In the future

"-I stripped the meat right off her," I finished up. "I even ate the fur, the hair, the eyes; I did it all with such frenzy that by the time I knew it, she was nothing but bones."

If Celestia was appalled by the start of my story before, she is outright disgusted as I near the end of my beginnings. The shock in her eyes. Her still body. The tremble in her hands. Her mouth opening to something, only to close it as no words would come out.

What could be said in response to my life?

I was expecting her to be angry; furious that I would do something so horrible to survive. I had a whole counter-argument prepared too, pointing out that I wasn't in her jurisdiction, and I am an omnivore, and philosophical debate of what is considered 'food' and how hypocritical it is to try and live in harmony with all species when they too eat meat. To judge and condemn them for biological needs out of their control. It's not like a griffon or a minotaur can go on a strict vegetable-only diet. For the latter species, it's one of the reasons why Celestia has failed in making progress in restoring peace in their lands that are about to be plunged into a civil war.

I killed a filly and ate her until there was nothing but bones, and the only reason I stopped eating was that there wasn't any more flesh. I was far from being satiated. If there were more meat on her dying body, I would have continued to consume every fibrous tissue and muscle without hesitation.

I won't lie, even if I wasn't in an extreme situation like I was before, and had an easy target: I would gladly do it again if I had to.

Sure, there were other bodies in the corpse pit, but that filly was fresh meat. The flavor of blood was an acquired taste, and for as long as I can remember growing up in this world, I've always had to eat plants and vegetables. It was refreshing to have something different.

Yet mixed in with the disgust and fury, I saw her eyes becoming moist with sadness and pity - how I, and those down in the pit, were forced into a nightmare scenario that was beyond our control. Celestia wanted to say something - she kept trying to - but in the end, she closed her mouth once more, closed her eyes, and stayed silent.

The tears that gently streaming down her face reminded me of the filly.

Then cravings started to return; my mouth was salivating at the thought of biting into her throat, tearing it out with my teeth before rolling it around in my mouth to cherish the flavor while I-!

[Gamer's Mind] has been activated!

The urge was gone. I took in a deep breath. "Anyways," I called out, causing Celestia to look at me; I could see the tear streaks on her face. "After my meal-" I could tell from the way she flinched, and her glare, that Celestia didn't like how I referred the sentient being I consumed as a mere 'meal'. "-I found myself in a new hell."

In the past

My teeth ached from my ravenous hunger. I picked the hairs and bits of flesh out of my blood-tainted mouth. Oh, there was so much blood... my hands were covered in so much of it I thought the red stains on my hands and mouth were permanent.

I was so indulged in my feast that I didn't notice the darkness peeling away. To show that I was in the center of a grand, cubical chamber; vast and silver. Yet it was stained, covered in solid lumps of filth that have aged so much that they've become part of it all. Hooked and rusted chains rattled above me, and while the room was somehow illuminated without a light source, the iron door at the far end of the room seemed to absorb any light that touches it. As if the darkness beyond is so terrible that it is leaking in from the other side.

My mouth was hydrated with blood, but I was afraid of what was beyond the door.

Then, something odd happened.

The bargain has been struck; your suppressed power has been given that final nudge to awakening! Congratulations! However, your awakening was due to an outside force, rather than a reward of your determination and effort - therefore, some starting bonuses have been disabled. The system will undergo a small update to assist you in continuing.

"I must be going crazy..." I muttered to myself. "This is how my sanity finally breaks..." This couldn't be real, the thing in the corpse pit I saw couldn't have been real - none of this was! I had to be hallucinating, my mind was bending under its trauma and psychological scars.

It just didn't make sense! How I survived without food or water for so long in that pit, and now the one time I eat, I get teleported to a room with notification screens in my face?!

The knife, the one I got from the monster, along with the bones of the consumed filly, was still with me! I could see it, I could read the horrible language carved in its blade - my eyes no longer bleeding, my thoughts no longer being bombarded! So why am I not being affected now? What changed?!

[Gamer's Mind] has been activated!

As fast as the notification came with my emotional surge, it was gone when my mind went empty. I felt calm. Relaxed. I took in a deep breath, and although the foul smell was strong, the lack of decay in the air made it a hundred times better than what I had before.

It was that notification screen. It just showed up out of nowhere, curing me of my emotional ramblings and instability. I felt so much better; calm and collected despite what I've been through. My mind felt more solid. Secure. I should be screaming like a lunatic, raving and crying, while clawing at my face until I bite my tongue off... yet I wasn't. I pondered on what it said. "...What's [Gamer's Mind]?"

I received an answer.

Gamer's Mind Level MAX

• Allows the user to calmly think things through.
• Allows a peaceful state of mind.
• Immunity to negative psychological status effects.

I just stared at the screen. "I just asked and it responded?" This was too good to be true, nothing in my life ever was. "Is there anything else? Any other skills?"

Another screen popped up.

Gamer's Body Level MAX

• Allows the user to live life as a game.
• Pain sensations are negated after a few seconds.
• Dentramental physiological effects are negated.
• Physical damage reduces HP instead.

"Live life as a game?" I said my thoughts out loud, my voice bouncing off the stained silver walls; I was all alone, and I am grateful for that. The second and third effects of the skill caught my attention. "It would explain why I'm not feeling the hunger pains... or any hunger at all." I honestly thought that the meal was so effective that I replenished by biological needs. I wasn't hungry, thirsty, or needed to sleep. If I didn't have this skill, I would still be starving, and exhausted from not being able to let my guard down, and eventually have my mind drift into blissful unconsciousness. I bet [Gamer's Mind] is preventing my paranoia of bugs crawling on me even though I'm in an insect-free zone; being surrounded by bugs for that long should have left an impact on my psyche. Or maybe it did, and now [Gamer's Mind] made it go away.

Due to your rational thinking, your WIS stat has increased by 1!

"WIS stat? I have stats?"

(Name: FILE CORRUPTED)
Level: 1
Species: Human
Class: None
Sub-Class(es): None
==========
XP: 0/1,000
==========
HP: 10/10
MP: 100/100
==========
STR: 1
DEX: 1
AGI: 1
CON: 1
INT: 5
WIS: 5
LUK: 20
==========
Perks: Forbidden Knowledge, Language of the Old Gods.
==========
Stat Points: 0

Before I could even question my stats, just looking at the FILE CORRUPTED part, where my name should be, was just painful! Even when [Gamer's Mind] suppressed the worst of the effects, it felt like a part of my mind was empty and full at the same time; countering each other in an inevitable stalemate that left my head hurt and confused. I know my name, yet at the same time, my head was screaming at me that it wasn't.

Corrupted file has been deleted: please enter a new name!

I didn't want to. I wanted my old name back... or did I? I remembered my childhood and the mare who raised me in this foreign world. I had nothing but bad memories of broken promises and neglect. It was how I ended up forgotten in the corpse pit in the Griffon Empire.

Maybe it was time I made a new start for myself.

In the future

"-and that's how I got my infamous name," I turned to look at Celestia. The tears were gone, and she was giving me her full attention now. Although the shock of my actions hadn't left her eyes. "I did it on a whim - it just felt right to me."

"You chose the name Sweet Tooth that easily?" She asked me. I could tell our earlier talk about remorse would go nowhere, and now she is focusing on other matters. But it's a topic she will want to discuss again. "I thought it was more poetic than that?"

"No, that's just rumors," I explained, there were so many exaggerations of my name. "What version did you hear? No, better yet, tell me who you heard it from."

"I first heard of your name from Twilight's letter," Celestia said; it narrowed down which rumor she heard about me. "She told me about you after what she learned what happened to Pinkie Pie-"

"Oh, well that explains it!" I let out a fit of laughter but none of it was pure. My reasons for laughing was born out of being amused by cruelty maximized to its ironic extreme. After my fit of giggle died down, Celestia gave me a harsh look. I just rolled my eyes, "I don't feel bad for her - she stole from me and she paid the price for it; I even warned her about it and she still went through with it."

That caused genuine surprise from her. "She stole from you? You expect me to believe the former bearer of the Element of Laughter is a thief?"

"I'll eventually get to that part," I said. She was told something different. "But it's going to be a while. So any more questions, preferably about the current part of the story?" It wouldn't make sense if I was jumping back and forth between points in time of my life.

"...What about your old name?"

"That doesn't count."

"You are telling me the part where you discarded your old name and chose a new one. I think it's a reasonable question."

"...What about my old name? It wasn't mine in the first place." I dismissed with a scoff. "I got rid of it as the first step in starting over. I was done with my old life."

"But who were you before you were Sweet Tooth? You mentioned somepony raising you-"

"Who cares!" I raised my voice. What was she getting at by asking these questions? "I had let you know about my name, but we agreed to keep my childhood out of it."

"I just want to know about your mother-"

"Fine. Short version? I was an abandoned child, lost in this world," I look directly into her eyes and gave her a quick rundown. "I was adopted eventually by a powerful mare and given a name to show I had a place in my new family. But even my adopted-mother failed to remember me. There, happy?!"

She wasn't. The look she gave me told me she wasn't satisfied with my reply and was appalled by my rudeness. What was she expecting from me? "...I think your mother would be very disappointed in how you turned out."

I glared at her. "Then maybe she should have done a better job at raising me." She couldn't even remember my name. I turned my attention back to the ceiling of my imprisonment. "Nonetheless, I am a little disappointed that you are asking me these questions, Celestia, I thought you would have recognized me, even before I was well-known."

"I don't think we have," Celestia disagreed before narrowing her eyes at me. "I would have remembered such a terrible creature like you."

"No..." I shook my head as I felt an old passion of rage return; [Gamer's Mind] was having a hard time calming me down. "You wouldn't."

In the past

I continued to investigate my ability as I sat in an empty and filthy room.

Due to a lack of effort in trying to awaken your ability, the majority of the functions were disabled, and only [Gamer's Body] had been partially activated! You were unable to die due to lack of hunger and thirst, but you still felt their effects. This glitch has been resolved due to outside intervention!

I had mixed feeling about that, or rather I should have. I merely embraced the explanation of how I can survive much easier in harsher conditions; surviving the pit for so long without eating or drinking is proof enough.

It could be argued that eating a filly out of desperation for food was for nothing. How I devoured the future of an innocent soul.

But the innocent are merely stepping stones for the corrupt, and I refuse to be under the weight anyone else. I merely concluded that her corpse would have just rotted and become devoured by the thing at the bottom of the pit while more bodies were dropped down. Going without food for so long will make anyone break, and I was no exception to the rule.

This wasn't [Gamer's Mind] negating my trauma, this was my resolve in discovering that caring for other's, wondering if others would care about me, is just a waste of time.

Regardless, I've been transferred from one prison to another, and looks can be deceiving; the corpse pit, from the outside looker, is nothing more than a properly-made mass grave constructed under the orders of an empathetic leader, with a large monolith nearby to add the names of fabricated citizens of the Griffon Empire to fool any powerful visitors and simultaneously exploit their kind nature.

Still, one question remained, "What am I supposed to do here?"

Outside intervention has allowed your power to awaken. However, bargaining with these beings has a steep price. The system has worked out a compromise to benefit those involved!

QUEST: Escape the Punishment Zone!
You have been transported here after committing a great sin of gluttony, a huge and deadly labyrinth of sin, and will not be able to leave unless you escape this nightmare!
-The monsters here are always 30 levels above yours!
-The exit to the Punishment Zone will only open after the boss is killed!
-The boss monster is always double your level in the Punishment Zone!
-If you die, you will respawn at the beginning of the Punishment Zone!
-Every time you are revived, the layout of the labyrinth will change!

REWARD:
-Leaving the Punishment Zone and back into Equestria!
-Class: (Merchant)!
-Sub-Class: (Gambler)!
-Sub-Class: (Abyssal Craftsmen)!

FAILURE:
-Eternity in the Punishment Zone!

I was simply overwhelmed. My lungs refused to breathe as my heart pounded with the force of a hammer at the pace of a hummingbird's wing. [Gamer's Mind] had to calm me down repeatedly as it took me forever just to come to terms with what I was reading.

As I learned, levels represented the overall danger and power the individual has. The monsters down here will have +30 levels to mine, and if I were to encounter one, it would be level 31 - with the skills, powers, and brutality to match. If by some miracle I managed to make it the boss, and somehow defeat it, I would still have to find the exit.

The exit is not in the same place as the boss is - it was clarified when I asked, and it was confirmed due to the wording of the quest. I would then have to explore the area once more, after I've built up the courage to find it, with fragile hope of finding an exit without a clue to what it looks like! That is assuming there is nothing but monsters out there - traps would be abundant as well. So when I die, because I will, the whole layout of the labyrinth would change; memorizing any paths or noticeable marks would be pointless. I would just have to rush in, hoping luck would be on my side.

I didn't know if this was worse than the corpse pit.

But what do I get from this? My freedom to an empty life where I was forgotten. Where the griffons are abducting those who will not be missed, and I am overqualified for that requirement. There was one thing that could make a difference if I ever do get out of here: my Class.

A Class is a set of skills and abilities aligning towards certain conditions and effects. A Sub-Class is a variant focusing on one aspect of the main Class. You can have a lot of Sub-Classes, but you can only have one main Class!

"But what's the point in getting a Class now?" The only way I was going to get one was is if I complete this nightmare of a quest, and even if I did, being a merchant wouldn't help me survive if I have to encounter something dangerous. Money can't solve all problems in the world. I can understand the Sub-Classes now, how Gambler focusing on the money-gaining aspects of being a merchant, while Abyssal Craftsmen focused on producing the goods to sell. But why those? "Couldn't I get a more combat-focused Class instead?" It would at least allow me to defend myself from any more griffons: I refused to be dumped back into that pit.

Class changes have been disabled due to errors, lack of effort to awaken this power, and having this power manifested forcefully from an outside entity instead of natural growth. Being a merchant for a Class was the only available option left. Originally, your Class was a Spell Sword with Sub-Classes being Archmage and Swordsmen, but due to the previous reasons listed, this has been disabled. To compensate this, additional awards have been added to suit your condition and recently-acquired boons, but even this was a changed result as your original reward included magical tomes and weapons of your choice.

[Gamer's Mind] kicked in again to stop the bottomless despair I felt. Then I just felt empty, no longer have any fear, but not having motivation either. But I wanted to get out, and if this power could help me improve as I level up, then I would fight for my security and peace in the hostile world.

It said I had recently acquired boons. It was plural. Multiple. Two of them were the perks I received, and there was the freaky-looking knife I received from the thing in the pit. It was a serrated knife made out of black bone and metal with the color of flesh - it's supernatural edge was lined with sharp teeth; each tooth had a letter for a language that should not be spoken. Just holding it in my hand unsettled me, as touching it was somehow wrong as its existence.

Due to a specific action, the skill [Observe] has been created!

Observe Level: 1
It allows you to gain information when closely examining items, creatures, or individuals.

"So I can create skills..." I used the skill on the knife, only to receive another message.

Perk: Forbidden Knowledge, has been activated! You know able to see all information when examining eldritch artifacts!

Knife of the Hunter [Mythical]
A serrated knife made out of black bones and flesh-colored metal. Its supernatural edge is lined with teeth from unspeakable carnivores, not from this world. On each tooth, has a letter from a language that drove most insane when trying to translate it, and caused a frightening revelation to happen when they succeeded in doing so.

This blade offered to those who are strong enough to cross the threshold and thrive, as most are physically incapable of looking at eldritch artifacts. Be warned for this is not a praise of one's strength or potential, as this offering is not done out of compassion or pity, but as a profitable investment - one that is expected to be paid back with interest.

ABILITIES:

• Causes the status effect, {Hemorrhaging}, on hit.
• Heals the wielder for 5% of the damage inflicted.
• This weapon is indestructible and cannot be destroyed by normal means.
• Can evolve into more terrifying forms when it has been used to kill enough times.
• This weapon is bound to the wielder and cannot be separated; this bond grows stronger the more this weapon feeds.

I read the language on the teeth on one side of the blade. "I never bite the hand that feeds me -" I dropped the knife when I felt something unbearable in my hand. Gravity proved my fears true as releasing the blade has pulled out the hair-thin tendrils of unspeakable colors from my skin. The damn thing tried to eat me - it's more than alive: it's hungry!

[Gamer's Body] and [Gamer's Mind] went into overdrive to reduce the sensations; both physical and psychological. I was still shaken up. Dropping the knife caused it to clatter on the floor, landing on its other side, revealing another message on the teeth. "Who wields me is my provider..." That's what it roughly said, and even though the perk, Language of the Old Gods, helped in deciphering the complicatedly simple language, I was all too happy that there were just some words just cannot be grasped or pronounced.

I didn't want to know what else it says, but it made it damn clear that if I don't feed this thing I will become its next meal.

Due to translating something that would drive most into insanity, your INT has increased by 5!

I felt the boost to my INT stat, but even so, I was conflicted about the method of increasing it, for I would have never discovered the other details of the weapon if it wasn't for my perks. I didn't dare to use [Observe] on it again, but it did get me thinking. "If doing certain actions creates skills then what else could I make? It would be a good idea to make more, especially if I am going to be stuck down here."

Due to a rational goal, your WIS has increased by 1!

It happened once more, and it confirmed my thoughts. "So my stats can increase too... I just have to train them-"

Like thousands of inert, misshapen things forming a complete puzzle, I had a mind-blasting revelation. It was as if everything in my head became nothing, for a mere moment of respect, to grant me a hazy clarity of how to exploit my situation. I double-checked the quest detailing my requirements to escape the punishment zone, and for the first time in forever I had true hope; even though it wasn't a complete plan, but it was something worth pursuing.

I could exploit this.

QUEST: Embracing Gluttony, has been created!

I read the rewards for the quest. "So it is possible... but it'll be bitter work." I walked across the filthy, silver room. I left the Knife of the Hunter on the ground, making sure to walk around it. The bones of the filly I consumed were scattered. I used [Observe] on the rusted chains above. What little cloth I had on me, I removed them onto the floor. I would simply respawn here when I die, and I don't want what little possessions I have to be lost in an ever-shifting maze of damnation with a hungry theme. What reflective properties the metal floor had was enough to show my neglected body, a sight that would cause others to feel pity and remorse.

Then I saw my face.

A disgusting, revolting face that would be the appearance of being unrecognizable if my reflection was clearer. Celestia would never recognize me now... and I was fine with it. It felt as if a weight had been lifted off my soul, being able to drift what makes me whole.

Nonetheless, I turned to look away from the ghastly sight, but I even that proved to be difficult. Not because I was enchanted with disturbing revelation and sights like I was when seeing the thing in the corpse pit, nor is it due to being a slave to vanity: it's because I could see my reflection EVERYWHERE that allowed it. My saving grace was when I moved to open the iron door that swallowed any light that touches it - I flinched away when I did. I felt it vibrate; growling at me as if it were a starving beast.

With a steady hand, I opened the hungry door.

(Yes, there was a theme to the whole place Celes - who the hell are you? ...Cadance? Really? ...No, I don't recognize you, you look terrible...You can't just barge in here and start demanding answers... because I'm not at that point in the story yet...No, I'm not going to skip ahead it wouldn't make sense... Then either listen in or wait until I'm done telling my story to your aunt; either way, you are not getting what you want.)

What was revealed? A dirty hallway made out of splintered wood from a butcher's chopping block, with doors seemingly placed at random. Those doors varied too, somewhere made out of bone, others were made from frozen blood, and they all shared the macabre theme as I walked.

The floor was soft and moist like the fat of an animal. I left imprints on it as I walked. The sound it made was horrid and sticky. I picked the door made out of frozen blood - the one made out of bone reminded me too much of the filly - yet before I made it to open one of the doors, I felt that same pressure I felt when looking at the thing. It was paralyzing.

Due to a specific action, the skill [Detect Bloodlust] has been created!

I was thankful that the door opened inward when I pushed into it. When I turned around on my heels to shut it behind me, I saw a glance of a beast without shape or form - something made of hoof, snouts, and bones that all had the common factors of animal origin and a form with the consistency of jelly. It's mouths made to lunge at me, surging forward with a primal carnivorous urge. Acidic mucus spraying unintentionally from the folding orifices, and the blighted eyes that ringed them were focused on me.

It only made me close the blood door faster. I didn't have time to use [Observe] on it, and I didn't want to. The thumping sounds it made against my crimson protection was heavy and carried great weight.

Due to fast movement and reaction time, your AGI and DEX has increased by 1!

I was out of breath; my body wasn't fit for panic-induced hiding, and it was mocking me with that fact. My lungs burned and my limbs were sore. Then [Gamer's Body] negated the pain - I could still feel the lack of stamina, and I wouldn't be able to run away again.

Because I was in a dead-end.

There was no door, no secret exits, hidden by conventional means that had to be revealed through clever puzzle-solving. I was just in a room with the texture of bone marrow. A monolith of skin was erect and thin as paper and stood tall and imposing like a tower. The terrifying language was the same as my dagger.

"The thing has no name for all mortal languages fail to describe it... those who see its frightening appearance go into shock as the mind physically cannot handle it... and even then, that is not its true form, only taking the shape of what an insane mind can barely process."

I was paralyzed with the revelation that the monster I saw, that caused my heart to nearly exploded from over-use, peeled away from my psyche, and imposed a terrifying voice that violated my soul - all from merely looking at it - wasn't even its true form. Those fleshy protrusions the thing had been similar to the monsters hunting me down.

They were too similar.

I didn't want to think about it, but my fear prevented me from doing so. The beast that I saw in the pit, just how much flesh did it have to eat to get to that size? Just how big is its true size? What if its just a literal mountain of offal and mouths that will devour everything that has been melted into sludge by its saliva?

What if, by some horrible chance, that I am actually in its stomach; to be digested for eternity. These flesh beasts that roam its insides are nothing more than a primal biological measure to keep infestations like me out; recycling my blood and flesh, over and over again as my bones are pounded into dust - Is this the price I must pay for receiving an eldrich tool-?!

Due to reading disturbing information of your patron, your INT has increased by 5!

[Gamer's Mind] has been activated!

It didn't matter. This power has opened opportunities for me and I would be a fool not to take them. I would be a parasite leeching off of this moment to build my foundation when I get out until there is nothing left but me and an ever-growing desire for exploitation!

"Not bad for the first run," I let out a content sigh as the door of frozen blood behind me shattered; the familiar skittering growls of the flesh monster I encountered was advancing towards me. "I just hope my future attempts are just as bountiful."

I turned around in time to see the creature rip my head off.

Author's Note

As for exposition chapters of how the Gamer power works, I'm aware of it not being thorough, but I think we're all smart enough to know what certain stats do, and we have read Gamer fics, and the actual webcomic itself, to know what they do. Yes, some stats were added, but it's not worth devoting entire paragraphs of writing to explain them. And I just find it very boring to read something like that. (So for those who are wondering, Agility is speed, Dexterity is muscle coordination.)

The thing is with horror, the pacing is important so the full terror can fully be gasped. If it is rushed, your reader is overwhelmed and cannot understand. If it is slow, you lose the attention of the reader. So I did what I could in those natural tutorial-exposition chapters that every Gamer fic seems to have. Because if I were to do my normal style, then this chapter would be stupidly long as the main character tries to figure out what his power does while integrating horror elements.

As for the INT boosts, I was going to make a single number like 1 - but I had to think it over. Did I really want to make all knowledge the same? If studying mundane books, or reading terrifying cosmic secrets, got you 1 INT then it really downplays the power OF those cosmic secrets.

Like, hypothetically, learning that every time you fall asleep you die, and then someone else will wake up in your body thinking they are you.

If you discover that terrifying secret, you deserve a huge boost to your mental stats. It will allow you to grasp the horror of what you've discovered.

Also, can someone clarify how to spell Cadance's name? Is it Cadance, Cadence, or Candace? I google it, but I get different answers!