Over 1000 years ago…
I stand in the castle of the two sisters. Two guards in shiny gold armor stand beside me as well. The main room is long and intimidating with two thrones standing tall in the center. On the left most throne sits the Lunar princess. Known to be beautiful but ruthless and the on rightmost throne sits her elder sister, the Solar princess. Even though Luna can be a fright Celestia is much more intimidating than her, especially when disappointed.
“You may disperse guards.” Celestia commands and the guards comply giving a swift bow and trotting out of the room. Celestia and Luna look down upon my figure.
“The earth pony, Sisyphus. It seems we finally meet at last.” Luna says with a calm but terrifying tone. “Sister, may we read off his punishment?”
“Very well my youngest sister, you may.” Celestia nods, turning back to me with a stoic expression.
“Sisyphus, you have used dark arts to assist yourself in cheating death. Thou were once an old stallion but now stands before us young and strong. The only way to conjure this impossible task is to take the life force of another pony- “
“Princess please listen-“ I attempt to intervene, but a loud stomp comes from Luna’s hoof vibrating off the castle’s walls and floor making me shake.
“SCILENCE” She speaks in her loudest and most commanding royal voice. I flinch backwards afraid of her scowl.
“Thou shall now be given his punishment, sister?”
“Yes Luna, we have proposed a perfect punishment for your crime of cheating your natural death with dark magic, Sisyphus, thou shall be made… Immortal.”
I looked up quickly, shocked by her words. “Immortality?” I smile slightly in delight. The thought of never having to perish or worry of death makes me euphoric.
“Yes, my little pony, Immortality, what you truly desire.” Celestia confirms with a smirk.
Finally, what I want! No more aging, no more fears. But there must be a catch, right? This can’t be true. Celestia and Luna’s horns suddenly glow brightly, and they point them together in a triangular shape. Their magic combines into purple ball of immense power. The ball slowly rises into the air as they feed it magic, and I can feel it making my hairs stand on end while it electrifies the air. Suddenly a purple laser shoots down coming from the center of the ball straight at me and fills me with an electric energy. It made me feel alive so alive! My body feels incredible, strong, and young again like I could do anything!
The purple light fades from my vision, and I stand before a large bolder 3 times my size. It looks intimidating and is covered with red stains and moss. I look up to see a mountain made of stone that seems as if it goes up into infinity slowly getting smaller and smaller toward the top. I look to the left and see a mountain scape with stone mountains stretching out forever. The right and back of me have the same sight. But, to the right I can see the sun slowly setting, although it looks bigger than usual. I yell out a hello and ask for the princesses’ assistance, but no response comes except for an echo of my voice mocking me. I am completely alone. I attempt to walk left to the mountain scape, but I cannot move an inch. Same with the right and toward the back. But instead, I move towards the huge bolder and as my hoof takes a step forward, I am even more confused. My hoofs continue to move to the rock. I can’t stop! So, I hold my front hooves out to protect myself from the incoming stone. What is happening, why am I going to the bolder? If I hit it, it might roll backwards and could crush me! What am I doing?
My hooves ram into the bolder and my legs strain against the stone ground. It doesn’t move an inch and my body is still, but my muscles continue to strain on the stone making it nudge just a little bit. This new strength and vitality are powerful but could never allow me to push something this large, right?
Hours, many hours later the uncannily large sun sets to rise an equally large moon. The bolder has moved a few inches and my body screams in agony. I scream as well in the unnaturally cold night air. A cold breeze makes me shiver but I start to sweat, nonetheless. Why does my body want to move forward so much? This must be hell. No wait, of course! This is my punishment, isn’t it? This is what the sisters had planned.
The moon now is at the top of the sky watching my eternal struggle. I have begun moving the boulder up the mountain slowly. Only a few feet up the monolith but progress, nonetheless. My hoofs are sweaty and my eyes bloodshot. If I slip, just once, I will be crushed like an ant. This is test of resolve to survive but just, how many have slipped and fallen to their doom to finally be crushed under the weight of their punishment? But I don’t want to die. Ever since I was a colt, I didn’t want to die so, that’s why I performed the dark magic spell at my old age to stay alive even just a little longer. I was, no, I am still scared of what’s after the end of life. So, I will keep pushing forever and however long the sisters want me to, for my crime.
A day has passed, and now the sun watches me from the top of the sky instead. The Days are hot and dry like a desert, and my coat feels as if it has burns on its surface with only the frozen night to sooth my pain. I can almost enjoy some peace when it is dusk or dawn, but the weight of my rock doesn’t allow any true comfort. It hurts even more than before, and I occasionally can feel my joints snap and my muscles rip, especially when I take a step. When I look back down the mountain, I can still see the bottom, but it is around a mile or more away barely anything after just a day. This mountain also feels like it has gotten steeper like it wasn’t enough huh?
A week maybe? I’m not sure how much time has passed but the bottom is now miles away and the top is still nowhere in sight. There was one day during the week when my right hoof slipped off the surface of the stone, and I held the boulder with my left just for a second before swiftly putting my other hoof back on. I had never felt that afraid in my life. The sweat drips in front of my eyes as well and makes me unbearably irritated. I want to wipe my brow of this wetness, but I can’t risk it. This uncomfortable feeling might just be worse than the pain in body. My muscles also seem to have grown a bit.
A month. I haven’t stopped straining, hurting, and screaming but, I have realized that I don’t need to eat or drink due to my immortality. But I am still tired. I almost fell asleep from the fatigue, but then I felt my hooves slip slightly and was awoken up by my own fear. I still want to scratch an itch I’ve had on my nose ever since day one.
A year has passed. It’s like I’m watching myself push the, no, push my stone. It feels like I am watching myself from above, and I can only see the infinite slope up and no bottom in sight. I am now two people, one is the painful agony of my muscles straining and my bones creaking then I am the other, who is just watching. I realized one day that I was just watching instead of pushing but then I was pushing again but then slowly realized I was both. My mind is literally split, and I just decided to watch my body for this past year, just watching it in so much pain. But then I started to think.
10 years. I have thought of a lot, at first It was about how angry I was at the sisters, Equestria, and everything especially the boulder. Then I was depressed. I begged the Princesses to let me out but no response of course. I begged the god of whatever hell this is too but… well nothing came of that. I finally just accepted it. This new infinite hell. I know now there will be no end, I’m sure of it.
100 years. I thought about my parents one day. They died many years ago before the bolder and dark magic spell I had cast, but I still thought of them. When they died, I was so scared of what would happen to me when I were to die as well. Nowadays I wouldn’t mind death. I want it even. But I’m scared of letting go of the boulder. I’m so scared even though I don’t want to live anymore. I’m just so tired but I can’t stop.
I haven’t been keeping track of time anymore. Maybe 1,000 years? It’s not important. I used to count the days, years, decades, and centuries to pass time, but now I’ve been more interested in just pushing the rock. I am not separated in my mind anymore I am one person again and all I want to do is just push this rock. Years ago, I was spiraling into depression, fear and had so many thoughts about my wrongdoings for using the dark magic. I also thought about the ponies I had hurt and the pony I had killed to stay alive. But now the sisters have given me exactly what I want, and they thought it was just to punish me. But this is what I want. This is my existence! My other life doesn’t matter anymore! My old fears, all the ponies that had left me are all gone, and I have one true friend, this rock, my rock. I have traveled with this rock for over hundreds of years. Punishment? No! This is my happiness! This is everything I want and need! I am not uncomfortable anymore and the pain in my body has become satisfying. It shows me that I am alive! The occasional slips of hooves keep me on edge and make me laugh and feel energized! This is bliss! This is all I need!
I, Sisyphus, must be happy.
Author's Note
One must imagine Sisyphus happy...
