Chapter 24: Switched

"I spent my years during the Fall as a Corrupted from day one. I was stationed in Fillydelphia when the caribou attacked, heck, I was still putting on my armor because I overslept a little when the attack began. I can still remember fully and clearly the wave of magic that surged through me; the pressure and the overwhelming presence inside my head and soul. I fought back for what, ten maybe fifteen seconds? Anyways, I lost the fight pretty damn fast and my own mind warped itself into something else... and I was content with that. If you want to truly understand what the Sickness did to us Corrupted go ask the Mind-Menders."

"But what happened next?" An ursa asked in a neutral tone.

"What didn't happen is the real question. I rushed out of the barracks and was greeted with the sight of caribou running amock, fellow guards joining their ranks, and every mare... every female regardless of species and age being raped, brutalized, dragged, and stripped down on the streets. A few, both males and females, fought back but they were either brought down or captured, the females were raped on the spot. I myself took down my commanding officer and raped her. In fact, I made her one of my pets, a black collar, after the fact and she birthed three of my children."

"...I see..."

"The following years were a blur, really. I left the guard and became a worker on a beer brewer, eventually, I came to own the place three years into the Fall thanks to the deeds of Spike. And no, I never met him, but his rise to power and tactical input made it possible as a collateral effect. Divine creators, I did... so many despicable things during those years; I'm not sure how many kids I actually have... at least twelve, the ones I know I sired with my... pets... and four of them come from my cousins."

"You can stop if it is too hard for you."

"Too hard for me? You have no idea. But it doesn't matter now, all I can do is tell what I know... I owe him that much at least."

"..."

"Where was I? Ah, yes. The final year of the Fall passed fast until the Day arrived. The feeling of that wave of magic was similar to the Sickness but in reverse. I felt free, liberated from a cage I had forgotten I was inside for years. My mind and soul were fully mine once more... and with them also came the memories... the guilt... the repugnance.. the hate. I raged, sweet Celestia, did I raged... If it was a caribou, it had to die. I killed two dozens, maybe more. Stags, cows, calves, does... babies... I simply killed them. I felt no remorse, nor joy. To this day I feel nothing about those lives I took after being set free."

"Nothing at all? Not even for the young?"

"I watched enough of their 'young' committing atrocities you thankfully will never have to see. Children... can be very creative... especially caribou calves to weaker females... and babies."

"...Oh Gods... you... you mean to say..."

"Exactly what you're imagining. Anyways, after that, I cried until I had to be hospitalized. I tried to kill myself eight times. I couldn't stand myself, I couldn't live with the guilt, the pain... the forgiveness those I had brutalized as my pets gave me. I was about to do a ninth attempt when I heard the news, Spike Solaris himself was amassing an army willing and ready to march to Hraljord itself and commit genocide against the caribou in their own home. To kill them all to the last."

"You followed him?"

"Of course I did. The moment I heard that news all of my guilt turned into hate that boiled my insides. I dropped the knife and took up my sword instead. I ran to join him and his army and when I saw him for the first time... I understood that my guilt was misplaced. That my desire to kill myself would only mean a victory for the caribou. The Fall was their doing and my actions during that time their fault. I boarded one of the ships and set sail. And you know the rest, what happened in Hraljord. When their capital, Maletopia, burned to ashes it was the first time in years I was truly happy."

"..."

"After that, we came back to Equestria and I begged the Liberators to grant me mercy. I couldn't stand myself anymore."

"Do you have any regrets over your decision?"

"Of course not. I am still a stallion, a male, in my heart and soul. Nothing can change that even if my body, genes, and hormones are that of a mare, but I am still male. I am still the father of my children. I want to see them grow. I want them to know the atrocities the caribou committed when they are ready to hear it and understand it, and they will hear it from my lips. That's all I have to say, may I leave now?"

"Of course, corporal Bright Lance. Though, off the record, what is your opinion on Spike Solaris?"

"He's our bloody hero. I don't even want to know what he had to go through to achieve all he did."

---------------- Corporal Bright Lance of the ‘Rise of Equestria’ Army, Report on the Caribou and Spike Solaris ‘The Dragon’, ‘The Reaper’, ‘The Lightbringer’.------------

Author's Note

Special thanks to everyone who read this!

Dedicated to Lance Blazer.