you okay dear?”, asked a female voice. It was soft, gentle, comforting. I felt a sudden trust sweep over me, and as my vision finally began to clear, I began to see why. The mare was a nurse, wearing a little red cross cap. I was in a hospital, or something similar, which was surprisingly quiet for the time of day, which I could tell was early afternoon by the light streaming through a couple windows. The room I was in was small. A chair sat in the corner, my jacket folded neatly on it. I looked at the mare.

“I’m...I’m okay...I just felt a little nauseous…”, I replied. The mare was white, with a pink mane and tail, and had light blue eyes that sparkled with youth and energy, but also contained the softness and compassion of a mother’s eyes. She looked down at the vomit on the ground, and scowled, more in worry than disgust.

“Do you feel fine? Anything feel wrong?”, she asked, looking back into my eyes. I cracked a small smile at her genuine worry. It had been a long time since I had been shown care in such a manner.

“I feel alright. I just woke up feeling a little sick.” I looked down at the vomit. “Sorry about the mess.” The nurse chuckled.

“You don’t join this profession without expecting to see that all the time.”, she joked, and we both managed a small laugh. I looked around, and a humanoid shape moving around caught my attention. I focused on it, and realized I was looking at a mirror, which was reflecting the person from somewhere just past the door that entered into “my” room. Then I saw the outline of a gun under the shirt the person was wearing, and my heart began to race.

“How high up are we?”, I asked. The mare raised an eyebrow at the question, which I knew was strange without context.

“This is a one story building, so ground level. Why?” I looked the mare directly in the eyes.

“I need you to unhook these tubes from me. Right now.” The mare backed up slightly, eyes wide at my sudden change in demeanor.

“I-I can’t do that dear. We need to keep you for a little longer, just to make sure your condition doesn’t go south.” I looked back into the mirror. The human, a man by the looks, was pacing faster now. He seemed impatient. I then looked back into the mare’s eyes, trying to silently plead with her as well as vocally plead with her.

“Trust me on this. I’m okay, and I will remain okay. I need you to let me out right now.” Out of the corner of my eye, I saw the man stop and clench his fists, and then turn towards the door. I looked back at the mare. She was silent. I quickly scanned the room, and found a tray of medical supplies within reach. My eyes honed in on it, and I quickly formulated a plan. Then, I heard a gun cock, and a little whimper.

“Don’t you dare scream you little bitch…”, said a gruff voice. I didn’t look at the man, but instead focused on his shadow. I watched his movements, pretending to still be asleep. I saw his arm stretch out, and then felt the tip of a gun on my forehead. “To think that you were so successful, only to be brought down by a little flu. I almost pity you.”

“Are you actually going to shoot him?”, asked the mare, her voice hardly even a breath. I heard the man growl, and he swung around to face her. I saw his hand shoot out, and I heard a crack as his gun met the poor mare’s skull, but this was the chance I had been waiting for. I shot forward, grabbed the tray and took a scalpel off of it, and then threw it at the man. Not expecting the barrage of medical instruments, the man shielded himself, and shot off a round in surprise. I yanked the tubes out of my arms, and threw myself at the man. I stabbed the scalpel into his throat, causing him to gag and fall. In my panic, I had missed his jugular, so I knew that the pain would only last until his adrenaline kicked in. Knowing my only option was to run, I grabbed my jacket off the chair, and slammed open the door, which the man had quietly closed to avoid detection.

“Cerus?”, a voice called. It was all too familiar to me, which gave me even more reason not to stop. I pounded down the hall, arms dripping blood from the rough removal of the IV’s. I found the front door and sprinted out of it. There was already a huge commotion from the gunshot, so when I shot through the crowd, bleeding and sickly looking, the crowd turned into a beehive, with ponies and humans alike running every which way. My head began to pound with nausea and my body ached with pain. My lungs couldn’t take any more, but I still ran. I ran because I knew I couldn’t stop. However, my body finally won over my mentality, and I collapsed to the ground, exhausted. I had made it surprisingly far, the edge of the town by the looks, but I simply could not go on. A couple tears escaped me, partially from the pain, and partially from fear and anger.

“Why am I this way, Celestia? Why did you make me such a monster?”, I quietly questioned the dirt. I was vulnerable where I was. If the man had a companion, he would find me, and he would kill me. He would end my pathetic life with one simple bullet. Perhaps it was for the better. If I died, I wouldn’t have to deal with the guilt of everything I had done in my life, a series of terrible fuck ups that had lead to this position that I was currently stuck in. I felt something grab my arm, and I turned to face my demons for the second time in the space of 24 hours.

“Cerus?”, asked the voice of my demons. Except, the voice didn’t belong to a demon. It belonged to...to…

“Applebloom!?”, I cried out, and in panic, wrenched out of her grip and tried to run.

“Cerus! Wait! Please! I just want answers!”, she shouted after me. I slowed to a stop, but didn’t turn to her.

“I have none to give.”

“Come walk with me...let’s get out of here before that goon or his pals show up to try to kill you...again.” Applebloom walked past me at a brisk pace, serious but still worried about the issue at hand.

“Why should I trust you? By the looks of where you are going, you are going to lead me right back to your house, at which point, Applejack will proceed to panic and probably beat me half to death.” Applebloom quivered, and then turned to face me with a snarl cemented on her face.

“Why should you trust me? Trust me!? Here I was, walking into the kitchen, and there is a human sitting at the table. This human seems to be so much nicer than most, and I decide to put my trust in him. Then within a couple minutes, he is choking me, holding me a knifepoint, threatening to take my life if anyone in the house moves.” Applebloom let a sarcastic huff. “And you ask if you can trust me…”

“What reason do you have for me follow you then? If you don’t trust me, and you have no reason to, then what could you possibly want of me?” Applebloom looked down, and was silent for a couple seconds.

“I want to help you...” She said it very quietly, and I could barely hear her.

“What was that? I didn’t quite hear that well.”

“I want to help you.” I blinked in surprise, and I looked at her incredulously.

“You say what?”

“I won’t repeat myself. Now make a decision fast. Either you come with me and hear me out, or I leave you to your own instincts.” Applebloom turned around and began walking away. “Just know that in a small town, news travels fast. Soon, everyone and everypony here will know your face. There will be no safe haven except for the one I am offering you right now. Take it or leave it.” I stood dumbfounded. Never had I ever been more confused in my entire life. I wanted answers. Then I realized the blackmail that Applebloom had used on me, and I couldn’t help but follow her in awe and respect. The little turd had got me as curious as she was, and there was nothing I could do to quell it except for getting the answers for the questions I now had.

We had walked for some time in complete silence, and I was beginning to doubt Applebloom’s legitimacy in her words. I turned to her, and opened my mouth to speak, only to have her turn on me with a snarl. Not expecting the sudden anger from the seemingly peaceable young mare, I fell back, and then backed up to the side of the path as she approached me. She had the upper hand, or rather, hoof, now. Fighting or fleeing was not an option. She stopped inches from me, close enough that I could hear her haggard breathing.

“Knife. Now.”, she hissed. I took it out of my jacket pocket, and threw it to the side. I usually wouldn’t have done so, but this situation was different than most I got stuck in. Applebloom wasn’t an adult, and the fact that she was completely innocent when I had threatened to kill her earlier today made me the bad guy here, not her. Plus, I couldn’t just kill her. Not without reason. Even someone as stone hearted as me still had some morality.

“If this-”, I started to say, but Applebloom cut me off.

“Shut up! Don’t say a fuckin’ thing!”, she screamed. I fell silent, and she took a moment to collect herself. “I could have just left you on the ground there, you and I both know that. I could have just ignored you and let your sad little life be taken by some goon. I don’t have any reason to feel sympathy or compassion for you.” She sighed. “My family is scared half to death, and all of them are paranoid about my safety.” A small pause. “The only reason I got out of the house was because I needed to go the hospital. You cut me pretty deep, and I needed a couple stitches.” Applebloom turned her head, exposing small stitches I hadn’t seen before. Then she turned back to me. “Right after I got out of surgery, a gurney shot past me. When I saw you on, pale and limp, I couldn’t help myself. I had to find out if you were okay.” I ventured to ask something, but tensed for a violent reaction.

“Why you have any reason to be curious about my health?”

“I don’t know. I really don’t.”

“So then why did you help me?”

“I...I really can’t explain it. Something inside me snapped when I saw that man walk into your hospital room with a gun in his hand. I knew that he was going in for you, with the intention of killing you. When I saw you run out, my first instinct was to not move, but then I saw the man struggling to get up, and I panicked. I ran after you, thinking of what to do.”

“So then you came across me, and thought it would be a good idea to give a safe haven to me, the kid who threatened to murder you, and then almost got murdered himself?” Applebloom smiled in spite of herself.

“Basically.”

“I wish I could respond to that, tell you that you’re crazy, and to just leave me to my own wits. However, I have nowhere else to go. If the safehaven you are offering is what you promise it to be, then I simply won’t question it. You said it yourself back there that in a couple days, nowhere in this town would be safe, and this town was my last resort.”

“Well, then come along.” Applebloom turned to continue down the path. I got up, and dusted off my pants.

“Wait.” Applebloom stopped and looked back at me. “What about your sister?”

“Not home. Left with me to take me to the hospital. When she got me in, she told me to just wait there for her. She told me that she would be there to pick me up a little after dark.” I let out a little huff.

“This is way too convenient.”

“I’m questioning it myself.”, Applebloom replied with a smile, and then turned to walk home. I shook my head in disbelief.

“But you-” Applebloom turned to look at me once again. I shrugged my shoulders and walked to her. “Nevermind. I’m not going to question it anymore, at least not for now. I might as well just do this. It’s not like I have anything better to do.” Applebloom rolled her eyes, and then turned around again, and headed toward the farm. I let out a little sigh. What the hell am I getting myself into?, I asked myself, and then proceeded to follow Applebloom. It can’t be that bad, can it?

I sat on the floor of Applebloom’s room, drumming my fingers on it. Applebloom was sitting on her bed, silently staring at me. The situation was making me uncomfortable, but I didn’t want to speak. I had a feeling that Applebloom had something to say, and I was waiting for it to come out.

“Uh...hmm…”, she said. I looked up at her, expecting more, but she just scowled and bit her cheek. I huffed, and got up, and began to pace around the floor.

“If you have something to say, then just say it for Celestia sake.”, I remarked. My back was turned to Applebloom, but I felt her eyes fix on me, and then heard her sigh.

“I can’t take my mind of what happened at the hospital.”, she said quietly.

“If you want to know why it happened, you can just ask. Usually I wouldn’t say, but I probably owe my life to you, so I am willing to answer any question you have.” I turned around, and looked into her eyes. She blinked, not yet used to my naturally cold gaze, but then regained her composure.

“Why did that man want to kill you? What could you have possibly done to deserve to die, especially only being a child?”

“I am not going to lie, but I warn you that the truth might disturb you. I will ask this only once: are you sure you want to know?” Applebloom nodded, never letting her eyes leave mine.

“Positive.”

“Okay then.” I walked over to the bed, and sat on the edge. I looked away from Applebloom to think of where to begin. There was silence for a few minutes.

“Cerus?” I looked up, and back into her eyes. She flinched yet again, but kept her gaze locked with mine.

“I...I…” I paused and sighed. I had promised her the truth, and nothing but. I was a man of my word, so breaking that promise was out of the question. “Before I came here, I lived in Manehatten, and I killed people for a living. I was a contract killer.” Applebloom gasped, and her already huge eyes got even wider.

“How old are you?”

“Fifteen.”

“And you killed people for a living?”

“Kill. I never officially ended that as a career. In fact, it’s the reason I am here.” Applebloom took in another sharp breath.

“You’re here to kill someone? Someone in Ponyville?”

“No, and I hope I never have to. This town is too quaint, too innocent. I’m here because I fucked up a job. The person I was supposed to kill turned out to be much smarter than my company had expected. You see, we had intel that he was going to some bar to meet some business partner. My company bribed the bouncer that was to be working the shift that night to let me in, and told him the info on the case. He was to let me in, my partner, the man, and his partner. It was supposed to be quick. Take out the man, suppress his partner, and then get out quickly as possible. Job complete, forty thousand dollars to be split amongst me and my partner.”

“But something happened?” I nodded.

“The man had somehow learned of our mission. He walked in with two guards, who instantly pointed their guns at me and my partner. Luckily we were at a window seat, so my partner thought fast and jumped through the window. The guns started firing, so I followed my instinct and jumped out the window as well. I saw my partner run one way, so I ran another. Unfortunately, the man and his guards saw me running, and his guards followed me to the train station. I took care of them, but the man obviously found out where I had gone pretty quickly. So he sent more of goons to look for me, and kill me.”

“Why did you need to kill him?”

“Do you know what a philanthropist is?”

“It’s someone or somepony who gives to charity and society, right?”

“Pretty much. Well, there is a word used to describe the opposite of that. We call them robber barons. The term mostly applies to big business men who advance themselves and their profits at the expense of other people.”

“So this man was a robber baron?”

“Exactly. He made himself seem like a good man, though. He publicly gave thousands to the poor, gave jobs to those who needed them. However, what people didn’t realize was that the money he used to give to the poor and the money he used to make jobs for those who needed them was only a fraction of the millions he had stole from them.”

“So he made it look like he was helping, but in reality he was using everyone?” I nodded.

“You’d think someone like that would be found out, especially in this day and age, but he was good at covering tracks. My contractor had been gathering info on this man for years, and had sent multiple others to try to get this guy. They all ended up dead or in prison. Finally, my contractor turned to me.”

“He-”

“It.”

“Huh?”

“I don’t know who my contractor is. Nobody under contract with ‘it’ really does. So, we just refer to ‘it’ as, well, ‘it’.”

“Okay, whatever. ‘It’, turned to you, after sending multiple others who ended up dying or being captured by the police? You, a fifteen year old boy?” Applebloom was beginning to doubt me, that much I could tell. If I lost her, then it was over. She needed to know the whole truth, and believe it. So, I kept pushing on.

“I have been signed to the contractor for two years, and in those two years, I have flawlessly murdered twenty seven people. I am one of the most, if not the most, successful contract killer signed to ‘it’.” Applebloom shook her head.

“That’s impossible. There’s no way that you could do that. You’re a kid for crying out loud.”

“Did you expect me to pull a knife on you and threaten to kill you? More so, did you expect me to actually hurt you to prove I would follow through on my threat?”

“Well...no…”

“There’s all the proof you need. There’s not one person or pony that I personally know that would expect their demise to come from a kid as young as me. I have the surprise factor everytime.”

“You aren’t lying, are you?”

“I promised to tell you the truth, so I did.” Applebloom looked down and shook her head in disbelief.

“How can you possibly live with yourself knowing you have killed all those people and ponies?”

“I can live with myself because they were all evil to begin with. Plus, I had a childhood that children should never have to go through. I grew up scarred physically and emotionally. The only emotions I ever truly feel are anger, sadness, and contempt. It takes someone or somepony with qualities that are polar opposite of mine to get me to really feel things like happiness, joy, compassion, anything in those ranks. Call me cold blooded. Call me stone hearted. I don’t care. They are both true.”

“Is it wrong to feel scared right now?”

“Not at all.”

“Should I be questioning my decision to bring you here.”

“Perhaps, perhaps not.”

“Give me a yes or no.”

“I am tempted to say yes, but I say that you shouldn’t. You gave me a safe haven when I needed it most. I will repeat that I more than likely owe my life to you. You saved mine, I won’t take yours, or anyone else close to you for that matter. Is that a good enough answer?”

“Yes.”

“Good.” There was silence for a little while. Then, Applebloom got off the bed, stretched, and headed to the door.

“I’ll be back.”

“Where you headed?” Applebloom looked back at me.

“Takin’ a small walk. Need to think about a couple things.”

“Okay, you go do that.” Applebloom turned around again, but then something occurred to me. “Hey.” Applebloom once again turned to look at me.

“Yeah?”

“Thanks for hearing me out, and not casting me out after hearing my story.” Applebloom smiled.

“We’ll see.”

“What does that mean?” It was too late. She had already left and shut the door behind her.

It had gotten dark outside, but Applebloom still wasn’t home. My paranoia began to take hold, and I couldn’t help myself seeing her dead and bleeding on the ground, shot to death by some goon that was after me. I was down in the kitchen pacing, when I thought I heard a voice shouting somewhere in the distance. I listened to it get closer and closer. It gained clarity until it was recognizable. My heart began to beat faster, and I ran upstairs, looking for somewhere to hide. The voice had distinctly belonged to Applejack, who, at least by the context of the conversation she was having, was shouting at Applebloom. I barreled into Applebloom’s room, and saw in the lamplight by her bed that it was just high enough off the ground that I could slip under it. I ran to the lamp, and turned it off. Then, I felt my way to the bed, and slipped under it. I slowly turned myself so that my head was facing the door, so I could see it. I heard the front door open and slam shut.

“You had me scared half to death Applebloom!”, Applejack chastised.

“I panicked!”, Applebloom cried out in response.

“Bullshit!”

“Applejack, I swear, someone walked into the hospital with a gun! Ask anyone!”

“I don’t believe it.”

“Applejack-”

“Applebloom, if you went to see your coltfriend, I will find out.”

“I didn’t! Why don’t you believe me!?”

“No one in this town is psycho enough to try to shoot up a hospital.”

“You don’t know that!”

“In fact, I do. I have lived here all my life Applebloom. Remember that I’m not a kid like you. I’m an adult, and have been for quite a few years. Plus, I’m on the town committee, where you have to get to know everyone in the town.”

“Oh yeah, the fauxmmittee. What a joke.” At this point, Applejack lost it.

“Go to your room, right now!”

“Fine. Not like I wanted to stay down here with you anyway.”

“Hey! Look at me!”

“Why!?”

“I said look at me!” I heard Applebloom cry out in surprise.

“Applejack, what are you-” I cringed when I heard an audible smack, and a cry of pain from Applebloom. I heard the sound of galloping hooves up the stairs, and watched Applebloom gallop through the door. She slammed it, and locked it, and then stumbled over to her bed. She collapsed onto it and began to sob. I wanted to comfort her, but I couldn’t. I didn’t know how. I had never been taught to comfort and console. I had only been taught to taunt and berate and defile. I curled into myself and put my hands under my head. I closed my eyes and attempted to sleep, but I couldn’t. Not while Applebloom was crying. Not while I kept telling myself that it was my fault that she was crying. If I just let the cops take me, everything would have been fine. If I hadn’t used my “gift” to kill them, I wouldn’t have passed out in the street, and ended up in the hospital. Better yet, if I had just never showed up in Ponyville, Applebloom wouldn’t have been hospitalized by my knife, and therefore, would never end up in this situation. It all came down to the ghost that haunted me. I could live with myself, a heartless killer, and never regret a thing. But when an innocent child suffered because of my actions, it was all I could do to not scream and pull out my hair. It was all could to try to sleep at night, tossing and turning as the thought of their suffering rolled around my head. Listening to Applebloom sob was no different. It wasn’t until she had literally cried herself to sleep that thought of myself getting any sleep could enter my mind.

“I’m so sorry Applebloom…”, I choked as her sobs faded to silence. “I hope you never forgive me…”

“I would never want you to forgive a monster…”

Blank Spaces:Old Faces

Something has gone wrong. We don't seem to have an archived copy of that chapter.

The Thin Line Between (Ecstasy and Fear)

Something has gone wrong. We don't seem to have an archived copy of that chapter.

War on Two Fronts (Plus One More If You Count The Mind)

Something has gone wrong. We don't seem to have an archived copy of that chapter.

As We Move On (AKA Gaia, Operation Traveller)

Something has gone wrong. We don't seem to have an archived copy of that chapter.

S/ha/tt/er/e/d

Something has gone wrong. We don't seem to have an archived copy of that chapter.