A Fallen Angel

Angel woke to the feeling of his mother's breath. He cracked open one eye to find himself looking into Melody's eyes. He gazed deep into the blood-red jewels, an almost hypnotic calm overcoming him.

"Hey, sweetie." His mother whispered.

"Hi, Mom." Angel murmured back. He rose from his side of the bed and stretched before wandering into the kitchen to find some breakfast. The only thing he could find was some cereal, so he quickly poured himself a bowl. "Do you want something to eat?" He called.

"No, I don't. Don't eat to much: we're going out again. You don't want to be bloated."

Angel glanced down at the heaping bowl of cereal he had just poured. "Of course I won't." Damn. Angel quickly dumped back over half of it into the box.

Melody came into the kitchen, pouring herself a glass of water. "I figured we may as well start training manipulation, today. The blizzard is supposed to let up. You won't be able to go murdering willy-nilly." Melody said with a smile.

She then took on a very serious look. "On another note, I want you to realise if somepony notices you walking up to them, they don't have any reason to fear you. If you're noticed, just play innocent. If you need to, forget the kill. Better to do that then alert Guards."

Angel nodded. Something she had said yesterday brought itself forward from the back of his mind, causing Angel to give his mother a confused look. "I thought you said Guards were easy?"

Melody shook her head. "I said Guards fought the same way, every time. Street ponies, or criminals, they're the ones you should worry about. Guards are just below them. The ponies you took out, they hardly have any skill at all. Just some brave foals with a knife."

"Oh." Angel had thought he'd done well by killing them.

Melody broke his train of thought. "That reminds me, I'll have to teach you what to do when your target runs and leaves you fighting. You took those four out quickly, but I could've left you in the dirt."

Angel sat and wondered for a second. A slow smile spread across his muzzle. "Does that mean I have to spar you?"

Melody nodded. "Yes. But not so much spar as learn to do what you did much quicker."

Angel still grinned. The ring was where he was dominant. It was a second home to him.  He couldn't wait till he was in the ring.

Angel wished he was anywhere else but in that ring.

They had pulled the mattress off of the bed, and arranged some pillows around the edges. But it being a cheap hotel, that hadn't done much to soften the pain of being thrown into the ground.

Which Angel had been. Many times.

He quickly pulled himself up off the ground, again, and turned and faced his mother. He understood she was teaching, but did she have to be so brutal?

Melody read him like a picture book. "Yes, I do have to be brutal. I'm trying to show you what your opponent would feel. That way, you know what to do to incapacitate them the proper way, as appropriate to your surroundings at the time."

Angel glowered as she, once again, justified everything she did. But he knew she wasn't lying. She hardly ever lied. Not to him.

Instead, he just dropped to a defensive crouch, and got prepared to familiarize with the floor.

He made one feint left punch to follow up with a right hook. Anypony else he would have contacted with. Technically, he even contacted with Melody; it was just the wrong contact. But she had been at this much longer than him.

When she saw how weak his left jab was, combined with the muscle being recruited to his right side, she rolled into the left jab so when he swung his right hoof, he hit air.

She then grabbed the hoof and pulled him around her, using his momentum with her strength to whirl him into the sofa.

Though there could have been worse places, they had taken the cushions off of the couch to provide more dampening for the ring. Angel was instead treated to a face-full of plywood.

Angel felt blood running down his brow. One quick dab confirmed he had a new, inch and a half long cut down his forehead. He whimpered as he realised he'd have to go back into the ring. He mentally shook himself. "You're a Killer, Angel. Suck it up. Get back in there." It almost sounded like his father was right there.

Angel turned and faced his mother. His nostrils flared as anger flooded his better judgement. He didn't wait for her to get prepared as he dropped into another crouch and started throwing punches like wildfire. He ferocity burned maliciously as she danced around him like he wasn't moving at all. His mane and eyes both caught fire as more anger seeped into him.

Suddenly, he felt his mother kick his hooves out from under him and put him in a hold.

He quickly realized she was pining him to the ground and not actually teaching him. His fury overwhelming him, he turned completely black, trying to buck the cream pony off of him.

Melody leaned in and spoke calmly into his ear "Angel, calm down. You're taking this much too seriously."

Angel slowly started to come back to his senses. He stopped squirming, and, once his mane and eyes had burned out, Melody released him. "I'm sorry..." he trailed off.

Melody looked at him sternly. "Forget your anger. It makes you impatient. You'll have an easier time if you're always focused." Angel started to argue, but Melody cut him off. "I know that your father taught you to use your anger. That's the battlefield. This is a chase. A game of cat and mouse. You need to get your mouse. If your vision is blurred by anger or rage, you'll lose sight of your prey."

Melody sighed before continuing. "We'll practice some meditation skills until I feel you're ready to begin again." She said simply. "No arguments."

Angel and his mother sat on the mattress in a meditative position. "Feel the world around you. Open yourself. See everything." Melody said, trancelike.

Angel tried to relax. He sat on the floor, shut his eyes, and tried to notice as much as he possibly could.

After what seemed like hours, Melody spoke again. "What do you notice?"

Angel tried to think of something. "Uh... The mattress is kinda worn where I'm sitting."

Melody spoke again, a hint of a laughter in her voice. "You know, you don't have to shut your eyes when you meditate."

Angel opened his eyes and saw Melody standing, smiling down at him. She then said "Now, meditate again, and when I return, I shall ask you what you've noticed." She then walked out of the room, and Angel heard the latch shut.

He noticed the back of the lock had been taken out. She locked me in here... He wasn't surprised. Not really. He should've expected that. He should have heard that.

Finalising on the fact that he couldn't get out, (the only windows were in the kitchen and bathroom, and they were both too small.) Angel decided to be a good student and sit, and meditate.

After a very long time, he began to notice a few more things. The edges of the mattress were frayed, lengthwise. That disturbed Angel. He quickly realised that meant the mattress did a lot of "'Back-and-Forth'-ing".

Resisting the urge to throw-up, he backed himself off the mattress, positioning himself against the wall.

He found he could also smell fresh cooking drifting in through the kitchen window. It was so subtle, that at first, he couldn't notice it, but he found if he tried, he could smell the food. As he concentrated on his sense of smell, he found he could make out another scent as well. A bit more bitter than the food. A little more focus was rewarded with the smell of-

"Garbage." Angel spat. His nostrils now completely molested, he quickly tried to focus on something else, but he heard the key in the latch. He waited patiently as his mother opened the door, and came in with lunch.

"Before you can eat, tell me what you saw." Melody said. Angel rehearsed everything he had noticed, being rather put off with the "well-used" bed and the smell of compost.

"That's good." Melody said, making Angel's heart soar. She brought him plummeting down to Equestria by adding "For a thick-headed warrior. Seriously, Angel. You need to be more aware of your surroundings. Being an assassin means you have to be just as good at fleeing as you are at chasing. You'll be killed first time you run into a patrol of pegasi archers. Or, if we were in Canterlot, those new ranged weapons they just brought in."

Angel nodded solemnly. Melody continued. "I'm sorry to have to do this, but you aren't allowed to eat until I think you've become more aware of your surroundings."

He looked at his hooves. "Yes, mom." He said dejectedly.

Melody walked into the kitchen. He heard the fridge door open, followed by a rustling of paper and the sound of the shelves rattling as something heavy was put inside. (probably lunch Angel reasoned) He heard the fridge door shut again. He looked up to see his mother had returned, and was now miming Angel in meditative pose.

He raised a confused eyebrow as he saw her eyes were closed. "Didn't you just say-" Melody quickly cut him off. "Yes, and you, as a beginner, don't want your eyes shut. I have been at this much longer than you, and will notice more with my eyes shut than you will with yours open."

It wasn't an insult. It was the truth, and Angel knew it. He forced himself to relax, resting his back against the wall.

Angel tried looking for new things. He focused on the ceiling fan, the doorframe, anything that he thought might interest his mother.

After a while, or maybe a year, his mother asked him again. This time without opening her eyes. "What have you noticed?"

Angel told her everything he could. From how he found out the room hadn't been dusted for atleast three days to the fact that there was minor water damage, probably from their nextdoor neighbour.

Melody simply said "Good, but you need to be more open. Relax, Angel, this isn't a test. I don't want you to impress me. If your running from a Guard, you don't want them to be impressed by how you did it, you just want to get away."

Angel nodded and tried once again to relax. His mother rose, and sat down next to him.

"Relax, Angel. Feel the breeze as it brushes your fur. Feel the hum of the heater when it ignites. Hear the curtains as the wind blows through them. The world breaths around you, Angel, and just like a breath, it's noticable. You just have to listen."

Angel sat and relaxed. Not half-flanked this time. He gave up on noticing, and just tried to relax.

As he sat,  he slowly found he could feel what his mother was talking about. He felt the wind as it blew in and rustled his coat. He could hear his mother's mane rustling as the breeze tossed it around. He saw the millions of cracks along the walls that had been caused when the paint dryed.  He could hear his own heartbeat in his ears, as well as the much more calmed heartbeat of his mothers.

Melody spoke, breaking Angel's thoughts. "What have you noticed?"

Angel tried his best to put it into words. "I felt... I heard...." Angel gave up, and looked over at his mother. "I can't explain it. I noticed everything."

Melody nodded. "Good enough, for your age. Now go and have your lunch, and we'll go try some manipulation techniques."

Angel and Melody were walking down the street, picking out targets.

Melody had already given him the task of finding somepony who could be well off, but wouldn't be that hard of a target to chase if things went south. She had wanted to keep expendatures using their bits minimum, so as to make them harder to track.

Angel had been walking along, pointing out potentials. "What about him?"

Melody looked at the well dressed pony, and shook her head. "No. Though he looks wealthy, if you look hard enough, you'll see he hasn't got anywhere to keep any extra money. And we can't sell clothes."

Angel nodded. Looking to his right, he saw somepony else. "Him?"

Melody looked over Angel's shoulder. She shook her head again. "No, he looks like he could run pretty fast. Also, he doesn't have anything valuable on him, except maybe his wallet. Which we won't have time to search for."

Angel fell silent for the next couple blocks, and had almost given up, until he saw a pony sitting on a bench. "There." Angel nodded towards the pony. It wasn't a question, it was a statement. He knew they'd have to go after that pony.

Melody glanced over, and saw the perfect target.

A brown earth pony with a white mane sat not too far away. His Cutie Mark was of two cogs. He kept looking at his silver-plated wrist watch as he sat at the carriage stop. He stared through gold glasses, which would be a hinderence when running, and he had dark bags under his eyes, which meant he was fatigued. Angel watched as he pulled a small gold locket out of his jacket, and stared at the picture inside fondly.

Melody nodded. "He looks perfect. Definitly well off, and he won't run very far. Good job." She added, congratulating Angel. He beamed back at her.

"Now we need to kill him without somepony else noticing. Easiest thing to do would be to follow him to where-ever he's going. Which means getting on the same carriage as he." Melody said.

"I doubt we'll arouse suspision if we just go and sit beside him. May even be able to seduce him. Doubt it, with the picture. May be of a wife." Angel knew all this already, but he nodded anyway.

"We can probably get him alone if he's taking a carriage. It'll be going to another stop, which means some walking, and hopefully a few back streets. But if we do this-" Melody stopped Angel, and turned him to face her. 'Listen to what I say. Watch what I do. Try and learn how to manipulate your target. It makes killing them much easier. Also, you'll do the killing. He won't expect it from a colt. He probably won't expect it from me, either, but this is your lesson."

Angel nodded, feeling his chest soar at the fact that she trusted him with the duty of killing him when it was his call. They went and sat down beside the yellow stallion.

He glanced up at them. "Hello." He said. He put on a smile as Melody sat next to him.

"Hello." She said. "My name is Melody."

"Timer." The stallion replied. A frown creased the brown pony's face. "We don't get many pegasi around here. Especially during blizzard season. 'Weather's unflyable. What are you two doing here?"

"To tell the truth, I'm not really sure I know." Melody said with a small giggle. "This is where little Angel wanted to come. I'm not sure why, but when I asked where he wanted to go, he said 'Vanhoover.'"

Timer glanced over Melody to look at Angel. "Hey there, Angel, right?" Playing along, Angel nodded. "So how you liking Vanhoover?"

Angel hated being treated like a child. His face and body made him look three years younger than his age. But he knew to play the role for the act's sake. "Vanhoover's awesome! I mean, it's kinda always blizzardy, but on the days when it's not, everything's always shiny!"

Timer raised his eyebrow. "How long have you two been here for?"

Melody didn't think long enough. "Two weeks." She quickly said.

This made the earth pony more suspicious. "Two weeks in Vanhoover? You guys running from something? Or somepony?"

Silently cursing her brash act, she gave up the friendly act, and tried for something more "guilt tripping". "Well, you see, Angel's father just-" She pretended to cover Angel's ears, but she made sure he could hear what she said "-Died. He was in the Guard, y'know? Dangerous mission gone wrong. Well, you see, if we go back then I'll have to explain. I need time to get ready for the devistation that could bring on little Angel. He and his father were so close..."

Melody uncovered his ears. "But listen to me go on. I didn't mean to put that on you..."

"No, no. It's quite alright. My wife, y'know..." he mouthed the word "Died" "...about a year ago, yesterday. Big house fire. Got my little girl, too. Darned, if she wasn't the cause of my life."

Timer pulled out the locket again. He flipped it open to see a picture of him, and two mares, one in a dress, and one a foal, who looked extremely displeased at having her photo taken. "See, that's them, there." Angel had to suppress a snort. No, really? I thought they were both the stallion! "It was horrible. Darn near went and... y'know... myself. Anyway, it's been a fight everyday without them."

Melody instantly faked sympathy. "Oh, you poor dear. And hear I was rattling on about my own troubles. Atleast I still have Angel."

Timer shook his head. "No, I enjoyed having somepony to talk to."

They were interrupted as the carriage roled up. It was extended to allow for multiple passengers, and like any carriage in Vanhoover, it had a roof, a door, and was magically insulated.

They both entered, and Timer, Melody and a reluctant Angel all sat down on the same seat, with Angel between the two older ponies.

Angel was greatly disappointed to find that Timer wanted to get to know him. "So, Angel, what do you want to do when you grow up?"

Angel may not have wanted to talk, but he knew how to play ball. "I want to be in the Guard, just like my father!" Angel said. "He's on a mission somewhere else right now. Mom won't tell me where." He almost grinned when Timer winced. "But I bet when he comes back he'll have loads of awesome stuff with him. He always does! Like, last time, he brought me a really cool knife. He called it a dirk! Mom said I could have it when I'm older. She doesn't want me to touch sharp things. I told her to trust me more, but she won't. Which sucks."

The stallion looked like half of that didn't register. He nodded anyway. "I see. What does your Mom do for a living?"

Angel looked at him, confusion etched on his face as he tried to find a way to get his mom to answer. He decided to play the stupid foal, demeaning himself more. "Whaddya mean, 'for a living'?"

Melody cut in. "He means a job."  She turned to Timer. "I was an assistant librarian in Ponyville. I'm trying to get a job in singing though. What with it being my special talent."

"Why'd you quit being a librarian?"

"Well, it being the Elements of Harmony's favorite town, taxes sky-rocketed. I was actually trying to get to Canterlot from there. But then his father had his 'Big Mission' and we couldn't afford to be there anymore."

Timer looked at his hooves. "I'm so sorry. You've had a ter-" He caught himself, thinking he may say something that might make Angel ask his mom the wrong questions. He settled on "You've both had bad luck."

"It's not that bad. Vanhoover isn't terrible. It's even tolerable, if your a pegasus." Melody suddenly got apologetic. "Oh, sorry. I didn't mean it like that-"

Timer cut her off with a shake of his head. "No, it's true. Pegasi don't feel the cold. I can't fight facts. Besides, I kinda feel bad for you guys. Knowing you won't be able to know what it feels like to rid your body of the cold. Nor will you ever be able to wear a warm, soft coat. Well, you probably could, but you'd never be comfortable in one. No, I think your missing out on more than we are. Of course, I'm the only pony who thinks that way."

Melody looked thoughtful. Not acting thoughtful, actually thoughtful. "Y'know, I guess I never will. I hadn't thought of it like that." She smiled at Timer. Thankfully, it was fake. "That's definitely a new way of looking at things."

Timer smiled. He suddenly glanced around, aware of the carriage slowing down. "Oh, this is my stop."

Melody looked around quickly before saying "Oh really? This is our stop, too."

Angel reluctantly followed Timer off the carriage. He accepted Timer's help on the carriage stairs, and turned and watched as he helped Melody down too. The dark Angel inside of him was screaming at Timer. Get your filthy hands off her, you piece of- Angel noticed, however, that when Melody wasn't facing the stallion, she was often rolling her eyes or grimacing.

Atleast we both found something we'll enjoy. Angel reasoned. We both want to see this idiot dead.

Angel walked beside Melody as she let Timer walk them "home." The two of them made small talk, and often exchanged jokes. Angel had to suppress a groan for everyone of Timer's, and whenever his mother told a joke, she'd often have to explain it to him, undermining the humor completely.

Eventually, Melody stopped trying, which made the night even more dull for Angel; her humor provided the only release from this stupid act. He wanted this to be over, but he hadn't found a good time to kill this pony.

Appearently, Melody was having the same thoughts. "Hey, Timer? I know a shortcut back to my house. I'm going to take that instead. Do you want to come?"

Timer instantly nodded. "Yeah, sure. Where's the shortcut?"

Melody turned and pointed at a small bicycle path. "If you follow the bike path, it'll go over a river. My house is just a bit past that."

Angel knew this was her cue to him. Move it or lose it. He considered when he should do it. He knew his mother wouldn't lie about the terrain. She'd probably knew the lay of the land from past missions here. He decided that even if the river was frozen over, there would be tunnels and such near it, allowing for quick dispense of the body.

Timer interrupted his thoughts. "Yeah sure, let's do that."

As they were walking down the bike path, Angel saw a small park off in the distance. He prayed to Luna that there were no ponies hanging around.

"So, Timer?" Melody said, interrupting Angel's thoughts. "What do you do for a living?"

Timer pointed towards a rather tall tower. "See that clock, over there? I keep it running. I'm the only pony who knows how."

Angel winced. If that was true, they'd have to scrap their entire plan.

Melody raised her eyebrow, filled with the same concern. "The only one?"

Timer looked down at his hooves. "Well, sort of. There's only two other ponies who know how. See, my father made the clock. Me and my brothers are the only ones who know how to fix it and run it. His way of making sure we had something to do when we were older."

Melody smiled as relief flooded out her anxiety. Angel almost smiled, too.

As they crested a small hill, Angel saw a group of three ponies that looked like teenagers all hanging around the swingset, a small foal on the swing. The teens had their manes done up at stupid angles, and were tattooed in places they would definitely regret when they were older.

Timer cleared his throat, nodding at the ponies both Melody and Angel had already seen.

"Those guys look like trouble." Timer whispered. "We'd best just avoid them."

Angel frowned. He'd wanted a good fight. He looked imploringly at his mom, who looked sternly back and minutely shook her head. Without taking her gaze off of Angel, she said to Timer "You're probably right. Don't want to start a fight we can avoid."

Timer led the way to the bridge, and Angel watched as the park disappeared from view. He then turned his attention on Melody, who had stopped in the middle of the bridge.

She looked up into the sky, gazing at the giant white orb that had appeared since the blizzard let up. "Don't you think the night sky is beautiful?" She asked.

"Yeah." Timer replied. Angel's hatred for the pony went up hugely; His eyes were definitely on something pale, but it wasn't the moon. Nor was it any more his.

Angel reached into his jacket pocket. As Melody turned towards Timer, a smile playing on her lips, Angel slowly unfolded his knife. As he heard a very satisfying click, he started stalking up carefully behind the pony, making great care not to let his hooves crunch in the snow.

His gaze was fixed on Timer, and he watched as his mother closed her eyes and parted her lips, as if to kiss. Timer smiled, and closed his eyes as well. Melody then smirked, opening her eyes and pulling away quickly. Taking this chance with practiced caution, Angel closed the gap between the earth pony and himself quickly.

Timer opened his eyes at the last possible second, a look of confusion across his face as he saw Melody's grin. "What is it?" He asked. He then felt a sharp pricking sensation on the side of his neck, suddenly feeling very cold. What's going on? Is this a trick? Am I being drugged?

He raised a hoof to his neck and at the feeling of something warm, he pulled his hoof up to his eyes. He gazed down at the red on his hoof. He tried to say something. He found couldn't form words. He looked at Melody, and tried to speak. He tried shouting "What are you doing? I'm bleeding, help me!" But all that came out was a pitiful gargling noise.

His vision blurred and spun as he felt himself being grabbed from behind. He faced the child, his vision clouding. Angel, that was his name. He looked at Angel. Is he going to help me? "You won't ever look at my mother that way again."

Timer looked down to see Angel wielding a blood-stained knife. Things finally clicked into place as he realised what was happening. He fell to the ground where Angel met him, and Timer saw Angel draw the blade up to his throat.

Angel drew the blade across his throat quickly. He looked down at the dead pony, quickly grabbing the watch, locket, and glasses, as well as the pony's wallet which he had noticed sticking out of one of the coat pockets. He then put his hind hoof on Timer's body, and gave him a small shove off the bridge. He was rewarded to the sound of the ice breaking, and when he glanced over the edge, he couldn't see the pony anywhere.

Melody walked up beside him, both looking at the already frozen hole in the ice. "That was perfect. You're a great assassin, you just have to pay more attention to what you're doing."

Angel nodded. He looked at Melody, and saw she was smiling at him. "You're my little Angel of Death."

Angel of Death.  Angel smiled as he repeated the name in his mind.

As they turned and walked off the bridge, they saw that the three ponies from before had followed them and were waiting for them to come back over the hill.  Angel quickly slipped the knife, still unfolded, into his pocket.

One of them, who Angel assumed by his multiple piercings was their leader, walked up and said "Where's that losa' you was walkin' off wit'?"

Melody smiled. "Oh, do you mean Timer? We killed him and threw him off that bridge back there."

Angel knew this pony would never take that threat seriously. "Yeah, right. And I'm Cap'n Hurricane." The pony grinned maliciously. "Maybe I should teach ya' not to lie."

Angel laughed. He couldn't hold it in any longer. This served only to anger the pierced pony. "What the fuck you laughin' at, kid?"

Angel straightened up, gasping for air. "I'm sorry. I found your stupidity amazing. I can't believe you think he's a "captain", or that you think you could actually teach us anything."

The pierced pony glared at Angel with a grin. "Tough talk for a colt. Take care o' this fucking smart-flanked mule, guys."

Two of the thickest, meanest and dumbest ponies to ever walk Equestria walked forward, each holding a makeshift weapon.

Angel looked at his mother, who simply sighed, shaking her head. "Alright, fine. Go ahead; I won't stop you."

Angel felt a grin creap across his face. "Good."

The first pony dumbly swung a tree limb at Angel, who simply ducked the horizontal blow. The branch went wide and smacked the second pony in the jaw. The second pony didn't even notice it. Angel was amazed as the pony just kept walking. Then he saw both their eyes and how bloodshot they were. He also noticed holes leading down their neck. These guys are some heavy druggies. Angel knew about drugs from his father's stories of Killers who used to take them before fights so they were impervious to pain. The only way they could be stopped was if...they couldn't keep going Angel finished in thought.

The second pony advanced with a chain in his hand. Isn't that a bit cliché? Angel wondered. He jumped to the side as the chain hit the dirt path. Siezing that moment, Angel pulled out his knife and sank it through the chain. He then pinched the pony's pressure point, making him drop the chain and wrapped the end that this brute had been holding around his neck, forcing the pony into a kneeling position.

Angel turned to find himself having to duck again as the branch swung over his head. He took the second that the other stallion was unbalanced to hit him in the gut. Winded, the pony dropped to all fours and dropped his weapon. Angel grabbed the weapon and split it in two, forcing one half through the pony's spine. He smiled as the teenager silently suffered: His lungs were punctured instantly, disabling his ability to scream, but he lived every second of agony before he finally suffocated in his blood.

Holding what was left of the branch, he walked over to the leader of them all. He raised the relatively sharp branch above his head like a javelin, starting as the pink mare from the swingset threw herself infront of the thug. "Don't hurt him! He's just being stupid. Please let him go. He's my brother."

Angel looked ferocious. His coat was black, and his mane and eyes were ablaze. He violently shoved the mare out of his way. "Stupid foal." He muttered.

He knelt down to the pathetic wimp that had fifteen minutes before been King Shit of Turd Island. He brought his fanged grin as close to the pony as possible. "What do you fear most?" He whispered.

The green pony only whimpered. Angel reached over and grabbed his neck. "Do you fear Death?"

The pony quickly nodded. Angel whispered "Do you fear being alone?"

Once again the pony nodded. He then made a grave mistake: He glanced at his sister. Angel instantly dropped him, grabbing the mare who had earlier so bravely defended her brother.

The pierced stallion jumped up and ran at Angel. "DON'T YOU DARE HURT HER, YOU SON OF A B-"

Angel smashed his hoof across the stallion's muzzle, and grinned inwardly as he saw he had shattered his jaw. "Don't insult my parents." Angel said with a chilling calm.

Angel knelt down and brought his sister close up to her brother. "Do you love your brother?" Angel asked. The mare nodded. "Do you think you could live without your brother?" He smiled when she shook her head.

"Would you be able to live if somepony killed your sister?" Angel asked, looking at the pony lying in a pathetic heap on the ground.

The pony glared upward as he looked Angel in the eye. He swallowed his pain long enough to spit "Only long enough to kill the sick pony who murdered her."

Angel took that as all the cue he needed. "Good enough for me." He said with a smile. He then lanced the stick sideways, giving it a new home inside the small mare's head beside him.

"NO!" The pierced pony jumped up and ran at Angel. He, having expected this, kicked the pony's front kneecap, and watched as the weak pony crumpled face-first into the ground.

Angel leaned forward, wrapped his hoof in the pierced ponies mane and hauled him up. He looked the pony in the eye. "Remember my face. I want you to come find me when you think you're ready. I want to break you again. You will always be my bitch, bitch. Now, pay respects to your sister, and kiss the ground at her hooves." He dragged the pony over to his sister, and started slamming his face into the ground.

When the pony was no longer recognisable, Angel walked over to the bound pony who had been forced to watch.

"Do you feel bad for what you've done?" Angel asked.

The pony nodded.

"Will you ever do it again?"

"N-N-N-No." The pony stammered.

"'No sir.'"

Angel got no response from the green pony.

"How old are you?"

"F-fifteen."

"'Fifteen, sir.'" Angel said, jabbing the pony in the chest.

"F-F-Fifteen, s-sir." The pony said to the ground.

Angel grinned. "Well I'm sure you've learned your lesson, haven't you?"

"Y-Yes. Sir."

Angel looked at the chain around his neck. "Well, I'd best get you free then, shouldn't I?"

The small green pony looked at Angel with wide eyes. "Th-Thank you, sir."

The pony watched Angel walk around behind him, and was relieved to hear the small jingle of chains. He started getting confused as they felt tighter. At first, he thought it was his imagination, but he realised soon that they started to suffocate him.

"H-Help! Stop! What are you doing?!" The pony managed to rasp out.

Angel came back around to look at him, an evil grin stretching across from ear to ear. "Y'know, I'm just no good with knots. I guess I'll just leave you here 'till somepony else finds you. Here's hoping they have steel cutters, huh? There's no way they're getting that knife out." He glanced over the pony's shoulder, letting out a low whistle. "Yeah, that's stuck in pretty far."

"You...bastard..." The young pony fell silent for the last time.

"Huh. Really thought you'd last longer."

He turned and walked back over to his mother, who had a small grin on her face.

"What's gotten into you?" Angel asked.

"My Angel of Death."