Images after images of unsightly sins flashed through Marks mind as he came to, but only to find himself drifting lazily within the seemingly endless void of darkness. He stared into the nothingness with wide confused eyes as his face remained frozen in its expression of awe. Mark attempted to move his limbs, but found that his attempts were nothing but in vain. There was no fear, no anger and no sadness. Just confusion. Was he dead? His eyes traveled through the void to help confirm his question. Yep, he was dead, no doubt about it. His body twitched as he desperately tried to move while he attempted to find his voice. Nothing worked, his limbs were like stone and his voice was no where to be found, just a pathetic wheeze. Marks confusion was soon replaced with frustration as he found his situation to be, well, frustrating! Where was he? Why couldn't he move!? And why did he have to itch his nose so bad!?
Mark ceased his attempts to move his body as he had a sudden realization. He could feel his itch! The rest of his body was numb, but why could he feel this unholy itch!? A mixture of happiness and anger filled him as he was delighted to feel something, but annoyed it was something so stupid. If he could groan in frustration he would, but he simply closed his eyes and let his mind sink into his thoughts. He had to remember something, something that could help him figure out why he was here. As Marks mind sunk deeper into his mind images of his memories flashed before him, but it was all so hazy. He saw dark figures fighting, yelling and killing each other, but none helped him at all. A low growl escaped his throat. "Damn it," he muttered with a dry and raspy voice. Mark paused and opened his eyes in shock. He spoke, finally!
He grinned as other parts of his body began to come back under his control and soon was able to spin himself around as he chuckled weakly. "A-about time-GAH!" he winced in pain as his throat felt as if it was bleeding. He rubbed his throat with gritted teeth. 'Guess I should lay off of talking for awhile,' he reasoned within his head as looked around the void. He frowned as nothing had changed and lowered his head. He may have not been able to remember much about how he got here, but he knew this was the sort of place he deserved to be in. A bitter smile came to his face as he slowly looked up towards the void. He closed his eyes and was ready to accept his punishment.
"Come now child, are you so willing to face judgment without even trying to find another way?" Marks eyes snapped open as he scanned the void around him in search of the voices owner. A low chuckle echoed throughout the void as he desperately tried to locate the voice.
"Who's the-AH!" Mark coughed violently as he gripped his throat in attempts to hold back the burning pain that surged through his throat. The pain was even worse from before and his coughs were violently making it worse. He gritted his teeth as the pain soon began to travel throughout his body and gripped his chest in hopes to stop the pain there, but it was in vain. He clenched his eyes shut as he let out a silent scream of agony, the pain muting his voice. The pain had soon grown unbearable and was slowly burning within his veins. His nails dug into his skin as Mark felt his instincts screamed for him to tear the source of his agony out of his damned body! Blood soaked his hands as his body shuddered from the sudden miserable chill that floated along his skin. He forced his eyes to open as tears threatened the borders of his eyes and saw a dull light ahead of him. He held out a trembling hand towards the light and felt the warm tears run down his cheeks. "S-stop! M-make it STOP!" he cried out through the pain.
"Oh? I thought you were ready for your punishment? Did you not want to pay for your past sins?" the voice questioned. Mark shook his head as he dug his nails deeper into his chest to stop the pain.
"Please! Please, anything but th-AHHH!" he felt the burning pain reach his guts and cried out in agony as he clenched his stomach. He could hear the voice sigh.
"Youth these days, can't ever make up their minds," the voice said with irritation. Mark continued to cry out as he mentally begged for mercy. It had felt like hours of non-stop agony had went by, but soon Mark felt gravity take hold of him and was yanked down deeper into the void. As he shot down into the void he felt the pain slowly disappear and could only let his limp body plummet towards the unknown. His eyes closed, not wanting to meet his next form of punishment. Though to his confusion he never felt his next punishment as he could feel his body slowly decreasing in speed. Soon enough he could feel his body moving on its own and felt his feet land on... a floor?
It took Mark a few seconds to balance himself, but as he was able to stand on his feet he slowly opened his eyes and felt his mind nearly break from confusion. He was in a library? No, a study would work better. He looked around the room to see it made from oak wood. He glanced down to the floor to see it also made from wood and raised an eyebrow. He looked back up to inspect the surroundings even more and noticed that the study was very neat and sort of cozy for a book worm. A few shelves filled to the brim with many books lined the walls and Mark could see a warm looking fire place towards the end with two large fancy looking chairs facing it. Mark looked behind him and spotted a door. 'Might as well explore,' he thought as he took a step towards the door, but froze as a voice not belonging to him cleared their throat.
"It's rude to go snooping in ones home when not given permission," Mark slowly turned towards the fire place and felt his heart drop as he spotted the form of a man sitting within the right chair. He wasn't there before. A hand came into view and gestured towards the opposite chair. "Come, have a seat. The fire is giving off a very pleasant warmth," the stranger said softly. Mark felt sweat run down his face as he began to his slow approach towards the chairs. A puff of smoke rose above the chair the stranger was currently in a sigh escaped the stranger. "For goodness sake boy, I'm not going to bite you," Mark felt his legs move him much faster to the chair as the irritation in the strangers voice spurred him along. As he reached the left chair he came around to reveal the stranger to him.
It was an old man, maybe in his sixties or so, who wore a rather comfortable looking grey suit with cozy looking slippers on his feet. He held a pipe within his lips and released a cloud of smoke from his nose as he looked up to Mark with emerald green eyes. The fires light seemed to make his pale skin glow as he cleared a strand of dark grey hair from his face while he gently took the pipe from his mouth to show a small smile. He closed a worn out looking book in his lap and gestured for Mark to sit. He was hesitant at first, but as he saw that the old man wasn't about to try anything he slowly sat down and felt a chill run up his spine. Mark looked down and felt his eyes widened with shock. He was naked! Mark looked up to the man and only saw him chuckling.
"Just realized huh? Here, take this," he said as he waved motioned his pipe towards Mark. Mark watched with wider eyes as a large blanket floated across the room and towards him. He grabbed the blanket as it reached him and wrapped it around him. It was warm and comforting.
"Thanks," he muttered as he nodded towards the man. The stranger shook his head and slightly waved his hand.
"No need for thanks, just didn't want to talk to a naked man," he chuckled. Mark smiled and looked towards the fire.
"So, can you give me an idea on what I'm doing here and what the hell just happened?" Mark asked as he glanced over to the man. The man nodded as he leaned back in his seat.
"I can, but don't you think it's rude not to introduce yourself when addressing a stranger?" he asked as he puffed on his pipe. Mark frowned, but shook his head.
"Sorry, just sort of confused is all. My names Mark," he said and looked to the stranger, ready to hear his name. The stranger smiled and glanced to Mark.
"I am Starswirl, it is a pleasure to meet you Mark. Though I will admit I already knew who you are," Mark raised an eyebrow and frowned.
"If you knew why'd have me introduce myself?" he questioned with a bit of annoyance. Starswril simply grinned and looked towards the fire.
"It's about manners boy, you can sure use them," he said. Mark felt his left eye twitch, but sighed and looked to the fire with a frown.
"So are ya gonna tell me what's going on, or what?" he asked. Starswirl sighed and shook his head.
"Could ask nicer, but whatever," he mumbled as he looked towards Mark. "If you haven't caught on by now, you are dead, well physically you are, but your spirit is now here. You were sentenced to that void as a sort of limbo for you until your soul had stripped its self from guilt. Once free from guilt your soul would drift off into another life and begin anew," he finished and pointed the end of his pipe towards Mark. "I , however pulled you from the void and brought you here," Mark looked around his surroundings as he formed more questions for Starswirl to answer.
"Alright, I sort of caught on about that whole being dead thing and I barely follow this whole soul process thing, but do ya mind explaining that damn burning pain back there?" he asked as he rubbed his chest. He looked down in shock to see that the wounds he had caused himself were now gone and sighed as the confusion continued to build up.
"That pain was caused by you and you alone," he said tapped the end of his pipe against his chest. "The guilt within your heart and soul was being purged. It is the long and painful process of a damaged soul being stripped of its negative emotions from past and being put back together to ready itself for a new beginning. If I had not come along you would be still screaming in that void for another, oh I don't, hundred years? It can be random depending on how damaged a soul is," Mark shuttered at the thought of going through that hell for a hundred years, or god forbid even longer. He shook his head.
"Well then I owe you for getting me out of there, I wouldn't last that long," he said before looking back to Starswirl. "Actually, why did you get me out of there? Aren't you sort of interrupting this process for damage souls?" he questioned. Starswirl chuckled and nodded.
"In a way yes I am, but pulling you out of the void does more damage to me than it does to the process. It took much effort on my part to bring you here, so I hope I chose the right soul for the job," he said as he puffed on his pipe. Mark rose an eyebrow.
"Job? What job?" Mark asked before looking down to the book in his lap. He felt his eyes widen as he saw the title. 'Mark Carson'. It was titled after him. He looked back to Starswirl before he reopened the book with a stern look.
"I've been researching your life Mark and I see you have many sins weighing heavy on you back," Mark looked to the books pages and saw several moments of his life playing on each page. Every drug deal, every shoot out, every kill, it was all there! Every damned mistake he had done in his shitty life were playing like a damned movie within that stupid book. He looked back to Starswirl with a glare.
"The hell is that?" he hissed while Starswirl casually turned the pages.
"It is your story Mark, your short, bloody sin filled story. I've seen nothing but young boy forcing himself down a path of destruction because he found it to be the only hope for survival. The spark that is life slowly was strangled out of your soul as you continued this path and nearly left you unredeemable," he said before slowly turning a page. "Yet, a glimmer of hope shines towards the conclusion of your story as you risk your life to save another, an act you had not once done in your life. Most would still call you an unredeemable soul, but I on the other hand see potential," he said as he pointed his pipe towards Mark. "You are a thief, liar and a killer, but you are also a great fighter, reliable and a professional. At such a young age you became well know by the monster of the world and that is the sort of man I need on my side," he finished. Mark stared at Starswirl and shook his head.
"What are you getting at?" he asked. Starswril paused for a moment while staring into Marks life and closed the book while releasing smoke from his nose.
"I wish to hire your services Mark. There is something I want you to protect in another world that will someday battle a mighty evil. I believe you are the right man to protect and guide her to the path she is destined to be on," he said and looked to Mark. "I want to give you a chance at redemption," he finished with a stern look. Mark stared at the man for a few seconds before shaking his head.
"Today is nothing but a roller coaster of confusion and frustration," he muttered before looking back to Starswirl. "Screw it, nothing is making since so I'll just go with the flow. I'll take the job," Starswirl smiled and nodded in appreciation. "So, who will I be protecting?"
"Twilight Sparkle, princess of magic," he stated. Mark looked to the man with a deadpanned look.
"Seriously? That's her name?" he asked and felt his left eye twitch as Starswirl nodded.
"Yes it is and she is a very important figure within the future of her world. You are to protect her no matter the cost while seeking out evil to destroy before it has the chance to sprout out from the darkness," he said before rising to his feet. Mark followed and rose to his feet while making sure the blanket covered his body. "You will of course need the right equipment for the job. Sadly though I can not offer you much. Just this," he said before snapping his fingers. Mark jumped a bit as a bright light blinded his vision. Once he was able to see again he felt something had changed and lowered his blanket. He smirked as he dropped the blanket to the floor to reveal his new clothing. A nice looking black coat with a tan t-shirt below it. Strapped around the t-shirt and hiding below the coat was a holster containing a Glock. His new dark blue jeans were held up by a leather belt that had six packs of ammo hiding behind his back while the coat hid them from view. Finally he saw his new brown boots that seemed ready to hit the country. He looked himself up and down onc more time and chuckled.
"Okay, now I'm liking this," he said with a grin. Starswirl smiled and nodded befoe holding up his hand. In a flash a picture appeared within his hand and he gave it to Mark.
"This is Twilight," Mark took the picture and inspected the photo. It was a simple shot of a girl with purple hair and pink stripes going through them standing for a picture. She wore jeans, grey shoes, a white t-shirt with a purple vest over it. Her purple eyes showed nothing but eagerness and her smile showed joy. Mark nodded and folded the picture before putting in his coats left upper pocket.
"Alright then, anything else I need to know?" he asked.
"Yes actually, a few things I feel are important for you to know. In the world you will be entering is filled with magic, so if I were you I would throw a bit of that logic form your world out the window. Keep some of it of course, not everything in this world can be explained or solved with magic," Mark rolled his eyes and sighed. Of course there was magic. "You will be able to learn the magic of this world. There are three common types of magic known through out the world; Pegasi magic which aids those in the power of flight, Earth magic which help enhance ones strength and endurance and finally Unicorn magic that is more centered in the field of many different types of magic. It is impossible for those others than gifted individuals to have all three while continuing to branch out to other fields of magic. You will not start with any magic so make so to look into it, it can save your life," Mark nodded.
"Got it, magic is a neat tool in this world. Anything else?" he asked and mentally groaned as Starswril nodded.
"One last thing, you are not to inform anyone of your task. Not even the one you are to protect," Mark cocked an eyebrow and crossed his arms.
"Wait, no even knows I'm coming to protect her? Won't that make me look like a freaking stalker?" Starswirl sighed and nodded.
"It will make your task much harder, but you must find a way to either protect her from the shadows, or grow close enough with her to allow her to trust you enough to be around her. I believe you can preform well with these two choices," he said and motioned for the door on the other side of the room. "I believe that is all you need to know, but if you ever require further information or assistance then contact me with this shard," he said as Mark and him walked towards the door. He handed Mark a green diamond shard. "It will allow us to communicate and for me to send whatever resources I can to you," he informed and halted as they both reached the door. He looked to Mark and smiled softly. "I know this is a bit much for you, but I am in your debt for taking on this job. I know you will find your redemption in this task and feel the peace of a guilt free soul. Good luck Mark, I will be watching," Mark smirked and patted Starswirl on the shoulder as he went for the door.
"Meh, it was better than tearing my guts out," he chuckled as he opened the doo. As he stepped through the door he was engulfed in a bright light and felt his body become overcome with a warm sensation. Then he felt gravity yank him down. He looked down and widened his eyes with shock as he plummeted through the clouds the rested in the sky. He soon broke through the clouds and felt his heart nearly jump out of his throat as he saw the earth below him racing towards him. "STARSWIRL!!" he cried out as he shot down towards the earth.
[Meanwhile with Starswirl]
Starswirl leaned out of the doorway and cringed slightly as he opened a small book. "Whoops, wrong drop off point," he said and looked back down to see a rainbow streak shooting down towards the falling Mark. He sighed and closed his book before reentering his study. "Meh, he'll be fine."
[Back to Mark]
"Damn it all!!" Mark cried as he plummeted towards the earth. His body flailed and spun out of control as he desperately tried to save himself from his coming fate, but his struggle only brought him closer to his doom. He had just escaped a terrible fate, so was he just suffer another one!? Maybe if he landed head first it would be quick. As he ceased his attempts to save his life and instead began to plan a quick death his vision was engulfed within a rainbow horror show. He yelled in shock as he felt his body become twisted with another and panicked. He struggled to break free from the other form he had become to attached to and felt his hands hold onto something soft. Buns?
"W-what the? Hey you ass, let go!" a females voice demanded his ears as he pulled himself away from the other form to get a better look. It was a girl with rainbow colored hair and flushed cheeks who was currently glaring at Mark as she kept her arms around his waist to help keep him straight up. Marks eyes widened a bit as he spotted her wings that were currently struggling to lift them both up, but froze as he realized what he was holding on and let go with a sheepish smile.
"Hehe, sorry," he apologized. The girl only growled with annoyance before letting out a yelp of what could only be described as pain. She winced as her left wing seemingly lock up and sent the two spinning out of control even closer to the earth below them. Mark looked down and felt his eyes widen as he spotted a forest barreling towards them. He returned his attention to the girl and only saw that she was struggling to keep them alive as her wing continued not to respond. Tears threatened the edge of her eyes and it was clear she was in pain. Mark knew she wouldn't be able to get her wing working again and gritted his teeth as he wrapped his arms around her waits. She yelped again, but in shock this time as she looked to Mark with wide eyes.
"What are you doing!?" she questioned with even more flushed cheeks as Mark pulled her in close. Mark sighed and gave a bitter smile.
"First step I guess," he muttered and spun the two around to where he was shielding her from the earth below. She was yelling and protesting, but Marks hearing was quickly cut off as he felt his body smash into the forest thick trees. He gritted his teeth in pain as the branches ripped through his clothes and flesh and held the girl much closer to keep her from the same pain. They broke through thin branches while bouncing off of much thicker ones. Each thick branch he had made contact with nearly cut his spine in to and received a violent gasp of pain as the air escaped his lungs from every hit. After what felt like hours of falling they finally broke through the forest thick trees and came to a hard crash landing into the forest floor.
Marks body felt as if it was broken into pieces and wheezed as he felt his emptied lungs struggle to refill themselves. His world began to grow dark as his eyes slowly began to shut, but before the darkness could take over he saw the girl weakly loom over him and speak in a worried and desperate muffled voice as his hearing began to leave him as well. He spotted a name tag and chuckled dryly. 'Rainbow Dash? Seriously, who comes up with this stuff?' he questioned within his head before finally passing out.
Author's Note
So I hope you enjoyed this first chapter. I'm also hoping you all like the idea of the story and want to see more.
