The One Single Way (Edited slightly)
I do not remember much of my old life. I remember my name, before I became the 'Rusted Monster'. I was Sarah, Sarah Pendleton. I used to work at a Movie Theater, for $10.27 an hour, for less than 20 hours a week. I hated working there, but it was better than nothing. I don't remember much of my old life...but I remember the final week of my world vividly.
I was at a renaissance faire, down in Pennsylvania, I had decided to wear the armor I had purchased the week prior. It cost over a month's worth of wages, but I loved it, more so than anything I had ever gotten in my life. I went with my friend, Zach...he was a weeaboo, but I loved him to death for it. We had just sat down for what I believe was a comedy show. That is when our world ended...with a flash, and a bang.
I still don't know why I lived. I don't understand why the gods chose me over Zach. Zach would have loved it here, hell he probably would have been able to live among the creatures that assail and hunt me now, but I'm getting off track. After the flash, my vision when dark. I thought at first I had been blinded, and I called out to Zach. I did not hear my voice however, I only heard a noise I can only describe as a dry gurgle.
My vision returned in time, but I honestly wish it had not. The first sight that my eyes beheld was one of burning trees. The very first thing I did was scream, or...at least I tried to scream. I later learned that most if not all of my flesh had burnt off, one of the first shreds of evidence I had that the gods were keeping me alive.
After I was through with my panicked screaming, I examined myself. Under the armor I was a Ghoul, like one from those post apocalyptic video games...one of the many things I forgot about my old life. I spent years of my own life on those games, yet the name eludes me.
I'm getting off track again, sorry, where was I?
Oh yes, after I had examined myself, and had gotten over my shock, I went to look for other survivors. For someone, anyone, anything. I would have settled for a rat, or a frog, just another living being to talk to. While I was 'lucky' enough to survive the end, I soon found I was the only one. From the Skeletons of Cities, and the Dust of Towns, I wandered. Finding every place I'd ever known to be in ruins, finding the remains of all I had once loved, I wept. I never grew hungry, never grew thirsty, never grew exhausted.
I often wondered what I did to deserve such a hell, who I wronged, and after a while I tried to take my own life. I pulled off my breastplate and plunged the sword, which I had carried for so many a mile, into where my heart should have been. I felt it. I felt the searing pain of steel, the breath heave from my lungs, and then the cold bite of...nothing.
I. Did. Not. Die.
I tried again, and again, and again to no avail. I could not die, I was cursed to this hell, this lifeless limbo. I wrenched the sword from my chest, and dawned my breastplate once more. I stood up, and wandered once more. I found more things which I tested my life against.
I collapsed the remnants of what used to be a bank atop myself. I dug my way out of the debris after a month, death by crushing did not work. It took twenty eight days of walking to get to it, but my next attempt was to hurl myself off of Notch Peak, in Utah. Three painful days later, I found out something interesting…and concerning.
I was a mangled corpse, still alive, slowly piecing myself back together. I was like Deadpool, but without the cancer, and my attire repaired itself with me. I slowly regenerated from a stain of red and silver, to a knight in...well...less than shining armor. This was the first of many times I considered if I was going insane. I attempted the fall once more, but when I was met with the same result, I decided to return to my meaningless wandering.
I wandered during the scorching days, during the freezing nights. I wandered for weeks, for months, for years. Then I paused. I had found what I so desperately sought. A crack in the ground. A gorge that stretched miles into the earth. A dark, endless abyss. I hesitated for a moment, but only a moment, before I took what I thought would be my final step...and plunged into the all devouring dark. I fell for what felt like only a few short minutes, before the ground came rushing up to catch me. My body remained intact. I felt pain, however pain was an old friend, and as I fought against it to stand once more I glanced around. I was in darkness, cold and pure. Blindly I lurched forward to find a wall, and find one I did...as abruptly as I had found the floor. I aligned my back with it, slowly sliding down onto my rear. I felt my eyes shut, and I allowed myself to slip into the first sleep I had in what felt like eons.
I dreamed I was floating through the darkness, all around me I could see stars, bright vibrant beacons of light. Green, Red, Yellow, Orange. If I had tear ducts, I'm sure I would have cried, seeing colors I had not for an eternity. It was then, one by one, they went out...and the darkness ruled once more. It's rule, however, was fleeting...as a tear soon developed. It was like a tear in the fabric of the universe, and through it a blinding white light shone through. From the tear came tendrils, pearly blue and translucent. They snagged me from my floating limbo, and dragged me through their origin point.
Then I awoke in the new world, to birdsong...at first I thought I was insane. Hell, I'm still unsure if this isn't just some form of stress induced hallucination, or some form of extreme psychosis. I inspected my surroundings upon sitting up. Large Oak Trees, birds, and grass. Soft, green, living grass. I shot to my feet, ecstatic. I thought that finally, finally the gods had heard me. Heard my pleas. I thought they had finally seen fit to end my suffering, and bring me to an afterlife of peace and tranquility.
Once again I wandered, but with renewed vigor. Perhaps I could find someone who I knew, or someone I didn't know. Anything would be better than being alone. I soon saw smoke, and I followed. It led to a town, filled with...creatures. Bipedal Horse Folk , each unique in a way. Some had Horns, some had Wings, some lacked either, but all were some form of pastel color. At the time I didn't care, they seemed friendly enough. I approached, like a fool...I was clearly not one of their kind, and they knew it.
I was met with the panicked screams of their women and children, the angered shouts of something in their language from their men. Rocks soon pelted against my armor, but still I persisted. I held my hands out in a placating gesture, to try and show I wasn't a threat. That is when their guards came, The Winged ones with their bows drawn, and spears at the ready. The horned ones with swords aglow with strange runes, and horns alight with what I would later learn was magic. And the barren ones, with their maces, and hammers. Still....I tried to be peaceful. I tried so hard to get them to understand, but they would not. A winged one took flight and ran me through with a spear, once again I felt the cold sting of steel.
As he had me impaled, a horned one ran over, and stabbed down through my gorget. More pain, and more blood of mine spilled. That is when I felt something new, a burning feeling, one I hadn't felt in such a long time. Anger? No...rage. They stabbed something that was not like them, for what? What reason? Sure, I was armored and armed, but I was clearly attempting to convey peaceful notions. And they didn't just stab me to disable me, they went for the killing blow. It was then that my vision was clouded, not by red but by purple.
I don't know who was more surprised by my sudden lunge, me, or the winged guard who's throat I held in my hand. I moved fast, faster than I even thought myself capable. I had learned how to use the longsword I carried all this time a long time ago, from my brother who's name I can't remember...whose face is a blur to me, as much as my blade was a blur to the horned on- no. Unicorn. That one is called a Unicorn, but how do I know that? Why do I know that now, but not then? I'm sorry, again, off topic. I implanted my blade into the skull of the Unicorn, before pulling it out and back into a Pflug guard. I don't remember exactly all that happened after that, but I do remember flashes. My sword cut through their armor like butter, their magic could not harm me for whatever reason. I did not stop with the guards. I cut through any hor-...pony...I cut through any pony that came into my path during this rage induced massacre. It didn't matter what they were. Mare, Stallion, Foal, their blood soaked the cobblestones beneath my feet.
Once those who could have posed a threat to me were dispatched, I took my time with the rest. I peeled the wings from a pegasus mare, grinded a unicorn stallion’s horn to dust using a stone, opened the legs of an earthpony filly and ripped out her spilt bones. I reveled in the sickening cracks, agonized screams, the warmth of their blood. Through their pained screams and sobs I learned parts of their language. Mostly the words ‘please’, ‘don’t’, and ‘mercy’. I found that ironic, from a species that would have killed me without mercy, they seemed eager for it to be granted upon them.
When the purple faded from my vision, all that was left was a pair of fillys. An Alabaster Unicorn with Purple eyes filled with fear, and a Dark Blue Pegasus with blue-green eyes filled with a fire like mine. It was the loathing and hate I felt for her kind. I had my blade raised high to end them, but I paused. I felt a force, a kind of will that was not my own, preventing me from striking them down. I laughed, causing both of them to flinch, and turned. I used the coat of a dead Unicorn Defender to wipe off the filth on my blade, before sheathing it and leaving them.
I left to the woods I arrived from, and it felt different. A fog had rolled in, and the green verdant trees I once knew looked as if they had rotted. The grass was an oily looking green, and for a moment I could have sworn I saw bright green eyes watching me. I would later learn that man’s best friend here was not of flesh but of wood, however that is a tale for another day. I walked further into the welcoming shroud of darkness, and soon found a large hollow tree. It was as if the forest was offering me a home, one I graciously accepted.
Once I had a rudimentary living space, I sat back against the wall of the tree…and I thought about all that had transpired. I did not feel wrong after what I had done. I felt fulfilled. Like this was meant to be my purpose in life. In my old life I would have found my deeds repulsive, but this is not my old life. These ponies...even dead I can see the class divide. Just like my old world. They need what my world did not have, a common enemy.
An Evil to rally against. I would have cursed the gods for this in my old world, but here? I thanked them. I now have purpose, a reason to be deathless. I will be these ponies great evil, I will be the reason they band together...or I will be the reason they are wiped from the surface of this new world. I should be sad, disgusted even, but I am not...I have never felt so happy. Never felt so alive. I am this world's Evil, and I can live with that.
Author's Note
It has been literal years since I have last written, ontop of that I've never written a dark depressing story of any kind, and I'm pretty sure it shows. Hopefully y'all like this. I'm open to criticism of any kind.
