"Across the river of death and the valley of life, one can find solace in the middle."

Have you ever heard this saying before? No? Thought so, it's an old saying, one my... "Mom" taught me. She was a kind mare, or so I thought. The saying means you can find solace in the middle of death and life, happiness after being born into the world and happiness before you get taken out of it. I recounted that saying more times than I can count, especially since it was the only thing to do in this hell I called "life".

I was in a cage... I was besides other foals, fillies, colts. They looked so confused when they first wake up here, some begged for their mommies when they did. After they wake up some scream out,

"Mom! Where am I? Mom!"

Some scream out, neigh BEGGED for their lives,

" Please! Please I beg you! Dont hurt me please! "

Most of them get silenced quickly, some permanently. Some prayed for Celestia's rescue, some more passionate than others. Celestia, oh dear princess Celestia! Please save us, help us! I scoff every time I hear it. Celestia? She got us into this mess, you think she's gonna save us? To them we were long dead, even if some weren't.

Every day, one lucky foal would be let out of their cage, oh the look on their faces, joy! Happiness! hope. All dashed away only a few moments later. A stallion or a mare would let them out, they would assure the little fillies that,

"You're the lucky foal, you would finally be free! You're going to meet you mommies, your daddies!"

They would escort them to a room, one moment the foal was happily chatting with the stallion or mare that let them out, and the other... Screams, painful screams, crying, pleading, "IT HURTS, PLEASE!" And "PLEASE MAKE IT STOP! PLEASE!" It hurts to hear them suffering. After a few minutes, the foal would come out looking distraught, disheveled or worse, not come out at all.

Most of them stopped pleading after that point, most grew tired, I couldn't blame them, we didn't get much food or water so figured.

I was... Special to say the least. I was tested on the most, some prodding here, some injections there. They said I was the "Best results so far," they kept making me do something. Sometimes little stuff like "Move that object behind the wall, towards the hole in front of us." Sometimes it was, "Reach out for my wings" or some bullshit like that. Wings? I was a... What was I again? I... Forgot... I had arms... Right?

While thinking about this, I was called again for another round of testing,

"Number #314?" They said in front of cage, "Are you awake #314?"

"Yes..."

"Good, now please go and follow this mare to the testing room." The scientist said a monotone voice.

I did what I was told, I followed the blue coated pegasus mare with a white mane to the testing room, there I saw a peculiar box. I was instructed to move and go inside it by the mare, I quietly nodded and did what I was told.

There was a loud beeping outside the box I was in, I only closed my eyes and took a deep breath...

That was when I felt it, the feeling of blood gushing into my lungs, I couldn't breath. I tried to move but it felt like a dozen metal rods were pushed inside me from every side. I was dying. It was finally my time. I coughed, blood burst out of my mouth as my lungs got filled with the red substance. I tried to scream, but nothing came out. My vision was getting blurry and my breathing slowed until it finally... Stopped.

I was... Dead. I died by what I could only presume to be metal rods getting shoved into my body forcefully. It was odd way out but I couldn't complain. I opened my eyes expecting pony heaven or eternal darkness. But what I saw was a... River.

There was a tall mare across the river, or it looked like one. It did not speak, but the longer I looked at it the more distorted the mare got. My mind suddenly went berserk as it tried to comprehend the mare, no, CREATURE across the river. One moment it's a tall mare, the other moment it was an amorphous blob of magic the human mind couldn't possibly comprehend. After what felt like eons of staring, it was clear that mind numbing pain that was clearly emanating from the creature, the creature stopped it's facade of ponies and energy and settled into one singular form.

A dark green coated pony stood in front of me, an even darker mane to compliment the already dark coat. It examined it's new form and smiled, as it finally began to speak,

"Hello, young one." It said with a monotone tone.

"Uh... Hello? " I replied.

"It seems that you had an... unfortunate fate young one, " it said while staring at me with glowing white eyes, " but it seems you already comprehended such, yes?"

I only grew more and more confused, who was this- no what is this thing in front if me?

"If you count getting stabbed violently with metal oblongs from each side as unfortunate? Then yes, I think I already comprehended that." I said while having a forced smile.

The creature chuckled and took a step closer, I flinched as I looked at the creature that was inching closer and closer to me. The creature seeing my obvious distress quickly took a step back.

"It seems you are scared, my child. May I ask why?"

"Well dying can get you into that mood," I replied.

"It seems that explanations needs to be in order," as if on cue, it's side of the river quaked violently. It paused for a moment, a look of disappointment adorned it's face and it sighed looking back at me, "it seems explanations can come at a later date. It seems my side is getting rowdy, more than usual it seems."

"Wait what-"

"Listen to me my little one, I will help you to get out of your damp hell, in return you will give me something that I desire. "

"What? You can get me out of here? Wait I'm dead how can you-"

"Do you accept? "

"Wait what's in it for you, what do you desire in exchange? "

It smiled and answered quickly,

"A vessel,"

"A vessel for what?"

"We do not have much time little one, answer me quickly, do you accept?"

I only took a moment to think it over and answered with a large smile on my face,

"Of fucking course yeah I accept!"

"Good, I will help you throughout your escape, you will only need to do one thing." It replied, it's form now slowly melting away into the void behind it.

"What do I need to do?"

Its eyes became crimson red and almost blinded me as it shouted one word as a reply,

"RUN!"

The river suddenly stopped flowing as both of our sides collapsed under our feet, sending both of us rocketing to the ground.

"What's happening?" The stallion with a gray coat said hurriedly to the mare besides him.

"I don't know! It just suddenly showed warning signs in the panel!" The mare replied while gesturing to the panel in front of her, and as the mare said, it was full of warning signs and symbols, telling the operator of the panel to stop and seek assistance.

The box in front of them suddenly exploded and filled the room in front of them with smoke, the two ponies were thankfully saved by the glass window that was separating the two rooms from one another.

The stallion gave out a hearty round of laughter with a look in eyes that can only be described as a mixture of glee and excitement as he shouted, "YES! YES! OUR EXPERIMENTS ARE SHOWING PROGRESS! QUICKLY WRITE THE NEW DISCOVERY DOWN-" before an object broke through the glass and through the stallions skull, making him go limp in the matter of seconds.

The mare looked on with shock as the stallions eyes melted from the heat emanating from the object. The object was a dark green leg from a pony with a brown hoof base under it. The leg threw the body of the stallion against a wall, completely destroying the body and the wall in the process. The leg retracted from the broken glass as the body of the filly she killed peeked it's head out from the broken glass, staring right into her very being.

She looked on in shock as both of them made eye contact, the filly slowly smiling wider and wider,

"Surprise! Did you miss me?" The filly said with a manically grin plastered into it's face and it's eyes fully devolved of life, like a void only seen in Tartarus.

The mare stood sill only for a moment and quickly shouted,

"FUCK GET AWAY FROM ME!"

She quickly ran out of the hole in wall, the filly only looking on with dead eyes as it fully went out of the broken glass hole it's body was slightly stuck in. The body of the filly was littered with holes from the metal rods, said rods were now melting and oozing out of the little filly's body. The filly stretched out its wings and ignited it's horn, as it did this the filly took some time to comprehend it's new limbs and chuckled to no one in particular,

"Oh? Tag? So soon? Oh well. You shall see that I am a master at tag!" As multiple tentacles sprouted from the ground all around the filly and quickly took off in every direction, destroying anything and everything in their path, "This is gonna be so much FUN!"

After a moment the filly walked over the dead body of the stallion and went the same direction to the mare who ran away from it.

"Oh the look on her face! I want to see it again! One small step at a time though, wouldn't want too much disgusting blood on my hands. Now, where's the exit?" The filly said while emanating a field of volcanic heat, the field made the walls around it started to collapse and turn into metal concrete goo.

The mare was running for her life as the filly was closely following behind, the mare's wings were now melted except for the bone as she ran.

Multiple guards tried to apprehend the filly, but it was no use as the filly only chuckled at them and either melted them into a hot goo, or snapped their necks with her magic, or both.

"Celestia DAMMIT! Why is it after me?" The mare shouted, "Is it because I killed it?"

The mare looked back only for a moment, but that moment costed her precious seconds as she looked on with horror. Multiple metal rods were quickly approaching her at high speeds, intending to put new large holes in her body that she did not want.

She went faster and faster but it was for not, as one of the metal rods finally struck her on the leg causing her to trip and completely take off the foreleg that was struck in the process, she yelped in pain as the filly slowly walked closer and closer to the mare that was practically begging for her life,

"Please! PLEASE! I don't want to die" she looked to filly, who just chuckled at her amusing pleads.

"Well, maybe you shouldn't have harmed the little one, I could've reconsider a lighter punishment for you." The filly said now inching closer and closer to the mare's face.

The mare was now screaming out in pain as one side of her face gets melted off by the intense heat while multiple metal rods stabbed themselves into her remaining three legs.

The filly only looked on with disgust and contempt. One of her eyes strangely flickered back to color instead of the black void it was before.

"Oh! It seems the little one is awake! You can count yourself lucky, mare!" It said with a hint of sarcasm to the mare that barely clung on to life, innards of her face now showing and melting, "I wouldn't want my little one to see this now, do I?" The filly backed away from the mare and off her body.

"Go, before I change my mind." It said with a dead tone.

"Or do you want to be like that stallion over there?" As she points to a stallion that's getting pierced by dozens of metal rods, his body practically crumbling into tiny flesh globs due to the proximity to the filly.

The mare only nodded in response,

"Good, now get out of my sight you disgusting being of flesh." The filly said gesturing to the open door.

The filly looked one as the mare ran across the room past it and out the door, it only sighed.

"Seems like the last time I wondered into the mortal realm a thousand years ago, pony kind has devolved into disgusting practices. Tia, you said you'll guide your kind, but this doesn't look like guiding. I'll pay you a visit someday but since I have far more important things to do, I'll ignore this for now. Count yourself lucky Tia."

It sat down and looked at the reflective tile floor of the building. It saw a dark green coated filly with a horn and wings, the latter of which was now slowly being turned into bone and disappearing. Sure, it was disappointed it couldn't use it's wings, but the filly needs to not realize it has wings, for the sake of convenience. The filly then looked up to the white ceiling that was now practically crumbling apart, it stood up again and walked closer to the door, both of it's eyes now returning back to their original color.

"Stay safe my little one, and I am sure we will meet again, maybe in a sunny day, if I am ever so lucky." As she looked on the large foliage of trees beyond the door, multiple guards now behind her. She decided at that moment to run, run as fast as she can. As the guards shouted profanities to the little green filly, she shouted to the air,

"THIS IS PAYBACK YOU WHITE ALICORN! HAHAHA!"

Prologue end.

Author's Note

Ew, c r i n g e