Nails in the Coffinby MellowSoulChaptersThe Depths of SubconsciousnessPeaceInvestigationEpilogue: Only one FutureThe Depths of SubconsciousnessHow many bars had that been? Leon couldn't remember how many times he'd been thrown out of a drinking establishment, nor did he really care. He took another sip from his portable whiskey bottle, the chilling air seeming to more easily make its way to his skin from the outside as he became increasingly inebriated. This had been the norm for him for many years now. Ever since Racoon City, he couldn't escape the nightmares, usually having at least one a night. As the night grew later and darker, so too did Leon's drunkenness. He could feel the onset of a blackout coming on. "Why can't this shit ever be over..." That was all he could mutter before his vision faded, and he slipped into unconsciousness. Leon's eyes slowly shifted open. There was a cool breeze blowing past, but it wasn't the bitter cold that he had become accustomed to. He could see a bright, cloudless sky. It was peaceful. "Maybe I should just stay here for a while..." Leon began to close his eyes again, letting the bright sky soothe his tortured mind. "Who are you," a female voice said. When Leon heard it, he quickly sat up, instinctively reacting in self-protection. "I'm behind you." The agent veered over his shoulder. He couldn't believe what he saw standing there. "What the hell's going on!?" "Hey, language! We don't use bad words here!" Leon sighed. "Before you start trying to control my speech patterns, how about you fill me in?" "Fine, rude thing." "The name's Leon, alright?" "Well, Leon, what are you?" "You mean to tell me you've never seen a human being before?" "Ohhhhh boy..." "What's with that tone?" "Nothing. There's just a pony here who always claims humans exist. She'd probably be pointing at me and saying she told us so right now." "Either somebody spiked my drink or I've gone insane." "Drink? Are you an alcoholic?" "What? You're gonna' tell me they have booze here too?" "What's booze?" "Never mind." "We have hard cider. It's pretty potent." "Great," Leon replied sarcastically. After a minute, he stood up and dusted himself off. "Listen, I have no idea what this place is or why I'm here. Could you humor me for a minute." "My name is Twilight Sparkle. This is Ponyville. It's a small village located on one of the northwestern continents." "That's good enough for a description. So this place is a world for ponies. I got that right so far?" "Basically. There are other species here too, like griffons, dragons, and the like." "Aside from the fact I'm having trouble processing this, I'm gettin' kind of hungry. You at least got any vegetables to eat?" "Sure. I was on my way home anyway. If you come with with me, you can eat to your heart's content." "I guess it's no steak, but it'll do." "What's steak?" "It's a human food. We eat some of the animals on our planet." "Ew!" "Yeah. I figured you'd say that." "You can have the vegetables, but try to eat me and you'll be in for a beating." "Sheesh. Chill out. I don't think I'd wanna' eat you anyway." "Good answer." Twilight headed for her home, Leon following behind her. "How did these things even learn English anyway?" "So, what do you do where you're from?" "I'm an agent for the United States government." "An agent. Hmm..." "Don't try too hard. My work is classified." "I'm not trying to understand your work. I want to know why you're here." "Considering I was drinking before this happened, it's probably all a dream." "That's not the case. I know because I'm talking to you." "I take it you don't study dreams. Even if it's all in my head, it's possible for the subconscious to create intelligent conversation with the dreamer." "Really? That's weird. I know I'm here, so if it's a dream, how am I aware of myself?" "It's all par for the course." "I guess we'll see." Leon's expression became stone-faced. Despite his knowledge in dreams, the conversation was making him uncomfortable. "Well, this is my home." "Not too shabby for a tree." "I guess you can be nice, too." "I'll be right back. My assistant is upstairs." "Right." While Twilight went to get Spike, Leon took off his jacket. He noticed a couple solid objects in its pockets. "My weapons. Is this really a dream?" Twilight returned a few minutes later. "This is Spike. He's a dragon." "H-Hi," Spike said nervously. The intense agent somewhat frightened him. "Hey, little man." "Anyway, let's get some lunch," Twilight chimed in. Leon nodded, and she led them to the kitchen. "Feel free to make whatever you want." "Thanks." Leon collected a few vegetables and pieces of fruit. He pulled his knife out and began to chop them. "So I was right," Twilight said, "Your job is just as dangerous as the ones our agents get." "I knew you'd figure that much out." "I don't think it'd be a good idea to flash that thing around. Some ponies might think you're dangerous." "Guess it's a good thing I don't like being flashy to begin with." "Probably not a bad thing." Leon finished preparing his food and sat down at the kitchen table. Spike stared at him. "What's up," Leon asked the young dragon. Spike quickly looked away. "I think he was admiring your muscles. Even Bulk Biceps doesn't look as strong as you." "He should see my friend Chris. He's been called a superhuman more than once." "Do you have superhumans where you're from?" "Our planet is called Earth, and no, but Chris is pretty close." "This world is called Equestria." "Not surprising." "You know, since you're an agent, you should meet our princesses. "A peaceful monarchy. Can't remember the last time I read about one of those in the history books." "That's how it's always been here." "Interesting." "Anyway, you should probably finish eating. I don't know how long you'll be here, so we should probably show you around." "Not a bad idea." Leon downed his food fairly quickly, placed the knife back in his coat pocket, and put the strip of clothing back on. Twilight and Spike finished soon after. "Let's go before it gets dark," Twilight urged. "Roger." Peace"So you're from a country called the United States of America," Twilight asked. "Mhm." "What kind of government do you have?" "A democratic republic, but to be honest it's more like a power struggle between the two." "Fascinating. I've read about those types of systems before, but I've never actually been somewhere where they're in effect." "Well, get ready for a lot of arguing if you ever encounter them at the same time." "Generally speaking, aren't republics more conservative while democracies are more liberal?" "More or less." "What about you? Where do you fall?" "I guess I'm more of a conservative, but compared to some people I've met, I'm pretty moderate." "Does the system work?" "Depends on who you ask." "That makes sense." "How about you?" "Well, you already know we live under a monarchy. Somehow our princesses remain uncorrupted by power. There's really no need for different opinions if we're happy with what we have." "I'm a little bit jealous." "What for?" "No matter what governmental body is in place, human evil always finds a way to ruin it." "How evil are humans if you put them next to us?" "This looks like paradise." "Is it really that bad?" "That's putting it mildly." "Yeesh." "Are you evil," Spike suddenly spoke. "Spike, that's rude," Twilight scolded. "Don't worry about it. In a way, I probably am." "You don't look evil." "Looks can be deceiving." "I know, but you haven't attacked anypony yet. That's enough reason for us to trust you." "Wish I could feel the same about everyone else." "Do you wanna' talk about it?" "Can't. It's work-related stuff." "Right; classified." "Sorry." "Don't worry about it." The trio walked on for an unknown amount of time until they reached Sweet Apple Acres. Twilight was going to introduce Leon to her friends so he could become more familiar with their professions and the layout of the land. "Applejack!" "Hey Twi!" Applejack noticed the tall figure standing with her friends. "Woo wee! Who's the hot stuff?" "Name's Leon Kennedy. Nice to meet you," Leon responded stoically, trying to ignore the fact that a pony just called him hot. "Well, Leon, I'm Applejack! You can call me AJ for short." "Applejack and her family farm the area around here, Leon," Twilight informed him. "Is that right?" "Say, why don't ya'll come in for some sweet apple cider?" "Don't put any alcohol in Leon's. He's still recovering from a binge." Normally, Leon would've protested, but because he wasn't currently in the aftermath of a severe incident, he let it go. He followed them into Applejack's house. "This here's my brother, Big Macintosh." "Howdy," was all that came from the red stallion's mouth. "Apple Bloom, say hi." A small yellow filly emerged from behind Big Macintosh. "Hey, Mr.," she said nervously. "It's okay, Apple Bloom," Spike assured her, "Leon's a nice guy." "Granny Smith is in the other room. I'll go fix up your cider and we'll drink it in there." Applejack left the room, and everyone else exchanged words. "Why are ya' wearin' a jacket," Apple Bloom asked, "It's summer. Ain't ya' warm?" "It helps if I have to go somewhere with air conditioning or cold water." "What's air conditioning?" "Oh yeah. You guys don't have that yet. Maybe I can help. I could be stuck here for a while anyway." "That sounds good," Twilight agreed. "Cider's up!" Everyone moved to the other room. "You look pretty strong and healthy, youngin'," Granny Smith verbally noted, "Maybe we could get your help around here." "Now Granny, Leon just got here. He needs to figure out where he's gonna' stay first." "I actually thought about that already. I don't suppose you have any money on you, do you Leon," Twilight inquired. "I doubt paper money would be any good here anyway." "If I lend you a few bits, you can stay at an inn. Would that work?" "I think I can manage that." "Great." The rest of the visit would just be small chatter. Leon, Twilight, and Spike left after about an hour to see the rest of the town. Meeting the rest of Twilight's friends didn't take very long. Some of the places they visited helped Leon discover where to purchase food and clothing when he could scrounge up enough money to afford them. He noticed that there wasn't much shock when they saw him, probably because of Lyra's constant mention of the human species. He made a mental note to track down Lyra when he had the time. "Well, that's about everypony I wanted you to meet. This is the inn," Twilight said as she pointed to a small wooden building that stood firm next to them. "Thanks. I'm pretty much done for anyway. Hopefully you guys don't drink as excessively as I do." "Some of us don't even drink at all." "I don't normally talk about my personal history, but I feel like I can trust you enough to tell you the truth. Before the incident that forced me into government service, I'd already been drinking too much for my own good. The day before the viral outbreak, my ex-girlfriend broke up with me, so I got hammered and showed up late for my first day as a police officer." "Viral outbreak? You can't mean zombies, right?" "You're pretty sharp. Those are the easiest monsters to deal with I've been up against so far." "How large was the outbreak?" "The entire city was completely wiped out. The United States government ultimately erased the city from existence to contain it." "And you barely managed to escape in time?" "More or less." "My Celestia. That must've been a shock to you." "My personality completely changed, and I was forced into joining the security branch of the government." "You weren't given a choice?" "They didn't want me going around and telling everybody what happened. They covered up the truth. I've been their lapdog ever since." "Were you the only survivor?" "There were four of us; Me, Claire Redfield, Sherry Birkin, and Ada Wong. Ada vanished for six years after that. She showed up again in 2004 when I was sent to rescue the president's daughter. She makes a habit of vanishing for a few years." "The original outbreak must've been around 1998 then, right?" "Yeah." "What year is it now in your world?" "It's December of 2012." "So you've been fighting for over 14 years." "..." "I get what your job is about now. You're fighting stronger and stronger versions of the virus. It sounds tough." "Your dragon friend here's muscle analysis was well-founded. I've been training ever since the original outbreak." "I won't ask any more questions." "Not like the government can do anything to me here, anyway." "We'll let you rest for the night." "Thanks for bringing me here." "No problem." Leon parted ways with Twilight and Spike. "I'm pretty popular with the ladies here. It's creepy..." There was a knock on the room door. "Who's there." "It's Spike, Leon." "Come in, kid." Spike opened the door. He was wearing a dark grey hoodie with a tinge of blue. "There's not much time. I snuck out to warn you about something." "Great. Something else is about to go wrong, isn't it?" "More like it's already gone wrong a bunch of times." "Come again?" "Go around town tomorrow and examine the ground. You'll know what I mean." "What!?" "Sorry, there's no time to explain. I have to go." Spike ran out of the room so he could rush home. "Why do I get the feeling there's something really off about this place now?" InvestigationLeon woke up with a sinking feeling in his chest. He was still at the inn from the previous night. "Something wrong, huh...?" He got up from the bed and got dressed, save for the jacket. If things were about to get bad, he had to enter the warrior mindset. He reached into the coat and retrieved his handgun and knife before placing them in the pockets of his jeans. "Sorry, Twilight, but I might not be able to hide these after all." Leon went into town without informing anyone. Spike was right to tell him to watch the ground. Every part of the surrounding earth from the inn to the business district was disturbed. "I get it now. A mass burial." "Hey, muscles," a familiar voice rang out. "It's Rainbow. I can't tell her or anyone else what I know." When Leon looked around, he found her and all her friends together. Spike stood at the end as a tactical strategy. He saw Leon's expression and nodded. "Hey guys. I'm just stretching a bit." Fluttershy was blushing the same way she had the day before. "I think someone's got a little crush on you," Rainbow said. Fluttershy squeaked, feeling embarrassed. "Sorry. Not an inter-species guy." Fluttershy's blush instantly faded and her expression transformed into that of a heartbroken frown. "Don't be sad, Fluttershy," Twilight comforted her friend, "There are stallions similar to Leon around. You just have to look." This made the yellow Pegasus perk up a bit. "You should find somebody like Chris," Leon pretended to suggest, "He's stronger than me." "I don't think it's strength she's looking for," Twilight thought out loud, "I personally think she's got the hots for your intensity." "Is that right? Well, I hope she finds what she wants." "We were just heading back to the library. Do you want to come with us?" Spike's tactics kicked in again, and he shook his head. "No, that's okay. I'm gonna' see if I can find some work today." "Alright. You know where to find us if you change your mind." "I'll take it into account." "We'll see you later." "See ya'." The group in front of him began walking away. Spike stopped for a second while the others weren't paying attention and looked over to Leon and placed a finger over his lips. He pulled a note out of his pocket and dropped it on the ground before catching up with everyone else. Leon picked up the note. "Dig near the entrance of the woods. You'll find out what's going on." "What the hell is going on here!?" Leon dug up the grave later that night, making sure to take both his ear light and side flashlight with him. When he hit what appeared to be bone, he put the shovel down and recovered the body. When he realized who he was holding, his expression didn't change. It was clear who the victim was; Spike. "This is groundhog day all over again." Now understanding everyone was murdered and reborn over and over again, he took out his knife and carefully made his way into the woods. "I take it you've figured it out by now," Spike assumed at the inn. "Reincarnation after death." "Yep." "I examined your body. You were murdered, weren't you?" "I guess you're pretty thorough." "Do you remember who killed you?" "Depends on when you mean. Me and my friends kill each other all the time. I only remember because of an accident." "And I'm supposed to put a stop to it." "Do you know why?" "No." "Because every version of us that committed murder were pure evil. No one good ever stood up to us." "What about someone around here? Couldn't they have done something?" "They weren't trained enough to fight back. All of us are extremely powerful by this world's standards. When I figured out you fought against the undead, I thought maybe you could help." "Have you guys gone over the edge yet?" "No. We can still end this before it starts this time. That's why I came here tonight; I need you to kill me." "Then you won't have anything." "Nothing is better than being a monster." "I'm sorry. I hope you find some peace after this." "It's okay." "I'll let you choose where you want to be shot." "The heart; erase evil through its source." "Goodbye." "Guess this is goodnight sweet prince, huh?" "Yeah..." "Bye, Leon." Leon sighed trying to regain his composure...And shot. Leon sprinted towards the library, leaving the shattered window of the inn behind. This was going to be one of the hardest missions of his life. Epilogue: Only one FutureAfter reaching the library, Leon busted through the door. "Freeze! None of you move!" "Leon, what's going on," Twilight yelled, scared out of her mind. "Freeze, and I'll tell you!" "Okay, I'm frozen," she responded in fear. "Did spike fill you in on what he found?" "No, what did he find," she asked shakily. "The ground around the entire town is disturbed. It's a city-wide burial ground." "What!?" "He told me you all of you were responsible; including himself." "That's crazy! We would never kill anyone! Killing other ponies never happens in Equestria!" "Then explain to me why I discovered Spike's body near the woods while he was still clearly walking around." "You're lying! We can't come back from the dead! It's not possible for anybody!" "I know you probably don't remember, but you've been reincarnated to commit one act of murder after another." "You're crazy! Where's Spike!?" Leon put his gun down in a moment of remorse. "He's gone..." "WHAT!?" "He's gone, alright! He asked me to kill him before I came here." "Wouldn't that make you the killer!?" "I told you before I was evil in some ways. I have to be to do good. That's how the life of a fighter works." Twilight shook her head with tears in her eyes. "I'm sorry, Twilight. There's no other way. Goodbye." Leon picked every one of the ponies off one by one. His conscience was screaming at him to end this tragedy as soon as possible, and that's what he did. The rain kept falling while Leon made his way outside. All that stuck out to him was the final memory of Applejack getting back up with the last ounce of strength she had. "You're a monster..." Those were the last words she spoke before Leon crushed her snout through her brain with one powerful roundhouse kick, killing her on the spot. He fell to his knees while the hurricane of emotions raged inside. "I know I am...," he said to himself. He got back and started moving forward once more. "This is all that's left, then, isn't it...?" He kept moving, just as he'd done many times before. "Leon. Leon, wake up." Leon slowly opened his eyes veering to the ceiling. "Drinking again?" "Chris?" "We need your help, Leon. Someone's been threatening a bio-terror attack at a high school. We need to take precautionary measures." Leon sat up, trying to make sense of what had just happened. "Have you been crying?" "I'm not really sure. I passed out last night." "You look like hell." "I think I lived through it in my dreams. It's vague, but I remember it ended on a bad note. That's about it." Leon got up and walked outside. "I've never seen anything affect you like that." "All I remember is I dreamed about killing something with a conscience. Zombies and terrorists are one thing, but to take the life of someone who can think and feel like we do is a thought that just...Scares me..." "We can't stop and think about that now. We have work to do." "I know." They started heading down the steps of Leon's home. "Chris, when this is over, I want you to train me." "Why?" "Because I want to make damn sure the risk is reduced to the lowest possible percentage." "...Okay, but I warn you, it's gonna' be brutal." "Whatever you've got, I promise you I've seen worse." "I believe you. Whatever happened last night beat you down to the point of cracking. You've got nothing left to hold back." "..." "We have to hurry." "Roger."
The Depths of SubconsciousnessHow many bars had that been? Leon couldn't remember how many times he'd been thrown out of a drinking establishment, nor did he really care. He took another sip from his portable whiskey bottle, the chilling air seeming to more easily make its way to his skin from the outside as he became increasingly inebriated. This had been the norm for him for many years now. Ever since Racoon City, he couldn't escape the nightmares, usually having at least one a night. As the night grew later and darker, so too did Leon's drunkenness. He could feel the onset of a blackout coming on. "Why can't this shit ever be over..." That was all he could mutter before his vision faded, and he slipped into unconsciousness. Leon's eyes slowly shifted open. There was a cool breeze blowing past, but it wasn't the bitter cold that he had become accustomed to. He could see a bright, cloudless sky. It was peaceful. "Maybe I should just stay here for a while..." Leon began to close his eyes again, letting the bright sky soothe his tortured mind. "Who are you," a female voice said. When Leon heard it, he quickly sat up, instinctively reacting in self-protection. "I'm behind you." The agent veered over his shoulder. He couldn't believe what he saw standing there. "What the hell's going on!?" "Hey, language! We don't use bad words here!" Leon sighed. "Before you start trying to control my speech patterns, how about you fill me in?" "Fine, rude thing." "The name's Leon, alright?" "Well, Leon, what are you?" "You mean to tell me you've never seen a human being before?" "Ohhhhh boy..." "What's with that tone?" "Nothing. There's just a pony here who always claims humans exist. She'd probably be pointing at me and saying she told us so right now." "Either somebody spiked my drink or I've gone insane." "Drink? Are you an alcoholic?" "What? You're gonna' tell me they have booze here too?" "What's booze?" "Never mind." "We have hard cider. It's pretty potent." "Great," Leon replied sarcastically. After a minute, he stood up and dusted himself off. "Listen, I have no idea what this place is or why I'm here. Could you humor me for a minute." "My name is Twilight Sparkle. This is Ponyville. It's a small village located on one of the northwestern continents." "That's good enough for a description. So this place is a world for ponies. I got that right so far?" "Basically. There are other species here too, like griffons, dragons, and the like." "Aside from the fact I'm having trouble processing this, I'm gettin' kind of hungry. You at least got any vegetables to eat?" "Sure. I was on my way home anyway. If you come with with me, you can eat to your heart's content." "I guess it's no steak, but it'll do." "What's steak?" "It's a human food. We eat some of the animals on our planet." "Ew!" "Yeah. I figured you'd say that." "You can have the vegetables, but try to eat me and you'll be in for a beating." "Sheesh. Chill out. I don't think I'd wanna' eat you anyway." "Good answer." Twilight headed for her home, Leon following behind her. "How did these things even learn English anyway?" "So, what do you do where you're from?" "I'm an agent for the United States government." "An agent. Hmm..." "Don't try too hard. My work is classified." "I'm not trying to understand your work. I want to know why you're here." "Considering I was drinking before this happened, it's probably all a dream." "That's not the case. I know because I'm talking to you." "I take it you don't study dreams. Even if it's all in my head, it's possible for the subconscious to create intelligent conversation with the dreamer." "Really? That's weird. I know I'm here, so if it's a dream, how am I aware of myself?" "It's all par for the course." "I guess we'll see." Leon's expression became stone-faced. Despite his knowledge in dreams, the conversation was making him uncomfortable. "Well, this is my home." "Not too shabby for a tree." "I guess you can be nice, too." "I'll be right back. My assistant is upstairs." "Right." While Twilight went to get Spike, Leon took off his jacket. He noticed a couple solid objects in its pockets. "My weapons. Is this really a dream?" Twilight returned a few minutes later. "This is Spike. He's a dragon." "H-Hi," Spike said nervously. The intense agent somewhat frightened him. "Hey, little man." "Anyway, let's get some lunch," Twilight chimed in. Leon nodded, and she led them to the kitchen. "Feel free to make whatever you want." "Thanks." Leon collected a few vegetables and pieces of fruit. He pulled his knife out and began to chop them. "So I was right," Twilight said, "Your job is just as dangerous as the ones our agents get." "I knew you'd figure that much out." "I don't think it'd be a good idea to flash that thing around. Some ponies might think you're dangerous." "Guess it's a good thing I don't like being flashy to begin with." "Probably not a bad thing." Leon finished preparing his food and sat down at the kitchen table. Spike stared at him. "What's up," Leon asked the young dragon. Spike quickly looked away. "I think he was admiring your muscles. Even Bulk Biceps doesn't look as strong as you." "He should see my friend Chris. He's been called a superhuman more than once." "Do you have superhumans where you're from?" "Our planet is called Earth, and no, but Chris is pretty close." "This world is called Equestria." "Not surprising." "You know, since you're an agent, you should meet our princesses. "A peaceful monarchy. Can't remember the last time I read about one of those in the history books." "That's how it's always been here." "Interesting." "Anyway, you should probably finish eating. I don't know how long you'll be here, so we should probably show you around." "Not a bad idea." Leon downed his food fairly quickly, placed the knife back in his coat pocket, and put the strip of clothing back on. Twilight and Spike finished soon after. "Let's go before it gets dark," Twilight urged. "Roger."
Peace"So you're from a country called the United States of America," Twilight asked. "Mhm." "What kind of government do you have?" "A democratic republic, but to be honest it's more like a power struggle between the two." "Fascinating. I've read about those types of systems before, but I've never actually been somewhere where they're in effect." "Well, get ready for a lot of arguing if you ever encounter them at the same time." "Generally speaking, aren't republics more conservative while democracies are more liberal?" "More or less." "What about you? Where do you fall?" "I guess I'm more of a conservative, but compared to some people I've met, I'm pretty moderate." "Does the system work?" "Depends on who you ask." "That makes sense." "How about you?" "Well, you already know we live under a monarchy. Somehow our princesses remain uncorrupted by power. There's really no need for different opinions if we're happy with what we have." "I'm a little bit jealous." "What for?" "No matter what governmental body is in place, human evil always finds a way to ruin it." "How evil are humans if you put them next to us?" "This looks like paradise." "Is it really that bad?" "That's putting it mildly." "Yeesh." "Are you evil," Spike suddenly spoke. "Spike, that's rude," Twilight scolded. "Don't worry about it. In a way, I probably am." "You don't look evil." "Looks can be deceiving." "I know, but you haven't attacked anypony yet. That's enough reason for us to trust you." "Wish I could feel the same about everyone else." "Do you wanna' talk about it?" "Can't. It's work-related stuff." "Right; classified." "Sorry." "Don't worry about it." The trio walked on for an unknown amount of time until they reached Sweet Apple Acres. Twilight was going to introduce Leon to her friends so he could become more familiar with their professions and the layout of the land. "Applejack!" "Hey Twi!" Applejack noticed the tall figure standing with her friends. "Woo wee! Who's the hot stuff?" "Name's Leon Kennedy. Nice to meet you," Leon responded stoically, trying to ignore the fact that a pony just called him hot. "Well, Leon, I'm Applejack! You can call me AJ for short." "Applejack and her family farm the area around here, Leon," Twilight informed him. "Is that right?" "Say, why don't ya'll come in for some sweet apple cider?" "Don't put any alcohol in Leon's. He's still recovering from a binge." Normally, Leon would've protested, but because he wasn't currently in the aftermath of a severe incident, he let it go. He followed them into Applejack's house. "This here's my brother, Big Macintosh." "Howdy," was all that came from the red stallion's mouth. "Apple Bloom, say hi." A small yellow filly emerged from behind Big Macintosh. "Hey, Mr.," she said nervously. "It's okay, Apple Bloom," Spike assured her, "Leon's a nice guy." "Granny Smith is in the other room. I'll go fix up your cider and we'll drink it in there." Applejack left the room, and everyone else exchanged words. "Why are ya' wearin' a jacket," Apple Bloom asked, "It's summer. Ain't ya' warm?" "It helps if I have to go somewhere with air conditioning or cold water." "What's air conditioning?" "Oh yeah. You guys don't have that yet. Maybe I can help. I could be stuck here for a while anyway." "That sounds good," Twilight agreed. "Cider's up!" Everyone moved to the other room. "You look pretty strong and healthy, youngin'," Granny Smith verbally noted, "Maybe we could get your help around here." "Now Granny, Leon just got here. He needs to figure out where he's gonna' stay first." "I actually thought about that already. I don't suppose you have any money on you, do you Leon," Twilight inquired. "I doubt paper money would be any good here anyway." "If I lend you a few bits, you can stay at an inn. Would that work?" "I think I can manage that." "Great." The rest of the visit would just be small chatter. Leon, Twilight, and Spike left after about an hour to see the rest of the town. Meeting the rest of Twilight's friends didn't take very long. Some of the places they visited helped Leon discover where to purchase food and clothing when he could scrounge up enough money to afford them. He noticed that there wasn't much shock when they saw him, probably because of Lyra's constant mention of the human species. He made a mental note to track down Lyra when he had the time. "Well, that's about everypony I wanted you to meet. This is the inn," Twilight said as she pointed to a small wooden building that stood firm next to them. "Thanks. I'm pretty much done for anyway. Hopefully you guys don't drink as excessively as I do." "Some of us don't even drink at all." "I don't normally talk about my personal history, but I feel like I can trust you enough to tell you the truth. Before the incident that forced me into government service, I'd already been drinking too much for my own good. The day before the viral outbreak, my ex-girlfriend broke up with me, so I got hammered and showed up late for my first day as a police officer." "Viral outbreak? You can't mean zombies, right?" "You're pretty sharp. Those are the easiest monsters to deal with I've been up against so far." "How large was the outbreak?" "The entire city was completely wiped out. The United States government ultimately erased the city from existence to contain it." "And you barely managed to escape in time?" "More or less." "My Celestia. That must've been a shock to you." "My personality completely changed, and I was forced into joining the security branch of the government." "You weren't given a choice?" "They didn't want me going around and telling everybody what happened. They covered up the truth. I've been their lapdog ever since." "Were you the only survivor?" "There were four of us; Me, Claire Redfield, Sherry Birkin, and Ada Wong. Ada vanished for six years after that. She showed up again in 2004 when I was sent to rescue the president's daughter. She makes a habit of vanishing for a few years." "The original outbreak must've been around 1998 then, right?" "Yeah." "What year is it now in your world?" "It's December of 2012." "So you've been fighting for over 14 years." "..." "I get what your job is about now. You're fighting stronger and stronger versions of the virus. It sounds tough." "Your dragon friend here's muscle analysis was well-founded. I've been training ever since the original outbreak." "I won't ask any more questions." "Not like the government can do anything to me here, anyway." "We'll let you rest for the night." "Thanks for bringing me here." "No problem." Leon parted ways with Twilight and Spike. "I'm pretty popular with the ladies here. It's creepy..." There was a knock on the room door. "Who's there." "It's Spike, Leon." "Come in, kid." Spike opened the door. He was wearing a dark grey hoodie with a tinge of blue. "There's not much time. I snuck out to warn you about something." "Great. Something else is about to go wrong, isn't it?" "More like it's already gone wrong a bunch of times." "Come again?" "Go around town tomorrow and examine the ground. You'll know what I mean." "What!?" "Sorry, there's no time to explain. I have to go." Spike ran out of the room so he could rush home. "Why do I get the feeling there's something really off about this place now?"
InvestigationLeon woke up with a sinking feeling in his chest. He was still at the inn from the previous night. "Something wrong, huh...?" He got up from the bed and got dressed, save for the jacket. If things were about to get bad, he had to enter the warrior mindset. He reached into the coat and retrieved his handgun and knife before placing them in the pockets of his jeans. "Sorry, Twilight, but I might not be able to hide these after all." Leon went into town without informing anyone. Spike was right to tell him to watch the ground. Every part of the surrounding earth from the inn to the business district was disturbed. "I get it now. A mass burial." "Hey, muscles," a familiar voice rang out. "It's Rainbow. I can't tell her or anyone else what I know." When Leon looked around, he found her and all her friends together. Spike stood at the end as a tactical strategy. He saw Leon's expression and nodded. "Hey guys. I'm just stretching a bit." Fluttershy was blushing the same way she had the day before. "I think someone's got a little crush on you," Rainbow said. Fluttershy squeaked, feeling embarrassed. "Sorry. Not an inter-species guy." Fluttershy's blush instantly faded and her expression transformed into that of a heartbroken frown. "Don't be sad, Fluttershy," Twilight comforted her friend, "There are stallions similar to Leon around. You just have to look." This made the yellow Pegasus perk up a bit. "You should find somebody like Chris," Leon pretended to suggest, "He's stronger than me." "I don't think it's strength she's looking for," Twilight thought out loud, "I personally think she's got the hots for your intensity." "Is that right? Well, I hope she finds what she wants." "We were just heading back to the library. Do you want to come with us?" Spike's tactics kicked in again, and he shook his head. "No, that's okay. I'm gonna' see if I can find some work today." "Alright. You know where to find us if you change your mind." "I'll take it into account." "We'll see you later." "See ya'." The group in front of him began walking away. Spike stopped for a second while the others weren't paying attention and looked over to Leon and placed a finger over his lips. He pulled a note out of his pocket and dropped it on the ground before catching up with everyone else. Leon picked up the note. "Dig near the entrance of the woods. You'll find out what's going on." "What the hell is going on here!?" Leon dug up the grave later that night, making sure to take both his ear light and side flashlight with him. When he hit what appeared to be bone, he put the shovel down and recovered the body. When he realized who he was holding, his expression didn't change. It was clear who the victim was; Spike. "This is groundhog day all over again." Now understanding everyone was murdered and reborn over and over again, he took out his knife and carefully made his way into the woods. "I take it you've figured it out by now," Spike assumed at the inn. "Reincarnation after death." "Yep." "I examined your body. You were murdered, weren't you?" "I guess you're pretty thorough." "Do you remember who killed you?" "Depends on when you mean. Me and my friends kill each other all the time. I only remember because of an accident." "And I'm supposed to put a stop to it." "Do you know why?" "No." "Because every version of us that committed murder were pure evil. No one good ever stood up to us." "What about someone around here? Couldn't they have done something?" "They weren't trained enough to fight back. All of us are extremely powerful by this world's standards. When I figured out you fought against the undead, I thought maybe you could help." "Have you guys gone over the edge yet?" "No. We can still end this before it starts this time. That's why I came here tonight; I need you to kill me." "Then you won't have anything." "Nothing is better than being a monster." "I'm sorry. I hope you find some peace after this." "It's okay." "I'll let you choose where you want to be shot." "The heart; erase evil through its source." "Goodbye." "Guess this is goodnight sweet prince, huh?" "Yeah..." "Bye, Leon." Leon sighed trying to regain his composure...And shot. Leon sprinted towards the library, leaving the shattered window of the inn behind. This was going to be one of the hardest missions of his life.
Epilogue: Only one FutureAfter reaching the library, Leon busted through the door. "Freeze! None of you move!" "Leon, what's going on," Twilight yelled, scared out of her mind. "Freeze, and I'll tell you!" "Okay, I'm frozen," she responded in fear. "Did spike fill you in on what he found?" "No, what did he find," she asked shakily. "The ground around the entire town is disturbed. It's a city-wide burial ground." "What!?" "He told me you all of you were responsible; including himself." "That's crazy! We would never kill anyone! Killing other ponies never happens in Equestria!" "Then explain to me why I discovered Spike's body near the woods while he was still clearly walking around." "You're lying! We can't come back from the dead! It's not possible for anybody!" "I know you probably don't remember, but you've been reincarnated to commit one act of murder after another." "You're crazy! Where's Spike!?" Leon put his gun down in a moment of remorse. "He's gone..." "WHAT!?" "He's gone, alright! He asked me to kill him before I came here." "Wouldn't that make you the killer!?" "I told you before I was evil in some ways. I have to be to do good. That's how the life of a fighter works." Twilight shook her head with tears in her eyes. "I'm sorry, Twilight. There's no other way. Goodbye." Leon picked every one of the ponies off one by one. His conscience was screaming at him to end this tragedy as soon as possible, and that's what he did. The rain kept falling while Leon made his way outside. All that stuck out to him was the final memory of Applejack getting back up with the last ounce of strength she had. "You're a monster..." Those were the last words she spoke before Leon crushed her snout through her brain with one powerful roundhouse kick, killing her on the spot. He fell to his knees while the hurricane of emotions raged inside. "I know I am...," he said to himself. He got back and started moving forward once more. "This is all that's left, then, isn't it...?" He kept moving, just as he'd done many times before. "Leon. Leon, wake up." Leon slowly opened his eyes veering to the ceiling. "Drinking again?" "Chris?" "We need your help, Leon. Someone's been threatening a bio-terror attack at a high school. We need to take precautionary measures." Leon sat up, trying to make sense of what had just happened. "Have you been crying?" "I'm not really sure. I passed out last night." "You look like hell." "I think I lived through it in my dreams. It's vague, but I remember it ended on a bad note. That's about it." Leon got up and walked outside. "I've never seen anything affect you like that." "All I remember is I dreamed about killing something with a conscience. Zombies and terrorists are one thing, but to take the life of someone who can think and feel like we do is a thought that just...Scares me..." "We can't stop and think about that now. We have work to do." "I know." They started heading down the steps of Leon's home. "Chris, when this is over, I want you to train me." "Why?" "Because I want to make damn sure the risk is reduced to the lowest possible percentage." "...Okay, but I warn you, it's gonna' be brutal." "Whatever you've got, I promise you I've seen worse." "I believe you. Whatever happened last night beat you down to the point of cracking. You've got nothing left to hold back." "..." "We have to hurry." "Roger."
