Patricidium

The fall didn’t kill him. Nor did he wake up. In fact, nothing happened as the winds tugging on him stopped, no pain came to him as he felt his hooves touch ground. It was as if the gravitation around him had been altered the moment before impact, sparing his life.

For more torture…

Beneath his hooves, a shiny white floor met his gaze. Cold and solid, crafted from purest marble. Yet somehow his hooves made no sound as he moved them. The floor stretched out across the area in a perfect circle, and around its edges... nothing but pure blackness. Thick shadows that seemed to move and breathe on their own.

It looked like a vertical, black surface of water, moving as if something lived beneath it. Lightning thought he could see the distinct movements of something long and thin, like eels or snakes, twisting around and creating strange patterns.

The strange substance made him uneasy, and his stomach twisted together with whatever hid underneath the surface. He imagined entrails, slithering and squirming across one another endlessly, coating every inch in their own stomach acids and thick blood. Dripping profusely, perhaps that’s what the black surface was actually made of.

Lightning stayed in his spot, having no desire to get close to the blackness surrounding him. Frozen in place, he couldn’t even scream as something emerged from the black surface in front of him, couldn’t move as the shape of a pony slowly appeared, seemingly made out of the substance from where it came, creating black stains of ooze on the ground beneath it. It writhed and trembled twisting around itself in a movement similar to that of a newborn foal.

Finally, the entire body became visible, and as it did it felt to the floor with a disgustingly loud plop. It started to move spastically on the floor, it’s legs contorting in impossible angles around itself and then it threw its head backwards with a sticky and cracking sound, opening its maw and releasing a horrible screech. High and loud pitched, it tore into Lightning’s mind like the strained sound of something moving across a chalkboard. He wanted to put his hooves over his ears and close out the sound, but still couldn’t move.

Forced to watch this horrendous and pitiful creature before him.

Still with its head tilted upwards and the mouth wide open, something in the screech changed, and it slowly turned into a loud gurgling sound. Lightning’s eyes widened in terror as something bulged out of the creature’s neck, clearly working its way up towards its mouth to escape. A loud sound echoed from its mouth as whatever was in its throat reached its mouth. The creature convulsed and a white liquid spurted out of its mouth. A second later, something else made its way out of its maw.

A shapeless, white object, similar to an orb or an egg, became visible as the white liquid began to gush out in cascades around it. Lightning could see something move inside the strange egg-like object, pushing against it from the outside as if it tried to get out. The smell of rotten fish reached his noise, but he didn’t react to it. The strange creature before him finally went silent and stopped its seizure-like movements, falling dead to the floor with a loud splash.

And then, before the unicorn’s eyes, the body started to strain. Something inside it tried to get out, pushing against it and finally ripping the black substance apart. Rising out of the hollow husk that was the black creature, a new pony stood before him, this one completely white and featureless. The egg that had pushed its way out through the mouth was in fact its head, and it twitched and shook uncontrollably in some sort of seizure.

Lightning still couldn’t move an inch, even though he desperately tried to. His muscles refused to listen to him, and his limbs started to ache the more he pushed himself to move. The white pony in front of him suddenly reared up on its hind legs, towering above him like a faceless executioner. There was nothing on its body that could tell him what it was, no features, no hair, no tail, and no gender. Nothing, not even the slightest line in the creature’s skin. A perfect, sleek body with a perfect sleek face without eyes, snout or mouth. Yet he felt it could still see and smell him.

It didn’t have any hooves either. Instead, the fore limbs that made out its leg narrowed out into sharp needle-like appendages, and in its upright stance, its fore legs almost reached the ground. Despite its hind legs looking the same way, it still showed perfect balance as it started to walk towards Lightning slowly.

And he still couldn’t move. Couldn’t scream.

The creature stopped just a few feet away from him, looking down at him with its twitching head. Slowly, it lowered itself down towards him. The egg-shaped head came closer and a crooked line began to grow across it. Finally, Lightning could open his mouth and scream, clamping his eyes shut tight to close out the nightmare.

The egg cracked.

“You awake, buddy?”

Lightning opened his eyes, expecting to be met by the blank face of the white pony. What he saw instead made his guts twist even more. He saw himself as a young colt in bed, looking up at himself.

“Come on, sit on my lap. We need to have a little talk...”

The voice came out of his mouth, but he didn’t speak the words. From behind his father’s eyes he watched as the young unicorn slowly got up from his bed and did what he was told. As he observed the small colt on his lap, something uncoiled itself inside of him. A feeling of deep and true love. The kind of love only a father could feel for his only son. It made Lightning sick.

Through the body of his father, he felt the abuse of his own little body from beginning to end, and his own feelings of hate seemed to mix with that of his father. He couldn’t fathom how this stallion could possibly feel the love for his son that he apparently did. And then it was over. His father was done, and the only thing he could feel now was his own tears streaming down his right shoulder as the young unicorn cried into his coat. He removed himself from the body of his son and wrapped his arms around him.

“I love you, Lightning.” He whispered. “Don’t’ you ever forget it.” And with those words, he closed his eyes once again.

Lightning opened his eyes once again. Gone was his room, gone was the colt and the abuse. There was only blackness and shadows. He floated through nothingness, drifting endlessly like an empty vessel. As empty as the heart of his father.

Lighting.. Lightning, can you hear me?

He turned around to look in the direction of the voice. It sounded so far off, yet so close. Like somepony trying to talk to him through water. As he turned, the only thing he could see was a blue line in the darkness. Before his eyes, it grew, widened as a face appeared in it.

Can you see me? Lightning, answer me.

“Princess… Luna…?” Lightning whispered.

Yes, Lightning, I’m Luna.

“What… what are you doing here…?”

I have entered your dreams to help you. But I can’t stay for long, I’m not allowed to… You must listen to me, and do exactly as I tell you.

Lightning nodded slowly. As surreal as it was, he wasn’t one to say no to the princess herself.

You can’t keep running away. Stop, turn back, accept the consequences of your actions.

“Princess, I… I don’t understand.”

Turn around.

Suddenly, the blue line in which she had appeared was gone, leaving him alone in the darkness yet again. Without knowing what else to do, he did what she had told him, and turned around. Instantly, he felt his hooves land on something flat, and the darkness around him seemed to withdraw and disappear. Around him, walls appeared, and then a ceiling, high up above him. Pillars formed from the floor, benches materialized on either side of him, and glass melted into windows.

In front of him; an altar. On it, a small figurine stood placed, resembling the sun and the moon, joined together in the middle. And in front of the altar stood another pony. The same one he saw in the hospital, dressed in green coveralls and that strange white mask. It didn’t move, didn’t speak, merely watched him. Still with the princess’ words echoing in his mind, Lightning walked up to it, looked into its eyes through the filthy eye lenses of the mask.

“This where our wedding took place.” The stallion suddenly spoke up in a deep voice, partially distorted by the mask it wore. “I had never been more nervous as when I saw her enter the room. She was most beautiful.”

Lightning squinted his eyes and moved closer to the stallion. After a few seconds of silence, he could finally make out the eyes inside the mask. It all dawned on him.

“Dad…?”

The stallion didn’t answer him, and he didn’t even need to. Lightning instantly saw his father inside the mask; saw his father in the blank eyes staring back at him.

Lightning... you... If you can forgive me, you need to forgive him as well. He always loved you, I know he did.

The words of his mother echoed in his mind. Forgiveness. Forgiveness towards his father, for doing what he did, for turning his body, mind and life into a living hell; a burning inferno of pain and suffering and guilt. Did she expect him to forgive this… monster?

“Lightning Quill…” His father whispered through the mask. “Don’t ever forget that I love you. Please…”

He looked at his father, not with remorse of empathy, but with pure hatred. “I will never forgive you.” He said in a cold voice. “Never. I don’t care what you say or how you feel, I don’t care about what mom and Princess Luna said; I hope you rot in Tartarus forever for what you did to me and mom.”

His father and the church they were standing in dissolved.

Nurse Redheart sighed deeply as she closed the door to the busy hallway behind her. It had been a hectic day, more so than usual. She trotted across the room over to the only window. Outside of the glass, the many tall buildings of Manehatten rose upwards towards the last dying light of the setting sun. It looked almost like a giant graveyard, the dark steel of the graves in silhouette against the golden sky. It was beautiful and serene, yet at the same time it made her skin crawl.

There was so much death here, compared to back in Ponyville.

Not a day went by without her missing it, longing back to the small hospital on the hill overlooking the town. She missed the calmness of each morning as Princess Celestia raised the sun, and for a moment, Redheart always thought that they balanced on the line between life and death. She missed her friends and the other nurses, even one of the doctors with whom she’d had a short romance with prior to her move to Manehatten. Sure, it wasn’t anything really serious, but she still missed it. Missed the way he made her feel like a shy little girl again, the way they sometimes snuck away together to share a moment of passion.

She told herself now though that perhaps this was for the better. A doctor and a nurse shouldn’t act like that, shouldn’t sneak away from their duties and patients. And they should absolutely not make love in the X-ray room.

She missed the regulars in Ponyville, the ones that always seemed to end up in hospital somehow over and over. Not like the hospital she worked in now, where she saw new faces every day, all too often bruised and bloodied as the result of too much alcohol.

She tore her eyes away from the sky.

So much had changed these past few years. Ever since the passing of Celestia, something had changed in the minds of the ponies around her. Death seemed to grow. Still, she oftentimes thought that her sister Luna did a better job somehow. The sunrises and sunsets had been much more beautiful since she took control of them both. Maybe it was because of the love she’d found in her life.

The door to the room opened, and Redheart turned her attention to it. She could see a dark purple mane carefully entering the room.

“Come on in, miss Free.” Redheart said, trying to mask her sadness with a smile as the mare entered the room.

Flying Free smiled back at her before she closed the door, then quickly turning her head to look at the bed at the opposite side of the room. “Still no change?” She asked sadly.

“No, dear.” Redheart responded. “He’s still long gone. They say he might never wake up again.”

“I know, but I chose not to believe it.” Free whispered as she sat herself down next to the bed. “I have to believe he’ll wake up one day. Such a fine boy shouldn’t waste away like this.” She raised her hoof and placed it on the hoof of the pony in the bed. No movement came to answer her.

“How was the funeral?” Redheart asked cautiously.

“Just as you’d imagine.” Free answered. “I don’t think anypony could ever go through such a thing without feeling some sort of… regret.”

“I know what you mean. That stallion should never had been buried. And killed by his own son, nonetheless.”

“You know I don’t believe in that.” Flying Free said sharply. “… Look at him. Could he ever do something like that?”

“I’m just saying.” Redheart whispered. “His father is found murdered and he himself tries to hang himself. There's obviously a connection there.”

“I still don’t believe he did it.” Free answered.  “And once he wakes up to these accusations, I’ll be there to help him.” She moved her hoof away from the pony’s leg and gently removed a few strands of his mane covering his face. “I know he’s long gone, but I have to believe.”

Nurse Redheart nodded slowly, putting a comforting hoof over the mare’s shoulders. “Alright, do whatever you have to.” She whispered. “But if he does wake up, do you think he can forgive himself?”

Free looked at her with teary eyes. Redheart looked back at her with sadness. She wanted to cry too, she should cry, but all these years as a nurse had probably numbed her a bit from other ponies suffering. She patted Free’s shoulder one last time, and then got up to leave the room. She carefully opened the door as quiet sobs filled the room.

Out in the hallway, things where starting to calm down after the days usual ruckus. She sighed once again and adjusted the small hat resting on her head. Before she left, she took one last glimpse at the door, at the small metal and glass frame in which the patients name was placed.

L. Quill

She hurried down the hallway to her next patient.

Lightning gasped loudly as he woke up yet again. Instantly, pain surged through his body and he cried out. He rolled around in bed, and the mattress beneath him felt rough and… hairy. He opened his eyes only to be met by a room coated in dilapidation and mold. The bed he was on was covered in mold and spores. He shrieked and tried to throw himself off of it, but a sharp pain in his foreleg caused him to stop. He looked down and to his horror he saw a needle sticking out of his skin.

He grabbed hold of it with his teeth and quickly yanked it out, this time without any fear or disgust. He slowly got up from the bed and looked towards the door. He was back where it all began, he…

He sat down on the floor, the thin layer of filthy water soaking into his coat, and started to cry once again. A loud banging started to echo across the room, as somepony on the other side of the door wanted to get inside.

Lightning reached up towards his forehead. His horn was intact again, and he still had all the teeth left in his mouth. He slammed his hooves hard into his face in anger as he understood.

Eternal punishment.

He screamed at the top of his lungs, and it echoed out across the room, through the hallways of the hospital and out through the windows. It travelled down to the ruins of Ponyville, forever echoing in this place; his new prison. His own little slice of hell, where he would be force to relive his pain and suffering over and over.

Yet nopony would ever hear his screams.