DECEMBER 31ST, 1933
Purgatory, Dimension 63
“Hey Sal“ a voice said, “We must’ve been through this fifty times already“
“And we’ll go through it another fifty, if that’s what it takes“ the voice, supposedly belonging to Sal, said.
It was 9:30, and the night guard, Ferguson, was doing his rounds, and he first came to Sal’s cell as Sal was at the bars.
“How we doin’ tonight, Ferguson? Family good?“ he asked, having a near smug look on his face
“They’re doing great, Mr. DeLuca. My boy Tommy, he’s almost six now“ Ferguson said as Sal took a sip from his cup
“Ain’t that swell?“ Sal asked rhetorically as Ferguson continued his rounds
Ferguson passed by another prisoner, Finn’s cell, and asked, “Hey Finn, got that tip for Saturday’s race yet?“
Finn looked up from his newspaper, saying, “I’m workin’ on it, right now“.
Ferguson continued, hearing another prisoner moan in pain as he passed by a dark cell, and a prisoner emerged from it.
“You gonna shut him up, or do I gotta do it?“ the prisoner asked, lighting a cigar
Ferguson whacked his baton against the prisoner’s cell bars, “You know the rules, Handsome, no talking“
At 9:35, another prisoner, known as Weasel, springs into a typical song and dance routine to get the guard’s attention, and Ferguson approaches Weasel’s cell.
Ferguson sighs as he gets closer to the cell, finding Weasel on the ground, “Damnit Arlington!“
“You gotta get the doc!“ Arlington complains, moaning more as Ferguson opens his cell and walks in
“Better be the real deal this time…“ Ferguson says as he steps in, only to be stabbed as he drops to the floor, lifeless.
Weasel leaves the cell with the keys, kicking off step two of their plan. He then proceeds to unlock Sal, Finn, and Billy’s cells, letting them out as they all regroup.
“Here you go, boys!“ Handsome said as he handed his mates a snub-nosed revolver each, “Courtesy of the warden’s private collection!“
“Did your boys in the laundry stash the parts?“ Arlington asked as Billy flicked his cigar away
“Course they fucken did“ he said, though they heard a groan and turned as they saw the guard still… Alive? They all looked confused
“What the fuck? I killed him!“ Arlington said, clearly shocked that the guard survived
“Ya been in the joint too long, Al, you’ve forgotten how to get shit done!“ Handsome said as all four of them heard the walking Ferguson scream as they turn around, and Handsome shoots h m in the shoulder, though it does nothing, “What the fuck?“
The four men then lined up, like a firing squad, and opened fire on the zombified guard, and after taking some shots, he fell to the ground.
“This ain’t right. Somethin’ weird’s goin’ on here…“ Al said, sweating nervously
“You don’t say, Weasel“ Sal said sarcastically as a bunch of screams could be heard as several zombies came out of cells left and right
“Oh shit…“ Weasel said as the zombies started to move towards them.
Al went off on his own, and nearly got killed. The others fought off the incoming zombies, soon getting killed off, one by one
Afterwards, the four mobsters were ghosts and saw their bodies.
“Whoa, holy shit! We’re fucken ghosts!“ Handsome shouted as he looked at his ghastly hands
“Interesting…“ Sal said as he sat down in his body and came back to life, gasping for air, “Fellas! Bring yourselves back to life!“
They all nodded and brought themselves back to life, panting panickedly. They all had standard M1911s in their hands, and looked around, as they looked to be in a hall of sorts
I remember this Al thought to himself as him and his mates started fighting off the zombies
LATER THAT NIGHT…
After a few trips to the bridge and back to the prison, Arlington, Sal, Finn, and Billy all had weapons of their own.
Weasel had a Ray Gun (Mark 1) and an AK-47, both having been upgraded by the Pack-A-Punch machine
Sal had the Acid Gat and an LSAT, which had both gone through the Pack-A-Punch machine
Finn had dual Five-Sevens and a Remington R870. His shotgun was upgraded, but his Five-Sevens weren’t.
And finally, Billy had a Ray Gun (Mark 2) and a minigun called the Death Machine, which he both upgraded, and as of now, they were all grouped up on the bridge, holding each other at gun point.
“Fellas… hear me out…“ Weasel said carefully
“Why should we hear you out? You’re the reason we’re stuck in this damn cycle that you call ’purgatory’!” Sal shouted
“Yeah! If it weren’t for your botched escape plan, at least some of us would still be alive!” Billy added as Weasel sighed
“Fellas, listen to me! I’ve remembered every time we went through this. Every time we got weapons, every time we built the plane, every time we got in the air… we crashed on this bridge, and you three killed me and the cycle repeats itself!” he said as the entire bridge went silent
“Yeah, and we kill ya cause you’re a no good rat who’s done nothing but lead us down the exact same fucken rabbit hole every time!” Sal shouted, getting close to Weasel as he pointed his Acid Gat at Weasel’s face.
“Fellas please, you gotta trust me. Maybe if this ended differently, we’d be free, right?” he asked as they all went silent
Finn was the one to speak, “Alright Weas, you’re sure this will work?”
“If it ends differently, it will” Weasel said, then continued, “A good way for this bullshit to end is if you three died”
“Why the fuck do we have to die?!” Billy shouted, not exactly happy about the whole thing
“Cause, every time we all die, or you three turn on me, the damned cycle repeats itself and seemingly never ends!” he shouted
Everyone on the bridge was silent, then Sal and Finn put away their weapons, and Sal stood in front of Weasel, “Alright Weas, I believe ya, but know this: If we end up in Hell after this, I’m gonna make sure you suffer the most, got it?” he said as Weasel nodded
“I got it, yeah” Al said, aiming his AK at Sal’s head, and pulling the trigger as he screamed and dropped to the ground.
“Sal!” Billy shouted, then looked up at Al before his brains were also blown out, and his body fell right next to Sal’s
Finn stood there in shock, seeing his two best friends gunned down by their thorn, but if Weasel was right about this whole cycle shit, Finn had no choice but to believe him as he stood before Weasel.
“Weas, before I go, I just wanna say… you’re not so bad” he said, closing his eyes as he felt the barrel of an AK press against his forehead, and Al pulled the trigger, blowing some bullets through Finn’s brain, killing him.
Now that Sal and his two cronies were dead, everything went white, and Al got excited, “I knew it was a cycle! Finally, I’m free!” he said, cheering as everything went white.
???
Year: unknown
Day: unknown
Weasel’s soul drifted through darkness, being only illuminated by his own. Weasel really hoped he wasn’t going to Hell, as it meant that Sal, Billy, and Finn would be there, and they’d more than likely be the ones killing him over and over, but luckily for him, he felt no sign of hellfire. Just then, a light shined in his path, which was supposed to tell his soul where it would go, and his soul got closer to the light.
While Al couldn’t figure out what was going on right away, he felt something was up. Little did he know that his body wouldn’t be the same after this. His arms formed first, just like normal, but then things started to get weird as his legs formed next, but they felt double jointed and would form into hooves. Despite having his head shaved, he grew back his head of brown hair, but it formed into a short mane instead. The ears were next, and they formed atop his head, instead of the sides. A tail would sprout from his tailbone, and it was the same color as his mane. Wings would also sprout from his back, looking quite big. Finally, a sharp, long horn formed on the forehead, and the transformation was complete. The new soul drifted further towards the light, until it enveloped the soul and blinded its surroundings, preventing it from seeing where it was going.
A FOREST
Year: Still Unknown
Day: Still Unknown
Arlington felt life return to his body. He wasn’t sure if this was Heaven or He’ll, but he had yet to really open his eyes and find out. He wouldn’t have to wait long as he soon found himself waking up. As his eyes opened, he both groaned and gasped, as he saw something he never thought he’d see again: The Sun. While it was pleasant to finally see it again, Al instinctively covered his eyes with one of his hands. Then, as his vision cleared up, he began to see his hand completely
“The hell?“ he silently murmured, “This doesn’t feel like fire and brimstone…“
Arlington sniffed the air and breathed in softly, and it actually felt clean and refreshing compared to Alcatraz. Arlington finally got full awareness of his surroundings, looking around carefully. To him, it looked as if he was in a forest. Feeling his back against a tree, he thought about the others: Sal, Billy, and Finn. Could they have made it here too?
“Sal! Billy! You there?!“ he called out, but no response, “C’mon fellas, this ain’t funny, quit hidin’ already!“ still no response. Al just sighed, thinking his friends didn’t make it.
Al took the time to check his body, and he found he was still in his prison jumpsuit, but had his dark blue jacket, fingerless gloves, and his dark blue flatcap in his lap. He put it on, and then went to inspect his boots, which were quite tight on his hooves…
“Hold on… hooves…?“ Al wondered, pulling of his boots with curiosity, and sure enough, there they were: actual horse hooves. Surprised was an understatement, as Al straight up screamed like he was just smacked by a zombie
Al covered his mouth quickly, not wanting to draw unwanted attention, but that was the next discovery, as his face felt stretched out. It sure as shit didn’t feel like an ordinary mouth, nor did his nose, and then when he felt his head, he felt two pointed ears and some hair, which simply shocked him. His ears twitched with every touch.
“This ain’t right… What the hell’s going on…?“ Al questioned
Course, Al’s ears twitched as he heard running water. Not wasting any time, he looked around and found the stream, so now he tried to get up. As he got up on his new set of feet, he lost his footing, but caught himself on the tree as he balanced himself. Seeing his legs look strange threw Al off greatly, knowing that he’d have to get used to them. Afterwards, he carefully made his way over to the stream.
“This isn’t Heaven or He’ll, so what the hell is this place? Another Purgatory, maybe?“ Al questioned as he constantly struggled to walk
He could compare an experience like this to using crutches when you have a broken leg, but even then, that was nothing compared to stumbling on your own “legs“
Eventually, Al made it to the stream and knelt down, taking off his gloves as light brown fur coated them, and that made him scratch his neck softly
“This stuff’s gettin’ weirder and weirder…“ he said, looking at his hands front and back
Al then reached in, cupping some water as he splashed his face, and he screamed a little. He saw a stallion with light brown fur, having a light brown mane, and blue eyes that matched his own. He tilted his head, and so did the horse, but one thing he failed to notice was the horn on his forehead. When he did notice it, he felt it with his hands, and felt a spark of pain, which told him it was sensitive. He moved his hand, and so did his reflection. Al felt something flick behind him softly, and as he looked back, his eyes shrank: he had a tail. He started to hyperventilate, realizing he wasn’t remotely close to being human.
“Oh shit…” he said as he panicked more, “What the hell happened to me…?”
Al had so many questions. Was this Heaven? Was this Hell? Why was he some humanoid horse? Why did he have a horn, a tail, or wings, for that matter. These questions plagued his mind greatly, but right now, he needed to calm down, so he took deep breaths
“Okay Al, calm down… you woke up as a horse in some forest, but now’s not the time to be freaking out…” he said as he regained composure and stood up, managing to maintain standing up
This was completely new for Al. One moment he was on the Golden Gate Bridge, and somehow, ended up in a forest as something other than a human. He felt his wings unfurl and stretch, before folding back, and then he looked to the sky, “If there’s a god, I wanna know something… why turn me into this? If this is supposed to be a punishment, All it is is embarrassin’!” he shouted.
Shout as much as he could, it was pointless. Al knew that no one would answer his questions, so he sighed as he punched the tree he was sitting by, but regretted it. After wincing and sighing, he regained his composure once more and looked through the many trees
“Well, since I’m not in prison, I ought to find civilization” Al as he looked around the tree, finding something he’d never thought to see again: His Ray Gun and his AK-47. He picked both up and felt their touch, “I’ve missed these weapons…”
He then put the weapons away, and started looking for every possible exit, but got even more lost. He was starting to lose his damn mind, as the forest just seemed to go on forever, and he dropped to his knees and yelled, “Ahhhhhhhhhhhhhhh!”
Little did he know, that would attract attention as he heard a rather gentle voice say, “Is anypony there?”
Anypony? What the fuck? Al thought as another pony, just like him, flew towards him, except it looked to be a girl.
The girl pony landed in front of Al and placed a hand on his shoulder, “Excuse me, sir, are you okay?”
He knew he couldn’t tell her about the prison he had just “escaped”, so he held off on that and would tell her another time, so he looked her in the eyes and said, “Uh, yeah… but I’m lost… this forest goes on forever, where’s the damn exit?”
“Uhm… I could show you how to leave the forest… but I can only imagine you’re hungry, right?” she asked as Al got to his feet
She’s got actual food? Maybe this new world ain’t so bad he thought as he stood up, “Yeah, now that you mention it, I am pretty hungry”
“Wonderful! If you’d follow me, I can take you to my cottage, it’s not far from here“ she said as she started heading in a random direction
“W-Wait up!“ he said, catching her attention as she turned around, “What’s ya name?“
“O-Oh… it’s ᶠˡᵘᵗᵗᵉʳˢʰʸ“ she spoke quietly, and Al looked confused
“Come again?“ he asked
“ᶠˡᵘᵗᵗᵉʳˢʰʸ…“ she spoke, still quiet
“I’m sorry, but you’re gonna have to speak up there“ he said as she took a deep breath
“I’m Fluttershy!” she said, clear enough and loud enough as he smiled a little
“Pleasure to meet ya, Fluttershy, my name’s Al Arlington” he said, offering his hand to her as she shook it.
“Well, nice to meet you, Mr. Arlington. If you don’t mind me asking, but what’s an Alicorn like yourself doing out in the forest?“ she asked as they walked through the forest
“Ali-what-now?“ he asked, tilting his head in confusion
“Do you… Not know what one is?“ she asked, tilting her head now
“Should I?“ he responded as she sighed a little
“It’s fine, I’ll tell you once we get to my cottage“ she said, leading him by hand through the forest.
Fluttershy’s Cottage
7:00 PM
“Wait wait, lemme get this straight. Your friends were able to defeat some pony who had gone bad by using magic stones?“ he asked. Al had no idea what was going on, but he was currently sitting on a couch as Fluttershy brought some tea over to him and sat down next to him
“Yes, though it wasn’t easy, as things often got out of hand… but in the end, our friendship is what kept us together“ she said, smiling a little as she drank some tea.
Friendship? If every pony in this damn universe is obsessed with friendship, then I’ll be damned he said, knowing that every pony in this world would be nothing but kind, and that’d feel weird.
“Do you… have any friends, Mister Arlington?“ she asked him as he snapped back to reality and looked her in the eyes
“Just al is fine, but yeah, I had friends” he said, taking off his navy blue cap
“What happened to them? Did you lose them, or…?” she asked as he sighed and shook his head a little
“Sorta, yeah, but not exactly. They were more like partners…” he explained to her
“Partners?” she asked as she looked concern, “Did you work with them or…?”
“Is this something I can trust you with?” he asked her. Al really didn’t want to go back into a prison after all that had happened in Alcatraz
“Arlington, you can tell me anything. I’m here for you” she said to him, rubbing his shoulder softly
As Al took a deep breath, he spoke, “Well, me and my friends broke out of prison, and didn’t make it out alive”
At that moment, Fluttershy’s face was pale as she stuttered, “Y-You escaped f-from T-Tartarus? H-How?”
“Tarta-what?” he said, confused
“Wait… you don’t know about Tartarus?” she asked, still a little scared
“Sounds like the architect named it after Tartar sauce. What’s it like?” he asked her
“Tartarus is where all of Equestria’s most dangerous creatures and threats are locked up. It’s a rather… unpleasant place…” she explained as she shuddered
I wouldn’t want to end up there he thought to himself, sighing a little
“So, where are you from, if not from Tartarus?” she asked calmly
“Well, y’see, I came from this planet called Earth. You probably haven’t heard of it, but it’s a planet home to a certain breed of creatures called humans” he explained as she listened.
“Very interesting… Would you like to come to Ponyville with me? One of my friends may be able to help you there” she asked as he nodded
“I suppose, as long as there’s no trouble or risk involved” he said as she smiled a little
“Wonderful. We can head there now, if you’d like” she said softly
“Eh, why not? Might as well get it out of the way now” he said, standing up and nearly falling, still feeling uneasy about his new feet
“Great, follow me” she said, walking out of her door as Al followed behind, stumbling clumsily
